Overconsumption and disposable fashion is devastating the planet: the fashion industry is one of the biggest polluters in the world, from the toxic production and dyeing of fabric to the billions of tonnes of unwanted clothes churned out by fast fashion every day.
Being a product based brand I am very aware of the impact of MORE STUFF on the environment, so I’m trying to make as little impact as possible whilst still bringing you gorgeous, colour clobber that you will want to treasure for years!
One of the main reasons Léonie Flower Studio is a made to order brand is because it means there is no wasted stock that will get sent to landfill.
MADE TO LAST
My biggest hope is that you will treasure your Léonie Flower Studio clothes for years! By focusing on simple shapes and colours that I LOVE (rather than those in fashion) I really hope my clothes will be timeless…I’ve even made a few of my pieces in this collection reversible so you can wear them in a few different ways (If you fancy a bit of novelty!)
FABRIC
The biggest hurdle I’ve found on this journey has been fabric.
So I knew that if I was going to start a fashion brand it would need to be minimal waste, low quantity and I wanted to use a fabric that did as little damage as possible.
When I started researching fabrics it was, quite honestly, a MINEFIELD. From the amount of water used to polluting chemical treatments to fossil fuels and microfibres… one of the only fabrics that came up top was linen.
Linen is a SUPER gorge fabric, it’s made from cellulose fibres derived primarily from flax plants. The flax plant doesn’t require much energy or water resources to produce, and the entire plant is used to make linen, leaving no waste footprint. Linen is also breathable, anti-bacterial, moisture-wicking and has temperature-regulating properties.
Unfortunately, I struggled to find a pure linen available for digital printing that worked for clothing, so I’ve been using a 55% linen/45% cotton mix. The added cotton making it softer and more wearable.
I’m constantly on the look out for new fabrics available for digital printing (the industry has a long way to go!) and look forward to experimenting with different fabrics, as each fabric informs the shape of the garment.
DIGITAL PRINTING
The fabric for Léonie Flower Studio garments is designed soley by me and is digitally printed on to a lovely soft linen. Whilst no manufacturing process is without impact on the environment, digital textile printing is certainly one of the more eco-friendly in today’s UK textile industry. You can check out the sustainability credentials of the digital printing company I use here.
PACKAGING
II will only be using 100% recyclable, reusable or biodegradable packaging.
