Clevertex - Grado Zero Espace Srl

Other possible products that can be micro-encapsulated are: moisturisers, essential oils, vitamins,
deodorants and even insect repellents.
Moisturisers, for instance, have been incorporated by micro-encapsulating on stockings in order to
improve the comfort and prevent drying out of the skin. Such panties are commercialised by the
French underwear company DIM [180].
Skintex ® from Cognis is another product that can be applied to clothes for skincare. Based on slow
release microcapsules, Skintex® uses active ingredients that have a real effect on wellbeing, such as
moisturising, cooling, energising, relaxing and mosquito repelling.
The microcapsules are embedded into the fabric. These are filled with high-grade ingredients and,
over time, they are slowly released onto the skin. A protective layer of chitosan protects each capsule,
saving its contents from warmth, drying out and the cold, and giving it durability against the wear and
tear of day-to-day life. At the same time, chitosan has skin-caring attributes. It helps to protect the skin
from dehydration.
The ingredients are released through two mechanisms. Firstly, there is the light friction the wearer
creates when wearing clothes fitted with the capsules. Secondly, the chitosan layer is slowly reduced
over time through the wearer’s body's own enzymes - activating the ingredients and enabling them to
move from the fabric onto the skin.
According to the company, every fabric, be it a natural or synthetic material, can be fitted with Skintex ®
[181].
Fig. 97 Skintex® on polyester (left picture) and Skintex® on cotton 5right picture) (Source: Cognis)
Further, Neyret, a French clothing company, developed fragrant lingerie.
Olivier Lapidus is the first haute couture designer to use the technique of micro-encapsulation to
create ‘perfumed’ fabrics for evening wear. The perfume is wash-resistant and dry-clean resistant and
the fabrics release their fragrance gradually, during wearing.
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