Fleece Fabrics - All you need to know

WHAT IS FLEECE FABRIC?

Fleece is a soft knitted fabric with a napped surface. It is typically made out of polyester but can be made out of cotton, viscose, merino wool, recycled plastic and hemp. Fleece fabric was first invented in 1979 by Malden Mills (Polartec). It was invented to replace wool knitwear, which is heavy and susceptible to pests.

WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF FLEECE FABRIC?

Very warm as it retains body heat

Water repellant - more resistant to moisture and dries quickly when wet

Lightweight

Durable - does not fray easily

Soft to touch (softer than wool)

Low cost substitute to wool

WHAT ARE THE DISADVANTAGES OF FLEECE FABRIC?

Environmental impact - polyester is non biodegradable and the production of polyester fabric results in a high amount of pollution

Not breathable

Static build up

Loses some of its insulting properties when wet

Flammable / Sensitive to heat

Must consider direction of nap when creating your design and cutting the fabric

The brushed side is prone to pilling

TYPES OF FLEECE FABRIC:

Polyester fleece - double sided with the soft pile on both sides.

Cotton fleece - more breathable and soft to touch but not as soft as polyester fleece. Added benefit of being biodegradable

Viscose / Rayon fleece - more breathable than polyester fleece and is soft and smooth. You can also find bamboo fleece which is made from the bamboo plant and has the same properties as a viscose fleece

Hemp fleece - tends to have a deep pile on one side and smooth on the other side

Merino wool fleece - this fleece is very fluffy and warm

Polar fleece - most common type of polyester fleece. It is ideal for outdoor clothing such as jackets and jumpers

Microfleece - this is thinner than polar fleece and is commonly used to line waterproof garments and sportswear. It is generally considered a microfleece if it weighs less than 200gsm

Sherpa fleece - mimics the appearance and feel of sheep wool. It is heavy and thick with a textured raised surface, making it suitable for jackets

Sweatshirt fleece - smooth jersey fabric on the right side and on the wrong side a brushed fleece surface

Plush fleece - deep pile, tends to be used for blankets

Minky fleece - raised texture on one side, normally used for making blankets

IS FLEECE FABRIC SUSTAINABLE?

Fleece fabric is most commonly made from non-renewable resources and needs additional chemical coatings to make them windproof and water resistant. Some polyester fleece fabrics are made using recycled PET (also referred to as eco-fleece). This is seen as a more environmentally friendly option because raw petroleum is not required (it is well documented that the oil manufacturing industry is one of the world's biggest pollutants), additionally it has the potential to reduce the amount of plastic bottles going to landfill. However, whether the synthetic fibres are recycled or not they still pose a problem as they do not biodegrade and they produce microfibres (microplastics) when washed. One study in California that was funded by Patagonia found that, "on average, synthetic fleece jackets release 1.7 grams of microfibres or as many as 250,000 synthetic fibres each wash". So even when recycled plastics are used they still may ultimately end up in our oceans.

There are things that we can do to make sure minimal shedding occurs such as:

Washing less often

Using a shorter washing cycle at a lower temperature

Use liquid detergent instead of powder to prevent friction

Wash with similar textiles to prevent tougher fabrics rubbing against softer ones

Use a Cora Ball (a laundry ball that catches microplastics in the wash) or a Guppy Bag (a self-cleaning fabric bag made of a specially designed micro-filter material that you wash your clothes in)