S. Café: The Fabric Café

I heard about this topic at a seminar held at my college. The topic was “How Coffee Grounds are used to make Fabric”. Being a coffee addict and a coffee lover, this topic attracted me. Therefore, this article explains briefly about how a Taiwanese Company makes clothes out of coffee grounds.

This Taiwanese company named Singtex found a new way of making fabric using coffee grounds. The CEO of Singtex, Jason Chen, while having a conversation with his wife came up with this idea. He researched and launched a brand named “S. Cafe”.

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Source : Figure 1 (left) – Singtex/S.cafe
Figure 2 (right) – Singtex/S.cafe

PROCESS:

Polyester is manufactured with recycled PET bottles. Roasted coffee grounds are mixed in with the polyester to create coffee yarn. Coffee laced yarn is used to make fabric.

Source : Figure 3 – Ministryofsupply.com

Source : Figure 4 – Materialdistrict.com

FUNCTIONS:

Odor control-
Everyone works hard, sweats and also deodorants don’t remain for much longer time. This fabric has the function of controlling odor. Since this fabric has embedded coffee grounds inside, it absorbs odor produced by the body and keeps us fresh.

Fast Drying-
Moisture from the skin is transferred from the skin to the outer surface of the fabric. It then spreads across the surface area to lower the duration of drying. This is a permanent feature of the fabric.

UV Protection-
Since UV rays are harmful for the skin, this fabric ensures to keep it away from the skin. It has numerous microscopic pores which create long lasting natural shield, reflecting UV rays and providing a comfortable outdoor experience.

Ice Cool Touch-
Compared to other fabrics, this fabric can cool down the temperature of the skin about 1 to 2 degrees.

Source : Figure 5 – singtex.com

According to me this smart invention is very sustainable and provides comfort. To produce coffee only 0.2% bean is used and the rest 99.8% is thrown away. So, why to throw away when it can be reused into one of the most important things in a human’s life. Also, it provides really cool features.

Source : Figure 6 – https://www.hugoboss.com/us/low-top-sneakers-in-leather-and-s.cafe%C2%AE-fabric/747476557613.html

Source : Figure 7 –  https://www.hugoboss.com/dk/en/zip-through-sweatshirt-in-technical-fabric-with-s.cafe%C2%AE/hbeu50423507_001.html

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Authors:
Sonal Dalvi
2nd Year, Fashion Design

Editors:
Prarthana Kapadia
3rd Year, Fashion Design
Shalini Mohanty
Assistant Professor, ASFDT

Graphic Designer:
Ruhi Kapoor
3rd Year, Fashion Design

Header Image source – Mike Kenneally on Unsplash

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