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Imagine a field of cotton bolls bursting open in shades of beige, green and rust. This is no longer a dream, but a reality. FoxFibre, a completely naturally-colored cotton, was developed by Sally Fox in response to environmental issues associated with pesticide use, textile dyes and finishes. All of the cotton from Fox’s plant breeding nursery is grown organically.
Cotton in shades of brown through rust and tan currently grows in Peru, Ecuador, Central America, Mexico and the southeastern United States. However, such colored cotton is often characterized as having very short fiber content. Fox, an entomologist specializing in integrated pest management and a weaver and spinner herself, began her own breeding program to improve the spinning properties of the short-fiber brown cotton.
During her third year of research, Fox discovered shades of green, red and pink fibers hidden within the brown cotton. Upon that discovery, she began FoxFibre and a new business, Natural Cotton Colours. At that point, the breeding program not only focused on improving fiber length, but also on increasing the number of colors available. FoxFibre has already developed a range of fiber types and shades of greens and browns. Fox hopes to have red and gold varieties ready soon—maybe even a blue.
For consumers, theses colored cotton fibers can now be spun and made into finished fabrics without the use of chemicals, such as dyes and detergents. In fact, farmers under contract to cultivate this special cotton use only organic gardening methods.
FoxFibre fabrics are amazingly colorfast and durable. Research shows naturally-colored cottons actually intensify, not fade, when laundered. Another benefit is that clothes made with FoxFibre tend to retain their fresh, new look for a longer time.
Until recently, no one paid much attention to Fox’s research until Levi Strauss & Co. began buying FoxFibre for an all-natural line of causal clothing. Natural Cotton Colours now sells to Esprit, Fieldcrest-Cannon, L.L. Bean and several other leading fashion companies – mainly because consumer acceptance has been phenomenal. As an example, a FoxFibre sweater in the L.L. Bean catalog sold out in a record six days because the fabric was attractive, was the least costly sweater offered and featured other economics and environmental advantages.
Fox also has a mail order division call Vreseis ltd., which is a retail and wholesale mail order source through which Fox offers lint, sliver, yarn, fabric and finished products. For more information contact Vreseis limited, PO box 87 , Wickenburg, AZ 85358. E-mail: vreseis@foxfiber.com.
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