Is nylon really a very low-end fabric?

Nowadays, many cities in China are sorting their garbage to recycle materials that can be reused at the source and turned into resources again, instead of going to landfills and incinerators. More use of recycled materials to replace virgin materials to make clothing is bound to reduce the loss of nature to a certain extent.

For example, the ECONYL® material used in Prada's recycled nylon bags is made from recycled carpets, salvaged fishing nets and fishing gear, and purified trimmings left over from the production of clothes.

In people's minds, the essence of recycling, which is waste and garbage, sounds very unpremium. Is it really possible for a luxury brand like Prada to announce that it wants to use recycled fabrics to make its products?

It is interesting to look into the history of Prada and you will find that it is inextricably linked to nylon fabric. Nylon is a strong, wearable, and lightweight material. When it was invented in the 1920s, it immediately became a highly used fabric. It is most often made into industrial textiles, such as rope and tires; in wartime, it was also used to make tents and parachutes.

Although nylon was "popular", the "rugged and durable personality" also makes it has been regarded as a "low-end" fabric. In 1984, Prada launched its first black backpack made of nylon. As a luxury brand, Prada's choice of nylon, an "not upscale" fabric, was a breakthrough at the time.

First of all, Prada has always been known for its bold use of unusual fabrics in the fashion industry. The first nylon bag, not only retains the abrasion-resistant, waterproof and lightweight characteristics of nylon but also has some improvements on the rugged heavy industrial feel of nylon in the manufacturing method. Fine twist weaving method, leather as ingredients decorated, both the feel and visual are more delicate and more stylish.

Secondly, under the leadership of the current designer Miuccia Prada, Prada has been popular from the 80s to the present, mainly because of its forward-looking design concept - actively exploring the relationship between people and the environment. Miuccia designed this nylon bag because urban women at that time required A lightweight backpack that could hold all the objects while elegantly freeing their hands.

Prada's nylon bags are still very popular today. It was Prada that introduced the nylon material to the hall of high fashion.

It is important to mention that ECONYL® is made from "garbage", but by depolymerizing and removing impurities, it can be returned to its original "clean" state. Like any other raw textile material. It is not "dirty", "old", or "unwanted" in nature.

In addition, it takes more time and financial resources to go through recycling and reclamation techniques to make a new type of fabric while avoiding secondary contamination during processing than it does to make virgin textiles with mature manufacturing processes. The cost price of eco-friendly fabrics is, in fact, more expensive than most ordinary fabrics.

So, nylon is not the so-called low-end fabric but depends on how you make full use of it, just like Prada is doing.