our approach to sustainability

Sure, we say we're sustainable as hell, but what does that really mean?

Lots of companies use green materials for the actual product but manage to fill their trash cans with plastic wrappers, office waste, and shipping materials from supplies received and products sent. It is easy to focus on the materials themselves, but we think it is important to go further and integrate a sustainable approach to all functional aspects of the company. We have worked hard to make everything about what we do sustainable as hell!

• We use recycled packaging to ship our goods to wholesale & custom clients.
• We make local sourcing and product delivery runs using bicycle couriers and reusable packaging.
• We have developed a marketing strategy based in live events, in-person promotion, and internet communication, for minimum paper waste. What printed marketing materials we do need to produce are soy ink on recycled paper, delivered by bicycle from a local print house.
• Documents and inventory are kept and distributed electronically to minimize paper waste. All customers, clients, employees, and partners are encouraged to store and view inventory and invoices electronically.
• All office & warehouse paper supplies and envelopes are reclaimed materials.
• Where possible, office electronics and fixtures are reclaimed rather than purchased new.
• Sometimes we feed everybody pie.

• The studio develops reuse strategies for our textile waste and most of it is processed and reused in-house.
• Styles are developed to utilize waste materials from our studio as well as others.
• Applied images are lasercut out of reclaimed fabric and sewn on rather than using petroleum-based silkscreening processes.
• [a note about production methodology & philosophy] There are many different kinds of recycling. We have considered making cut-and-sew garments from new fabric that is made using old materials. Manufacturing new raw materials from reclaimed trash is a great way to upcycle that trash, but those machines and factories still have an impact of their own.
• Reduced emissions are still emissions.
  We have focused on ways to reclaim and upcycle discarded textile products locally using labor instead of technology wherever possible. We see this as a tradeoff where we spend money on people, who sort and process the materials as they are, instead of on machinery to (for example) melt soda bottles down and weave them into cloth.

• Vintage garments are hand-sourced for quality and adherence to our style.
• Some garments are cut up and used as raw materials for new garments.
• Most of our product lines preserve all the original structure of the garments and use applique to reconstruct their appearance and give them new life.
• Applique fabrics are salvaged industry waste or fabric cut from other garments.
• Laser- and hand-cut graphics allow us to apply imagery without the use of any chemicals or paints.
• Studio waste is used for accessories, costume pieces, or shredded and used as stuffing.
• Whenever possible, paper supplies used in design and production are salvaged or reclaimed instead of being purchased new.

See our contact page for information on retail purchasing & how to get a hold of us.

Go to Noisebridge or TechShop to see some of the tools and equipment we use.