Made to be Recycled Denim – Circular Fashion by Organic Basics

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A new denim collection – does the world really need it?

Let’s take a quick look at some stats:

• Clothing has a large environmental impact
• Every second, one full garbage truck of clothing is taken to landfill or burned
• One pair of conventional jeans, including its production and general wear, uses up to 2,900 gallons of water
• During conventional production processes much of this water is polluted with toxic chemicals, which in turn pollutes the environment, rivers and lakes
• Another problem are the labour conditions: in fast fashion workers usually have to work very hard for very little money and have practically no workers’ rights
• So new collections mean these numbers will rise, or will they?

It depends. In my opinion, every new brand or even every new collection that launches, needs to make sure it respects people and the planet throughout every step of the design, production and distribution processes. Anything that is produced new needs to be made to last. And not only that: Circular and Low Impact Fashion is what I expect.

The big news: Organic Basics just launched their first denim collection. The eco conscious company is committed to not only design denim that lasts, but also that can be taken apart and can be recycled.

How does this work?

Circular Denim means designing denim that can circulate in our economy for as long as possible. It also means denim that doesn’t harm the people or the planet. Some words from Organic Basics: “By reducing waste and pollution, offering transparency into the production process, reducing the environmental footprint — and designing the products so they can be altered, repaired and recycled, we can keep our denim collection in circulation for as long as possible.”

The jeans are made out of 100% organic cotton and recycled cotton. Organic Basics stayed away from using synthetic blends to ensure that the products can be recycled at their end of life. That means that your pair of denim by Organic Basics does not have much stretch (only the natural stretch cotton allows). However, over time the jeans will age beautifully and soften. Just like denim was created originally.

(In case you are interested in checking out the line from Organic Basics: you receive 10% off with MIAXOB. As always, it works worldwide and there’s no minimum purchase.)

I was able to test one pair for you and matched it with a new style and color of the Organic Cotton line bra:

The denim does feel a bit harder when putting it on for the first time. Without the elastane the fabric is just a bit stiffer in the beginning. However, the problem with elastane is often that the jeans stretch out too much. This pair by Organic Basics is supposed to age beautifully, become a bit softer over time and just have a nice, snug feel to them. You can find more details here.

The pocket bags inside the pants are made out of GOTS certified organic cotton and the back patch is made from FSC certified paper. Yes, you can still wash them like normal denim pants 🙂 Just make sure to wash it with similar colors. 

I was also able to show you a new style and color of the Organic Cotton line. It’s the “Basic Bra” in the color “Cobalt”. I am wearing size M, but for this style I would downsize, as I would need a size smaller. So if you are between sizes I would pick the smaller one for this style! Especially when it comes to the underbust part, since this style is not adjustable. The straps on the other hand are easily adjustable at the back. The color is beautiful and even a bit more “lilac” than in these photos (it’s always hard to capture true colors). The material feels soft but at the same time high quality – like a piece that will last for a long time!

Some more quick facts about the Organic Basics denim:

• Unnecessary trim pieces were avoided. Instead, the seams are reinforced with bartags rather than the usual rivets, which makes the recycling process possible.
• The buttons on the jeans are easily removable. This makes disassembly and recycling a lot easier. However, please note that even though this is a very cool feature, you should not change the buttons if you don’t need to. If not done professionally it could damage the item. 
• The collection launched in January 2021 in accordance with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. The motto is “Jeans Redesign” to aim to create clothes that never become waste.
• Organic Basics follows the principles: Made to last. Made to be repaired. Made to be altered. Made to be shared. Made to be recycled.
• The collection is ethically produced in Turkey. They describe their supplier as one of the world’s leaders in sustainable and ethical denim production.
• The production is zero waste, powered with solar power energy and with washing treatments that reduces water consumption by 95% in comparison to regular denim production.

What did we learn?

The environmental impact can be easily improved with a few steps:

• selecting the right materials
• producing long lasting items
• avoiding chemicals, water pollution and unnecessary water waste
• constructing the items in a way to make recycling easier