OUR MATERIALS
Leather
The leather hides used to produce our leather goods are cow hides and are "by-products" of the meat industry. With an ever-growing demand on high quality leather, the selling of skins has become increasingly profitable for meat farmers and lead to leather hides sometimes becoming a "co-product" of the meat industry rather than a ”by-product”. This is particularly true for the softest and most luxurious leather which comes from the skin of new-born calves (and yet, the demand for veal meat has been decreasing rapidly).
Despite the fact that cow leather can be considered a by-product of beef farms, we are fully conscious that the livestock industry sector still carries a heavy load of global greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore the processing of genuine leather typically requires large amounts of water (on average 60L for 1 hide!) and enormous amounts of chemicals in the tanning process.
Depressing! We know. But there are ways to change that. First, we've only produced leather goods that are vegetable tanned. Like that, we're skipping all the nasty chemicals during the tanning. Secondly, we've moved our production from India to Italy for ethical, social and geographical reasons. We are now working closely with a manufacturer in Italy who is certified according to the Institute of Quality Certification for the Leather Sector in Italy with high environmental standards. For example, the water used in the tanning process is continuously being cleaned and reused in a closed loop. We also plan our production in a way that minimises leather waste and use leftover leather to produce our inner pouches and leather key rings.
The next step is to gain full transparency and traceability, down to the farm! We are also looking at ways to compensate for the carbon emissions released along the way
Why not using vegan leather? Well, vegan leather is not all green and continues to rely heavily on fossil fuel derivatives (most alternatives are plastic-based). We are continuously monitoring the development of better leather alternatives and will make the change once there is one that also satisfies our requirements of quality and durability.
Cotton
Cotton is the most abundantly manufactured natural fibre in the world and it is entirely biodegradable. Despite its “natural” properties, the growing of conventional cotton plantations requires large quantities of irrigated water, pesticides and fertilisers, contributing to the depletion of soil nutrients, the pollution of waters and becoming a threat for the entire surrounding ecosystem. That is why all our cotton garments are solely made from GOTS certified organic cotton, which guarantees a fair and sustainable production along the supply chain. For more information on the standard, visit https://global-standard.org/the-standard/gots-key-features/organic-fibres
However, we are aware that organic cotton is not without its environmental costs either. At this stage, we are realising that sourcing environmental and social sustainable cotton is difficult, meaning that it should perhaps be replaced by another fibre for certain of our items.
Wool
Wool, the wonder fibre! Natural, biodegradable and renewable by design, wool has been washed, weaved and worn since humans wear clothes! Today there are about 500 different breeds of sheep* grazing around the world to grow different varieties of wool. All our wool items are made of 100% ecological lambswool by Klippan Yllefabrik in Riga, which sources its raw fibres from New Zealand. This label means that the breeding of sheep has been done with natural food and that the use of antibiotics and pesticides has been strictly regulated. Additionally, the farms have certified their adherence to the Wool Integrity ProgrammeTM, designed to insure compliance with the 5 freedoms of animal welfare:
- Freedom from thirst, hunger and malnutrition
- Freedom from discomfort
- Freedom from pain, injury or disease
- Freedom from distress
- Freedom to express normal behaviour
To learn how to care for your wool item, visit our CARE page. Since our items are made of 100% wool, they can easily be reused or recycled. Get in touch if you’d like to get rid of your wool item, we would gladly take it back and repurpose it.
*source: www.iwto.org
https://www.woolintegrity.com/ as it states here, all items made from this wool are eligible to carry the Wool Integrity NZ logo free of charge.
Other fibers:
Recycled polyester
Polyester is a synthetic fiber derived from crude oil and is typically produced from dimethyl terphtalate (DMT) and ethylene glycol (EG), in other words... plastic! And because plastic is so cheap, the demand for polyester is enormous and has resulted in dramatic environmental consequences. Furthermore, items made out of polyester (virgin or recycled) shed large amounts of microplastics. But the good thing is, polyester is (almost) infinitely recyclable! Which means that in a dream scenario, all the plastic trash laying in our rivers, beaches and forests could be turned into your favorite riding jacket or horse blankets! We are a long way from that reality, but the point is that even though polyester has been widely used in fast fashion, it can be considered "slow" due to its durable and recyclable properties.
Almost all items of our new collection are made out of recycled polyester and are certified by the Global Recycling Standard. Our goal is to make 100% of our polyester garments out of recycled polyester. In order to further reduce the micro plastic shedding of your garment, please refer to our CARE page.
Viscose
Viscose is a plant-based fiber obtained after dissolving the pulp of wood by using sodium hydroxide and carbon disulphide. The process of making viscose is extremely toxic for workers and releases a large part of chemicals into the air and waterways, resulting in terrible environmental and health consequences.
While some of our current items feature a small percentage of viscose in them, we have taken the step to completely phase out viscose from our garments in the future.
Our collaborations
Some of our products and garments are produced in collaboration with other brands. We’ve purposely chosen to work with these brands for their high ethical and environmental standards. For more information on the materials and fabrics used for these items, please refer to each product page.
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