Living Eco is Sexy!
Just in time for Valentine´s Day, we discovered Eco-Boudoir. Eco-Boudoir conforms to the most uncompromising ethical standards and all business and production processes are conducted with complete transparency. It is their aim to supply you with beautiful, eco-friendly lingerie and bedroom accessories.
Jenny White, founder of Eco-Boudoir studied an MA in Textile Futures at Central Saint Martins after leaving her successful career as an Art Director in the London fashion industry. Her dream was to design and create in a world of opulence, yet she quickly learnt that beauty often comes at the expense of people and the environment. Unable to contribute to poverty and pollution, she set about finding a solution to realise her dream whilst sticking to her principles. Inspired by tutors passionate about style and sustainability, she went ahead and set up her own textile business that specialises in luxury products, but this luxury comes with a conscience.
“There are many different ways to produce sustainable textiles. Some companies use bio-degradable fabrics, some companies are ´fair trade´, some companies use fabrics that last forever, some people produce everything locally. In an ideal world our whole collection would be certified 100% organic, be 100% bio-degradable, produced in large quantities in our local community, look amazing and be affordable to the consumer! We´re working on it!“
As technologies develop and consumer choice encourages markets to change, this aim becomes more realistic everyday. Eco-Boudoir is at the forefront of the movement to make it happen and leads by example in terms of ´People, Planet and Profit´.
Eco-Boudoir uses fabrics that are highly renewable and which do not bring pollution to people or the environment in their processing. “We challenge the Eco-market in terms of design and branding and challenge the luxury market in terms of sustainability. We have made eco ´sexy´.“
Eco-Boudoir believes in supporting sustainable production practice in all countries around the world.
The fabrics used to create the various Eco-Boudoir collections are:
- Vegetable tanned leather – Leather comes from goats and deer farmed in a free-range natural environment in Germany. All leather is vegetable tanned and is a bi-product of the food industry. This tanning process uses the bark of the oak tree instead of the heavy metal chromium (almost all leather worldwide is tanned with chromium 3 or 6 which is highly polluting and carcinogenic). Vegetable tanning minimises pollution to the local water or to the people working within its production.
- 100% Natural Silk – There are no organic standards as yet for silk. Silks are produced in India by a British company. This silk could be called ´Defacto Organic´ because it is cultivated using traditional natural methods. NO PESTICIDES. NO METHODENE. NO BLEACH. NO BONDED CHILD LABOUR.
- Bamboo – Hand (and increasingly, machine) spun, a light, silky natural fibre with an ivory glow, bamboo is grown without the need for agro-chemical interference. Bamboo fibre has natural anti-bacterial properties; it is biodegradable, breathable, cool and offers superior water retention properties. Bamboo is woven in Italy and France.
- Hemp/Silk – Hemp, otherwise known as ´weed´ because of its ability to grow rampantly without the use of chemical fertilisers and other pollutants, hemp fibre products are fully biodegradable and fast becoming a popular choice for many eco-textile consumers. Hemp requires minimal water to be cultivated. Low impact bleach (hydrogen peroxide) is used for the hemp only. No bleach is used in the silk of this fabric. Hemp silk is produced in China as this is one of the only places in the world where hemp has been allowed to grow. This fabric is produced by suppliers who recycle their water and who manage their waste correctly. This hemp silk comes through a highly reputable eco-fabric supplier: NO FORMALDEHYDE. NO METHODENE. NO CHILD LABOUR.
- Organic Lavender
- Hidden Elements – The fusing which is sometimes needed for production of garments is made from 100% viscose instead of polyester. This means it is bio-degradable.
And just FYI, Eco-Boudoir staff use public transport for business!
For more info go to www.eco-boudoir.com
Click here to watch the founders short film, More Than Pretty Kinckers. The film is an attempt to expose the textile industry for what it is – one of the most polluting and unsustainable industries!
