This natural, hand-sewn dress is made from bamboo fabric and pure silver. The silver sets the dress apart as it helps shield the body from wireless technology.
With the proliferation of wireless technology, some are turning to shielding clothing to help protect the body from radio frequencies (RF). This is in stark contrast to the emphasis on wearable technology, particularly new forms of embroidered fabrics with sensors and computer memory devices. (See Computers in Your Clothes? A Milestone for Wearable Electronics.)
I recently created this anti-radiation dress not only as a partial shield, but to help raise awareness about WiFi, cell phones, tablets and other wireless devices. In my opinion, shielding clothing is the last place to start when addressing this technology. Far better to wire your computer, adjust your use of a cell phone and reduce your exposure at night. The following posts address each of these concerns:
- From Wireless to Wired – Our Family’s Journey
- 10 Cell Phone Safety Tips
- Sleep Melatonin and Electronic Devices
Unless you are 100% shielded, parts of your body are still being exposed, which means protective clothing has limitations. Fully enclosed canopies (for sleep) may be a better option. (Find DIY Canopy Mesh Fabric here.)
The difference between shielding and grounding fabric
Shielding fabric blocks an electromagnetic field with a barrier made of a conductive or magnetic material. Electromagnetic shielding that blocks radio frequency electromagnetic radiation (wireless technology) is known as RF shielding.
Grounding fabric connects the body to the earth using a cord and metal stake (placed outdoors, or cord and grounded three-prong outlet (found indoors).
Grounding is a complex issue and requires careful research before connecting yourself electrically with the earth. (Learn more in the post Sleep, Melatonin and Electronic Devices.)
The bamboo/silver fabric used in my anti-radiation dress is both shielding and grounding. I don’t utilize the grounding aspect, due to the complexity of grounding as noted above. In the video below I demonstrate both the shielding and grounding properties of this type of fabric.
Dress Fabric Details
I purchased my shielding fabric from LessEMF.com. LessEMF carries a variety of fabrics, some with synthetics like polyester, others with natural fabrics like cotton and bamboo. All of them have a metal component. I purchased the fabric swatches for $25 which I received back when I purchased my material. Below is the Bamboo Soft & Safe description as it appears on the website:
The Perfect Garment Shield
This fabric feels great against the skin, is hand washable, conductive, and offers exceptionally high RF shielding performance. It is perfect for making microwave shielding anti-radiation pajamas, shirts, hoods, curtains or sheets. Easy to make a ground connection because the surface has high conductivity (<1 Ohm per sq). Made with a unique blend of natural materials: 70% bamboo fiber and 30% Silver. Silver gives Soft & Safe anti-bacterial and anti-odor qualities. Greater than 50 dB attenuation too! Cuts and sews like ordinary cotton fabric. 135g/m². Pale rose color. 59 inch wide.
Thickness: 0.36 mm
Width: 59 inch
Weight: 135g/m²
Resistivity: <1 Ohm/sq
Color: pink
Base: Bamboo fiber
Conductor: pure Silver threads
Washing Instructions: Hand wash, warm, gentle, no bleach. Use TexCare. Do not dry clean. Hang dry. Iron on medium heat.
Soft&Safe™ Shielding Fabric (Cat. #A1231) …… $21.95 per lin ft 
Roll Surcharge … $10.00 
Material will ship folded if this is not selected
I purchased 5 feet of Soft & Safe along with conductive silver thread (The thread is not necessary, just a nice bonus.) I hired Najeeba, an Afghan refugee, and professional seamstress, to create a dress using one of my older dresses as a pattern. (Najeeba handcrafted the 100% natural herbal pillows found at Just So Natural Products.)
My anti-radiation dress cost approximately $200.
Living safely in a wireless world is not an easy task. Thankfully steps like turning off your router at night, holding your cell phone away from the body, and replacing your cordless DECT phone can go a long way toward protecting yourself and your family. An anti-radiation dress may not hurt either!
Oh my gosh! I never knew such a thing existed! And it’s cute and looks comfy!
very informative!
What a cool dress! I had no idea there was something like this. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Wonderful!! Well worth the money you spent! Thanks for sharing this idea and how to make our own!!
Wow, what a great article! I had no idea it was even possible to make anti-radiation clothing.
This is a brilliant post, such a great resource, thanks!
Wow. I had never even thought of this before. What a great post. Very informative and a beautiful and comfy looking dress.
Thank you, Mikki!
Wow. I never knew there was anti-EMF fabric. Good to know. Your dress looks so comfortable.
Could you talk a little about the effects of using the dress–did you notice less symptoms, etc.
Hunter, I’m not EMF hypersensitive so it’s hard to know. I certainly slept well and felt well throughout the conference. (I used shielding fabric at night, and unplugged everything around the bed.) I used my laptop with Wi Fi on, which is rare and did well. It’s really hard to know. Great question. Thanks for asking.
Andrea, I was on the site earlier this month, not sure of the date. I wrote a post asking some questions. I wanted to see if you responded only I can’t find that page of posts. At least this time I was able to access the links. It’s too overwhelming for me to know where to focus. My husband and I are dealing with black mold right now. We have had some physical reactions. We attempt to make healthful choices in our lives. Just want to be able to overcome this in a very frugal manner. Could you possibly connect via my email? I cannot always access the internet except on my phone.
Did you test the bamboo/silver fabric using your RF meter as well? I just purchased some and would like third party confirmation of its effectiveness.
Yes I did! Definitely works, Joyce.
Thank you, Andrea! I was concerned b/c I wrapped my cell phone in it and I was still able to receive calls. I don’t have a meter to see what is really going on. I want to use the fabric to protect homeopathic remedies.
Andrea, I have been intrigued by this post since first seeing it a year or two ago. I’m wondering – probably unnecessarily so – if this garment causes any issues when worn through an airport scanner? Thanks for your many thought-provoking articles!
That’s funny. We went through a scanner wearing this dress and completely forgot that it would block the technology! They had to pull me aside. So you’re right!! Now I opt out of scanners every time, so it’s no longer an issue.
Hi Andrea!
I check your website from time to time ever since we found it searching for a yogurt recipe to calm my burned and peeling face in mid-October 2017. I was dealing with a painful face and burning/peeling eyes (epithelial layers over the cornea) and no one could figure out why it had suddenly begun in March and then exploded from July to October… that is until I “accidentally” saw your blog about EMF that evening in mid-October and all of a sudden, everything “clicked” with the possible cause behind my painful eyes/face and my husband ran to turn off our wireless stuff in our house! Our church had added wifi last March (which I guess caused my growing symptoms for Mondays/Tuesdays, etc. – they have since stopped wifi for Sunday mornings) and then at the beginning of July, our Ethernet cord broke at home so we thought we could be a wireless family instead for a while. Our oldest teen got her first smart phone, we started using a microwave a lot for lunches while trying to finish some construction that summer (we’re a family of 8 kids and had not often cooked with one), and we brought our printer upstairs and set it on wireless close to where I worked/nursed a baby during the day. But in July was when things became very bad to the point on not being able to use a computer by September and even a Toronto eye clinic couldn’t figure out what was happening. (They just called it “recurrent corneal abrasion” but I was allergic to most drops/gels so my symptoms couldn’t be masked or soothed well.) When I’d go out to town, it was even worse. But 48 hours after turning off our wireless that Oct. night, my eyes needed less drops and my skin was dramatically clearing! Everyone was amazed! Two weeks later, the skin was basically back to normal but then when I’d go back out into wifi/cell phones, I’d get burned again and deal with symptoms for a number of days. The difference was though, that at home now, my body could have a chance to heal and repair those damaged cells. So first, thanks for telling your story and bringing these types of topics to the world. God used your website to answer our prayers for trying to figure out my puzzling situation. Secondly, while I am waiting to be seen at a research clinic that deals with EMF sensitivity, I have been trying shielded clothing (with a measure of success) to allow me to get out in public at least a few hours here and there. I just purchased the same fabric you did – yes, I tested it with my acoustimeter and it DOES block RF very well (and so does lessEMF.com’s canopy copper screening that I will use for a cooler headnet than the nylon-sliver one I’ve been using). My question is, would you happen to be able to share what pattern (company name/pattern number??) that your seamstress used with your dress?
Thanks again for the many helpful things on your website!
Thanks so much for sharing your story, Joy. This will help others. I basically took a dress that looked just like this to my seamstress and she duplicated it. I imagine there is a pattern like this, but I haven’t looked.