Organic Clothes Are Winning the Fashion Market

It is now organic clothing. That’s the new trend to hit the fashion market in the UK. Levi's, Nike, and The Gap have all begun buying organic cotton again, but instead of trying to sell pure organic lines, they are asking their mills to blend organic cotton into the conventional cotton process.

As you are in the business of garments, I would like to throw some light on Organic Clothes.

The garment is made from 100% organic cotton farmed and milled under fair trade conditions and the garments are fabricated in fair trade factories.

During fabrication of the garment, producers use up to 37 different chemicals 7 of which are globally recognised carcinogens, including dioxins and formaldehyde.

Organic garment are not treated with these chemicals. The dyes used are azo-free and we take great care to avoid colours with the most serious waste effects. The inks we use for printing are phthalate free and lead free.

The result is that the garment does not contain carcinogenic chemicals and is less likely to make you itch or irritate your skin. It is made without soaking the soil in tonnes of land eroding, oil wasting, deadly chemical pesticides and fertilizers. It has been produced under fair trade conditions from start to finish and hence your purchase has strengthened a number of communities.

It is better for the environment, your health and everyone else's, has had a positive affect on communities in the developing world .

A number of initiatives selling clothes that are calling themselves "ethical", "alternative" or "fairly produced" have sprung up in the wake of the international anti-sweatshop movement, which aim to meet the needs of a rising number of consumers, individual and institutional, now demanding "clean clothes".

Organic fashion is a new concept to most people. The clothes we wear are a direct expression of our personalities, beliefs and lifestyle. And these days, style is as important to environmental clothing companies as the greenness of their fabrics.

Organically produced fabrics have all of the fair trade benefits of organically-produced food. You can also bet your bottom dollar that organic garments are made with respect for people who manufacture them.

Many top fashion labels are reusing and recycling vintage fabrics this season, collaging different textile stories into funky and original collections.

During New York's famed Fashion Week in February 2005,there was one show that drew environmentalists along with the trendy regulars and entertainment celebrities. as Diane von Furstenberg, Halston, Proenza Schouler and Oscar de la Renta participated in FutureFashion, a show featuring outfits made from eco-friendly fabrics and materials. It was an unusual marriage of upscale elegance with sustainability.

Lynda Grose, a former designer with eco-pioneer clothier Esprit, teaches green fashion at California College of the Arts.
The key is enticing people with green clothing that is also attractive. Los Angeles-based designer Linda Loudermilk is taking eco-fashion to the next level, and is in her fourth season of creating what she calls "luxury eco." Prices range from $350 to $1,700 on garments that, in her words, "are about connecting bling with the environment."

Ecologically conscious (and affordable) lines already underway by American Apparel, Timberland, Whole Foods, Nike and Eddie Bauer.
Several new lines combining high-end fashion with left-wing activism are being rolled out this year, including one backed by the Irish rocker and another by seasoned British designer Katharine Hamnett.

Nike Organics has grown globally from six products that first season, to 98 products in Fall 2005. The overall number of garments produced with 100 percent certified organic cotton has grown from 10,000 to just over 1,000,000 units.

Nike’s goal is to blend a minimum of 5 percent organic cotton into all of our cotton-containing materials by 2010, while steadily expanding our offering of 100 percent certified organic cotton products. Challenges we face include the availability of organic cotton fiber in the locations.