Recycled Synthetics

There are two broad categories of materials that clothing can be made from; natural and synthetic. Synthetic fabrics such as Polyester and Nylon are produced from petroleum - with an estimated 343 million barrels of oil used per year to produce synthetic materials. The product of non-renewable petrochemicals, created in a process that is energy intensive and highly polluting, these materials have flooded fashion since the 70’s and propelled the growth of disposable fashion because they are so cheap.

This development has come at huge expense to our planet: not only does the pollution involved in creating them contribute to global warming, but without large scale collection and recycling infrastructure most of it ends up in landfills, from where it continues to make its way into nature and oceans with it endangering our biodiversity. Thanks, but no thanks.

Recycled PET and Recycled Nylon, however, are synthetic materials that are derived from waste plastic. While still a man-made material that will not biodegrade, these recycled alternatives are developed from plastics that already exist in the world, helping to turn waste into something useful. As an added bonus, producing recycled materials requires less energy than virgin fibers - if deployed in the right way - while at the same time rescuing waste from landfills and oceans as it is collected or reclaimed in clean up projects.

We selectively work with recycled synthetic materials, where they contribute to garment longevity, durability, as well as support performance in our more technical pieces. Our swim shorts are developed from 70% SeaqualTM and 30% recycled PET. While our zip-jacket and zip-vest are cut from a fabric made from 100% recycled nylon and insulated with PrimaLoft® Silver insulation from recycled PET bottles.