The story of microfibres
- Words by Peppermint
It seems a touch far-fetched, the idea that little bits of your favourite jumper or dress couldΒ be massively contributing to marine pollution, slowly morphing into tiny contaminant-filled bombs that float about oceans and end up in fish bellies (and then, of course, our bellies).
But it’s actually totally true.
The problem is polyester and other synthetic fabrics, which shed thousands of super tiny plastic pieces β called microfibres β each time they’re washed.
As thisΒ rather cute animated short videoΒ by The Story of Stuff Project explains, microfibres are too tiny for wastewater treatmentΒ filters to catch. So they end up in our waterways, where they suck up other pollutants around them and become “like little toxic bombs full of motor oil, pesticides and industrial chemicals”.
A mind-boggling 1.4 million trillion pieces are already estimated to be littering our waterways. That’s the equivalent of 200 million microfibres for every person on the planet.
Grossed out? Avoiding polyester and other synthetic fabrics is only part of the solution. You can also help demand that clothing companies take responsibility for microfibre pollution byΒ signing this petition.
βββββββββββββ
WORDS: KOREN HELBIG
JOIN OUR MAILING LIST
Brighten up your inbox with our not-too-frequent emails featuring Peppermint-related news, events, competitions and more!
explore
MoreΒ articles
Itβs beginning to look a lot like Christmasβ¦. Which means we are officially entering party season. Work parties, friend-dos, family get-togethers and then weβre straight into New Year festivities. If you’re lucky enough, you might be staring down the barrel…
Look, I donβt want to make anyone panic but ITβS DECEMBER!!! If youβre planning to give homemade gifts, youβre going to have to act fast.Β …
Furred, feathered, fishy, scaledβ¦ The pets we choose are as diverse as our personalities. (And apparently, quite often we resemble each other.) But they all…
When you hang a painting on a wall, the story stays put. But when you wear a beautifully made garment that may as well be…
Hang out with us on Instagram
Itβs all a lot, isnβt it?
We werenβt designed to carry this much emotional grief and world-wide trauma on an ongoing basis. Just know youβre not alone. Itβs ok to not be ok. π«Άπ»
Image from @PeopleIveLoved: βI am not sure my tiny brain was meant to understand this enormous grief.β
βWe love that we can bring a hint of imagination and whimsy into everyday life by making ordinary objects fun. Weβve learned to appreciate the little wins and to take a moment for each step we achieve.ββ
β
Disillusioned by the realities of fast fashion, design grads Emily May and Sidonie Moore ditched clothing for a business that finds fun in the everyday. Enter @TheNonsenseMaker: a collection of unique homewares, fun wall art, greeting cards and more that breathe life into Emilyβs illustrations: βI love the idea of taking real-world objects and changing your perspective in a way that brings magic and whimsy into everyday life!ββ
β
In issue 64βs feature βIt all makes senseβ, we chat to the Naarm/Melbourne-based duo about their sustainability philosophy, TV re-runs and their commitment to local makers. At stockists now!β
β
Photos: @MeAndMyGirlβ
β
#PeppermintMagazine #TheNonsenseMaker #LocalMakers #SustainableCraft
Any New Yearβs resolutions on your list? We love this from @OtterBeeStitching - βbe brave enough to suck at something newβ.
Thereβs no points for perfection, but youβll get a trophy for trying. If nothing else this year, take the leap and try something new.
#OtterBeeStitching #Embroidery #BeBrave #TrySomethingNew #EmbroideryArt
Sunday serving suggestion βοΈ
Gorgeous photos from @JolieFemmeStore - who make sweet garments from vintage bedsheets.
#PeppermintMagazine #SlowSunday #SwitchOff #Unplug #ReadAMagazine
A toast to the old you π₯
We wholeheartedly love this post from the brilliant @EmilyOnLife:
β2026: Reinvent, burn it down, let it go (whatever it is). Year of the Snake it up. Exercise your boundaries, exercise your body, take one teeny step every day towards a life that feels better to be in.
But donβt you dare shit on your old self while you do it.
Hold yourself with reverence and tenderness and respect, because you got you this far. You did your very best with the information and tools you had at the time. You scraped yourself together, you made it work, you survived what felt impossible to survive: again and again and again.
You are perpetually in the process of becoming, whether you can feel it or not, whether or not you add it to your 2026 to-do list.β
Some very wise words from @Damon.Gameau to take us into 2026 ππΌ
