Date of Completion

2025

Document Type

Honors College Thesis

Department

Community Development and Applied Economics

Thesis Type

Honors College

First Advisor

Kelly McDowell

Keywords

sustainability, textile, fiber, milkweed, fiber arts, horticulture

Abstract

Background and Literature Review: This project occurred within the context of the 21st century textile industry, which is heavily based on petroleum-based synthetic fibers. Synthetic fibers make up over 50% of worldwide textile consumption. Common natural fibers, such as cotton and wool, are also not without their environmental impacts: monocropping, nutrient runoff, and soil degradation. Clothing companies are faced with balancing the creation of a visually appealing product with meeting sustainability goals. Common milkweed was identified as a possible sustainable fiber crop for its many favorable qualities, including ease of establishment, resilience, and ability to provide two forms of fiber (bast and vegetable silk). Objectives: This work seeks to blend the technical process of textile creation with that of fiber arts. The tactile objective was to create a fabric sample using a blend of milkweed bast fiber and vegetable silk. Other academic goals included to create and present educational lecture materials to CDAE 2990: Sustainable Fashion and to argue for the creation of a minor in Sustainable Fashion at the University of Vermont. Methods: Common milkweed was harvested at a site located in the Burlington, Vermont area, which was then soaked, dried, and processed to separate the bast fibers from the pith of the stalk. The vegetable silk was collected from the seed pods and stored as well. Hand carders were used to create a 50/50 blend of the two by volume, and hand-spinning was used to create a yarn. The yarn was woven to create a fabric sample. Marigolds were grown and the flowerheads were dried for dye purposes. A portion of the vegetable silk was saved and then dyed to create an artistic weaving with cotton twine. Results: The results of the process include 3 items: a 50/50 by volume bast fiber/vegetable silk fabric sample measuring approximately 1.5 by 2 inches, an artistic weaving consisting of 100% vegetable fluff yarn and cotton twine measuring approximately 3.5 by 6 inches, and a framework detailing the timeline that a recreator should follow. Discussion and Conclusion: Milkweed should be considered as a potential industrial and artistic fiber crop. Each type of fiber it produces are not without their drawbacks, but some of their issues can be mitigated by combining them.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

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