If you’re in the market for some new jeans, and feel like simultaneously doing your bit for the planet, consider spending your hard-earned cash on two new sustainably-minded fashion collaborations.
Launching in stores and online today, long-standing high street sustainability champion H&M has collaborated with American denim giant LEE on a next-generation collection of more sustainable denim. With advances at every stage of design and production, from H&M’s first ever 100% recycled cotton jeans, to non-leather backpatches made from cork and jacron paper, it’s the first time the Swedish fashion brand will share Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) data on their company website, indicating the water, C02 & energy impact of each denim garment from raw materials to end of use.
An ambitious project that had sustainability central to its design, H&M’s breakthrough recycled cotton jeans are made from 80% post-industrial waste and 20% post-consumer waste. There’s also denim that’s cotton-free, made instead from renewable man-made fibres, as well as water-saving dyes and lower impact denim washes that are 3rd party verified for their lower water usage, chemical, and energy consumption.
With collections for men, women and children, the womenswear line has a distinctly 90s feel, with wide-legged and cocoon-shaped jeans, oversized jackets, shirts and dungarees giving a workwear vibe, with cute corsets to add a feminine touch and bucket hats and tote bags to accessorise.
Meanwhile, Levi’s has partnered with Brazilian brand FARM Rio on a fabulously vibrant collection that blends the beauty of the rainforests with iconic Levi’s designs. Featuring exclusive prints of native Brazilian wildlife like toucans, jaguars, tree frogs, and parrots, the 11-piece line includes trucker jackets, ribcage jeans, t-shirts, dresses, denim shorts, jumpsuits and sweatshirts that highlight FARM Rio’s commitment to protecting the nature of their homeland, giving back to the environment and helping recover endangered forest ecosystems like those in the Amazon rainforest.
Teaming up with SOS Mata Atlantica and One Tree Planted, for each item of the collection bought online, in-store, or through authorized retailers, Levi’s and FARM Rio will plant a native tree to help preserve and restore two vibrant and vital Brazilian forests. Which is more than enough reason to buy every piece in the collection twice over, in our opinion.
For more information on the collections, see hm.com and Namshi.com
