We choose our fabrics for performance as well as environmental and social concerns. Each of the fabrics has been carefully chosen after looking at many many different samples. However, we realise that there isn’t really such a thing as a ‘perfect’ fabric, so we’ve chosen the best we can find – and keep looking for something better.

We spent over a year looking for the best fabrics for our line. We finally decided to go with recycled polyester for all our active wear because it outperformed all the other ‘green’ options.

Our recycled polyester fabrics come from Taiwan, where the small size of the island and limited landfill sites have encouraged a flourishing recycling industry. The recycled poly we use is 100% post-consumer waste – so it really could have been that soft drinks bottle or food container you threw away. However, even though it is ‘waste’ there’s no compromise on quality. Our fabrics are designed to perform.

How you look after your clothes is important.  A massive amount of energy is consumed through washing and drying our clothes.  In fact, a Cambridge University study estimated that about 60% of the energy associated with a cotton t-shirt is consumed through its use.  Other estimates suggest that 70-80% of a normal garment’s energy use is tied up in laundry time.  The rest is used up by the material, production and transportation.  You can reduce the energy you consume looking after your clothes by doing 2 simple things:

1.  Reduce the temperature of your wash cycle

2.  Don’t tumble dry

Our performance tops are made from polyester.  This means that they are oil based products, but as they are made with recycled material, they take less energy to produce, and deal with an important waste problem. One of the benefits that our recycled polyester tops have is that they dry really quickly.  That means that you should never be putting them in the tumble dryer – you just don’t need to (and you could damage the reflective print on our active tops).  Polyester can be washed at lower temperatures as well. We recommend washing our garments at 30°C under normal conditions.  An occasional 40°C wash might be needed if the clothes are really dirty or smelly, but you should be able to get on at lower temperatures most of the time.

A lot of time has been spent on the wash temperature issue, and really, that’s a good thing – but bear in mind that your tumble dryer will consume far more energy than putting a 60°C wash.  If you want to save energy, put your clothes on a rack to dry.

We use 100% post-consumer recycled polyester. This means that the fabric is actually made from re-processed waste plastic like drinks bottles or food containers. Our polyester comes from Taiwan, where recycling is far more prevalent. With limited space, and ‘cool’ relations with its far larger neighbour, China, they have had to crack down on waste – otherwise they would just be over-run with rubbish.

We currently have 2 different recycled polyester in our range:
Lightweight: a fast wicking lightweight material for activewear and base layers.
Ultra: a special bonded fabric with a comfortable fleece inner and a smooth outside.

Pros: Recycled products reduces waste, and require less energy to produce than virgin fibres.
& Cons: Polyester does not biodegrade.

Our products made from recycled polyester:

Men – Short Sleeve Everywhere Range, Long Sleeve Everywhere Base Top, Local Warming Jacket

Women – Short Sleeve Everywhere Range, Long Sleeve Everywhere Base Top, Local Warming Jacket

We use organic cotton for our casual T-shirts.

Conventional cotton requires a great deal of pesticides and insecticides. Some 10% of the world’s pesticides and 20-25% of its insecticides are used on cotton crops, yet cotton is only grown on 2.4% of farmland worldwide. The high use of these chemicals is a hazard, not only to the environment, but also to the workers growing the crops.

Organic cotton eliminates the use of synthetic pesticides, reducing the danger for workers and reducing its impact on the environment.

Good: Reduced chemical use makes it safer for the environment and producers.
Bad: Organic cotton still requires a lot of water through its production process.

Products using organic cotton:
Men – Casual T-shirts
Women – Casual T-shirts