The importance of fair trade (#fairtrade, #fairtradeclothing) as a topic is rising. Various brands are today directing their action and activities towards improving their social as well as environmental impact. As a result, within the fashion industry, there is a rise of companies utilizing organic fabrics.
Organic Cotton/ Bio Cotton
Organic Silk and
Organic Cotton/ Bio Cotton
The differences between the conventional and organic cotton (#biocotton) occur due to the plant seeds used for the cultivation. Those farmers farming the conventional cotton plant the genetically modified (GMO) seeds. The organic cotton is cultivated from natural seeds, where the pest is controlled naturally with insects. As a consequence, amongst others, the organic cotton is safer for the skin.
In order for the cotton to qualify as the organic cotton it needs to be cultivated without environmentally unfriendly chemicals in a way not to pollute water, air and soil. It is therefore pivotal to note that the farming of the organic cotton results in lower CO2 production (about 46% less), reduced water consumption and improvement of the soil quality.
The biggest producer of the organic cotton is India (about 74% of the world's production of the organic cotton).
Organic Silk [& Peace Silk, Non-Violent Silk, Ahimsa Silk]
Organic silk is a fabric, which is created chemicals and treatments (with pesticides, synthetic additives and insecticides) free. Besides the high quality it is believed that the organic silk also has anti-inflammatory benefits (due to a natural protein; sericin).
There is however still one matter in question when it comes to the organic silk. Indeed the larvas in the silk cocoons, used for the silk production do not survive (they are either boiled or gassed) the fabrics production process. Interesting to note is that about 6600 silkworms are boiled or gassed in order to obtain approximately 1 kg of silk.
"Elevating" the organic silk, there is Peace Silk (or Non-violent Silk, Ahimsa Silk). What is significant to the Peace Silk is that the production process allows successful transformation of the silkworm to the butterfly. Therefore the larva does not need to die for the purpose of the fabric manufacturing. The Peace Silk production process has equally important positive environmental effect. In the conventional silk manufacturing process a large amount of energy is used for boiling or steaming of the cocoons. As the cocoons are not boiled in the production of the Peace Silk also the energy is saved.
The Peace Silk is produced in India under the most strict environmental and social standards.
Linen is a natural, durable, hypoallergenic and breathable material. Generally speaking it is about 30% stronger than cotton and therefore also more durable (indeed it gets stronger and softer throughout the time). Manufacturing has been taking place in Europe and Japan for the last several thousand of years. (European countries, such as Belgium, Italy and Ireland are still leading the high quality linen production.) Whereas nowadays the biggest producer is China.
The organic linen is produced from the reed of the flax plant, which is a natural raw material. Indeed the entire plant is used for the fabric production, therefore ensuring wastefree production. In order for the linen fabric to qualify as the organic linen, the fibre needs to be cultivated and processed free of harmful chemicals. Besides fabrics the linen fibers are used also for production of the paper money.
LUMA & SUSTAINABLE FASHION⎪organic, handmade & made in Berlin
At LUMA we strive to have a positive impact at each stage of the design, production and retail process. Therefore we utilise local designer, only certified and organic fabrics, local sewers (providing equal payment) and deliver through CO2 neutral carrier.
More about who we are and what we stand for, you can read in the following blog post: Welcome to LUMA.