Remember the story of Lycra, which was developed in the late 1950s, but was relatively unknown for another 20 years. Innovative materials often have a long period of conception. But, fortunately most of the world has cottoned on and we now have fabric specifically designed to protect bodies from the stress of commuting.

Travel wear is waterproof, wrinkle proof and in some cases temperature proof: each garment has a specific function that improves uncomfortable travel conditions. There is fabric that monitors and adjusts to the wearer’s body heat, so people travelling between different climates remain comfortable. Running shoes are now available made from material that allows your feet to breathe; stockings impregnated with Vitamin C to keep our legs healthy during winter months, and health-giving fabric made from milk protein fibre. Now, you can have all this…from a fabric!

There has always been a high degree of innovation coming from Japan in terms of fabrics and fashion. Designers and manufacturers originally concentrated on the high-end market and the quality justified the price. Many manufacturers had originally produced natural fibres and fabrics, but much of the raw material had to be sourced from elsewhere in Asia. This fact combined with high labour costs, rendered it uncompetitive in a global market. The world became intrigued by the innovation of the Japanese, even in use of natural fabrics. The use of banana and pineapple fibres, are still produced in Japan, but due to production costs are costly even to the local Japanese.

Japanese manufacturers have turned circumstances to their advantage, moving from the production of natural to mainly synthetic fibres and fabrics. But synthetics produced in Japan need something extra to make them competitive in the global market: standard polyester can be produced anywhere and labour costs are lower in other parts of the globe. What has emerged is a range of highly engineered fibres and fabrics that are quite unlike anything being produced in Europe or North America.

The trend focuses on one market in particular – “health-giving" fabrics.These fabrics are imbued with properties that are said to provide protection against ultraviolet rays or bacteria. In Europe the tendency is to apply a protective coating or finishing treatment to fabrics, but while manufacturers in Japan also make use of coatings they innovate further by engineering the fibres themselves. At the fibre’s molecular level they are effectively manipulating the fabric’s DNA, an approach that presents many more possibilities than procedures involving basic single-application coatings.

Most waterproof clothing in Europe relies on lamination technology for the application of a special coating. An alternative technology that focuses on the structure of fibre and fabric to provide the bulk of its performance has been developed in Japan. A waterproof, breathable fabric comprising a polyester micro-filament: there are also fabrics developed that provide thermal insulation. Air is one of our most effective sources of insulation, we use it naturally when goose bumps cause the hairs on our arms to rise and trap air as a layer of insulation in an effort to keep us warm. A fibre that traps air for us in our clothing can provide further insulation and now there is a sophisticated filament yarn for use in active sportswear. New fibre’s performance levels have a 10% improvement rate on fibre’s used in conventional fabric.

Technical innovation in Japanese manufacturing goes beyond the coating and engineering of the fibres. The same technology may be used to very different effect by several companies. Ceramic fibre used by one provides protection from ultraviolet rays, while another incorporates ceramic to intensify the whiteness of its fabric; a third takes heat from the body then reintroduces it instantly making it suitable for clothing and bed linen.

Exquisite fabrics that combine traditional hand processes with the latest technology are now available throughout the world. Traditional techniques and cutting-edge technology now combine for aesthetic value; form as well as function. By using fabrics that protect, building in functional objects and putting comfort, security and convenience first the function of fabric is taken to a whole new level in both fashion and interior design.