We’re on a funky fibers kick around here, it seems! From pineapple yarn to spider silk, we’ve been exploring some unusual natural fabric options. I sent my post about pineapple fabric to a friend a couple of weeks ago, and she pointed me to yet another interesting natural fabric: banana fibers. Like Piña cloth, the traditional use for the banana fibers was to make jusi, a silk used in the Barong Tagalog. Jusi has an interesting history. It evolved from a Chinese raw silk. As demand rose in the Phillipines, manufacturers had to find another way to make the cloth, because supplies were scarce. It turned out that the fiber from banana stalks worked perfectly! These days, most jusi fabric is actually polyester and some is made with silk fibers. Banana fibers can be used to make more than just the silk used in the Barong Tagalog. According to Eco Fashion World: Pretty awesome! I love the idea of vegan silk made from the castoff stalks from banana harvests. Have you ever seen banana cloth available for sale? My hunting seems to only turn up finished garments. Image Credits: Banana. Creative Commons photo by orangeacid Banana Fibre Craft. Creative Commons photo by phoenixarts
