Thursday, January 28, 2010

I Love Myself Some Soysage

Soysage meatballs with bread crumbs and parmesan (but not fresh basil--too expensive in the winter) from Vegetarian Times:

Delicious.

Did you know that I don't eat meat? Because I don't (unless we're on a long car trip and I'm feeling vulnerable and there are chicken strips at the Dairy Queen that we've stopped at, but really, how often does that happen?). I also try not to craft with or wear animal products unless they're recycled (I use wool roving, but I know its source, and glue? Ugh, don't get me started on glue).

Even though I loooooong to dye silk scarves with Kool-aid. Does anyone know if there's an animal-friendly fabric equivalent to silk?

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Okay...just because I can, I googled "animal-friendly fabric equivalent to silk" and got this:

SOY SILK

A lesser-known, eco-friendly fiber is soy silk, which is made from tofu-manufacturing waste. Soy protein is liquefied and then extruded into long, continuous fibers that are cut and processed like any other spinning fiber. Because soy has high protein content, the fabric is much more receptive to natural dyes — eliminating the need for synthetic dyes. Soy silk is 100% biodegradable.

In 1941, automobile pioneer Henry Ford, a strong proponent of soybeans, wore the first “soy suit” made of 25 percent soy fibers and 75 percent wool fibers. Today, the South West Trading Company, Inc. (SWTC) features SOYSILK®, a soy fiber and yarn used for spinning, knitting, crotchet, and weaving. Jonelle Raffino, President of SWTC, Inc., said the fabric is “as soft as cashmere.” Soy silk also wicks away moisture and has a soft, gentle drape.

Uh, and the stuff runs about $25 a yard. *choke!*

julie said...

Holy crap, $25 a yard!?! But silk itself is pretty pricy...sensing another crafting item to save up for.

Unknown said...

And if you get hungry, you can eat your scarf.

julie said...

In this economic climate, that's probably a pretty useful characteristic.

Angela Friedman said...

Why, peace silk, of course! They allow the silk worms to break out of the cocoon before boiling it - it makes for a different texture, but is still lovely. Also, there are bamboo/silk blends which can be nice, too!

Angela
http://angelafriedman.com

julie said...

I'm afraid that I won't use any silk at all--I haven't done extensive research, but I was troubled enough by the concerns raised about peace silk at http://www.wormspit.com/peacesilk.htm to decide that it wasn't for me, either.

That texture does feel nice, though. When I was in high school, silk shirts were VERY in--wish I still had some of those to craft with!