Natural Fiber Clothing & Home Resources
Hey guys, Fallon here! If you’re new here, welcome! I’m a certified functional nutritionist (in training!) who helps women feel empowered in their health journey, learn how to confidently eat well, find healing and support during chronic illness, and gain kitchen confidence through simple, delicious recipes for you and your family!
It hit me a few years ago - why would I stop using plastic and synthetics in my kitchen and home but continue to put them on my body?
The transition has been a slow one, but my body can feel the difference - I almost crave organic and natural clothing and can tell the subtle difference when I wear synthetic fibers (which is rare!).
Let’s chat about WHY I switched to natural fiber, why natural materials are so health supportive, the best natural fiber brands for clothing and home goods, and how you can transition to natural fibers affordably and easily in your own home, too!
Why Did I Switch to Natural Fiber Clothing?
When my family got knocked out with a tough virus several years back, I had this sudden intuition and desire to only put organic clothing on us during illness especially. I found this amazing Weston A Price article that confirmed exactly why I felt that!
Now what l didn’t do, to be clear (and what l'm not telling you to do), is immediately turn around and get rid of every piece of non-natural fiber clothing I owned. It is a slow transition! (and to be fair, I'm not telling *you* to do anything, just sharing my story! 😉)
The good news is, it can still be budget-friendly to keep an eye out for even just 100% cotton clothing. Yes, organic is the ideal, but it is not too difficult to find entirely cotton or linen clothing at nearly any store. Secondhand buying can of course be lovely, but a lot of second hand clothing has strong chemical scents from perfume or laundry detergent. It's helpful to start looking at what clothing you already have and see what has the highest natural fiber content! I have found that those are the pieces I'm drawn to wearing!
The sustainable approach for me personally, is to invest in fewer, better.
Thankfully, there are a ton of brands who are entirely organic or who have even started incorporating organic clothing (direct links to come!).
Again, not all information is for every person in every season! I have felt a nudge toward natural clothing personally, and that doesn't mean that you have to add that to your list of things to do or change, it's just something to pocket! I also never want to promote to more consumption for consumption's sake. I love to encourage wise and intentional purchases, and I think this is a great way to slowly do that in your wardrobe and home!
The Health Benefits of Natural Fiber Clothing
We have plenty of existing research to support the reality of negative effects from plastics, BPA, etc but we often forget to address what’s on our body! As with many health pursuits I have, one of my first questions is always: did this exist hundreds of years ago?
With synthetic fabrics like polyester, spandex, acrylic, nylon, and rayon on the rise and showing up in most of our clothing and fabrics today, it’s both frustrating that we should have to question such mainstream resources and also important that we do question them!
These fabrics are newer in the course of human history and are often derived from materials like plastic and petroleum and contain high levels of harmful chemicals, both from the fabric themselves and the dyes, etc. used in manufacturing.
Not only that, but they often don’t hold up well over time. How often have you grabbed a cheap tee at a chain store and found it completely worn out by the next season? It’s a bummer!
Fabrics like cotton, wool, hemp, and linen, however, have been used in clothing, bedsheets, rugs, and many other textiles for thousands of years. These materials can be found more accessibly in nature, and do not have to undergo extreme synthetic manufacturing like polyester, etc.
Fabric Frequencies
I have found that people have mixed feelings on the conversation of fabric having “frequencies”, but I personally feel quite comfortable about the subject. It’s often mis-interpreted as a more New Age pursuit, but frequencies at the core are quite scientific: every living thing has a vibration or frequency!
Of course, I hold any new idea up to the lens of what Scripture says and who I believe God to be based on His word, but I believe God to be an intricate and brilliant creator who shows multiple examples of encouraging his people toward the use of linen and wool in particular! He is the ultimate scientist, designer, and artist!
As a high level quick view, the working understanding of fabric frequencies, albeit from slightly limited research, is that natural fibers like wool and linen have incredibly high and healing frequencies (around 5000 hz), organic cotton falls around 100 hz, and synthetic fibers such as polyester, acrylic, etc are around 15 hz; the reason these numbers matter? A healthy human body has a frequency of around 70-100, and exposing the body to lower frequencies is thought to have health implications, whereas exposure to higher frequencies has potential healing properties.
(Did you know hospitals exclusively used linen sheets historically, in order to promote healing in their patients?)
Now, even if this conversation doesn’t resonate with you, I think the principle of sticking with materials and fabrics that are natural, God-given, and historically used is incredibly important. If that’s as far as you want to take the discussion, I think that’s perfectly okay and respectable!
How to Get Started Buying Natural Fabrics
So many of you have LOVED this conversation as I’ve had it in pieces on Instagram. But the most common drawback and question I hear is..how the heck do I afford natural fiber clothing?!
I know a lot of you feel you can’t afford to change your entire wardrobe overnight. (I mean, who can?!) Here’s my advice… DON’T. Do it one piece at a time and use what you already HAVE in your closet that is 100% cotton, linen, etc!
We also have to keep in mind that our current culture is one of massive overconsumption. We don’t actually need 40 shirts to live a good life. You can easily create a beautiful, sustainable, capsule style wardrobe with a handful of really good pieces that you love!
And to that end, here’s some of my favorite finds to help you do just that!
The Best Natural Fiber Clothing Options I’ve Found!
Pact Organic will likely ALWAYS be my number one spot. You can use the code FALLON20 to save on your first order, too!
EVERY single pair of cozy pants I have is from Pact, and every single pair has also held up for going on about 5 years now, no joke. This stuff is QUALITY.
And nearly every cute dress I have is from here, too!
They have a fantastic men’s selection as well, and also offer really great sale prices if you keep an eye out!
Exhibit A for ADORABLE Pact dress!
2. One Quince is a VERY close second favorite for natural fiber clothing. Their pricing is outstanding! They don’t offer as many organic choices (although they do have some!), but the linen clothing and pricing as a whole is hard to beat (and so is the quality!). Just make sure you double check the item you’re looking at - they do still carry polyester and other synthetics!
My top favorites?
- These pajamas (best sleep ever..)
- This dreamy quilt (shown below in my room!)
And I do have to highlight how adorable the Quince linen sheets are in my kiddos rooms!
Messy boy nightstand & all
3. Amazon Finds - you’d be surprised at how many great options there are here! Lots of small business who have made their way into the Amazon world have fantastic options for 100% wool clothing, organic cotton clothing for adults and kids alike, and even linen finds!
In fact, some of my own very favorite linen sheets are from Amazon! We have these in our main bedroom and our guest room!
4. Some Chain Stores - special shout-out to American Eagle because this 90’s gal still LOVES them - they have a ton of super super cute 100% cotton options that hold up incredibly well!
Other surprising choices include big names like Old Navy, Gap, Eddie Bauer, Target, etc - you can find 100% cotton clothing just about anywhere!
Of course, places like Etsy and other wonderful small businesses have great linen & wool options in particular, but today I’m just highlighting the most accessible places for shipping, returns, and pricing!
Happy natural fiber shopping!
This post may include affiliate links that earn me a small commission at no increased cost to you. I ONLY share and recommend items and brands I’ve used consistently in my own home and with my own family!
