New fabric developments - be it, polyester yarns made from upcycled plastic or vegetable-tanned hides - are becoming common with the textile industry's continued push for smarter and more sustainable ways to manufacture.
The September edition of Première Vision Paris was a leitmotif for eco-unity with hundreds of tanneries and mills ascending on the French capital to showcase their Fall 2016 collection.
Here are Le Souk's top exhibitor picks for the next seaso. Each one embodies textile innovation, sustainability and beauty.
Atlantic Leather
The Iceland-based tannery is known for its fish skin leather, ranging from salmon to wolfish. Atlantic leather takes waste from local fish factories - that would normally be binned - and crafts the scaly skins into rich leather. Another eco-point is the firm's use of green energy. This season in particular, Atlantic leather introduced a new tanning process based on mimosa and tree bark for a natural finish.
Gruppocinque
Italy's Gruppocinque showcased illustrious wool and silk textiles that have Newlife fibers - yarn derived from used plastic bottles - in their texture. The Fall collection consists of Astrakhan and faux knit fabric, fleece-look textiles in jacquard and micro-silk patterns and Moroccan mosaic textiles - the latter designed to give an 'in motion' finish to the fabric.
Carvalhos
Portugal's Carvalhos is a tannery with strict regulations on its leather fabrics and hides. Its 'Oak Leather' range is fully biodegradable and recyclable - elements which it showed-off at Premiere Vision via a time-line series involving the degradation of a leather shoe.
Tärnsjö Graveri
The Swedish tannery - also up for Tannery of the Year - is a world-leader in sustainable hides. The Tärnsjö-based saddler has been supplying organic leather to luxury maison Hermès and fast-fashion's H&M for many years now. This season was all about quality - and variety; the tannery offering an array of interesting new colors using natural dye techniques.
Ge-Fin
Italy's Ge-Fin make exquisitely-printed leather hides. Located in the Leather Pisa, Ge-Fin produces high-end Italian leather with a strong fashion-focus for end-use in clothing, footwear and leather goods. The tannery's hallmark is it being the first to apply the technique of digital printing to animal hide. And they are eco; offering a Fall collection this season that is metal-free and reuses effluent in production.
Belinac
The French fabric specialist has been making textiles since 1882. Located in Saint-Etienne, Belinac is known for its rare choice of fabrics and colors. Delicate silks are its forte. But this Fall, the mill launched a new range of jacquards, which stood out for their detail and beautiful texture.