By Tanya Mwamuka.
As a lover of fashion and a student of science I’m constantly aware of new innovations coming from both industries. Both always surprise and amaze me but never did I ever think that that science would combine with fashion in such a strange, somewhat squeamish and definitely comical way. A Danish fashion brand, Organic Basics, have designed a new Eco-friendly underwear which according to them “doesn’t have to be washed for weeks”. Yes, you heard that right, weeks. Aimed at the Eco-conscious and suited to lazy students, the thought of weeks old underwear leaves me feeling more than a little queasy.
All jokes aside, Organic Basics’ motivation behind the design does have great benefits for the environment. With their “wash smarter” motto – reducing the amount of times you wash your clothes would lower water and electricity usage. For an extra reduction on your carbon footprint they suggest skipping the dryer. According to them, hanging your clothes in place of using the dryer for 6 months eliminates 300kg of house gas.
Courtesy of: Organic Basics
The underwear is made of GOTS (The Global Organic Textile Standard) certified organic cotton and SilverTech. This special fabric is treated with polygiene – a sustainable silver chloride which is supposed to regulate your temperature; helping reduce sweat to keep you fresh and odourless. Interestingly, NASA uses silver to purify their water in space.
Their new SilverTech line features socks, T-shirts and underwear all made from 100% recycled nylon. “Our nylon’s raw materials are sourced from post-industrial waste fibre, yarn from spinning factories, and waste from weaving mills”, they explained.
Courtesy of: Organic Basics
Organic Basics sets to change the way the fashion industry works as they explain the motives behind their designs. “We think that the fashion industry is a real dirty bastard, but fortunately, there’s a better way of doing things.”
The brand also boasts high ethical standards using only GOTS certified factories and cotton farms. They claim to visit these factories every three months to make sure there are no unfair, or unsafe industry practices. “Our factories in Turkey are also audited annually by a third party to ensure the standard is always set.” They added.
Courtesy of: Organic Basics
As someone who is also keen to change the rigid infrastructure of the fashion industry, I can only commend them for their works. Still, the thought of weeks old underwear still makes me squirm a bit and I can imagine it’s going to be an uphill battle before this product is accepted by the masses.
Tanya is currently studying Biomedical Sciences at the University of Manchester and hopes to get into science journalism and media after completing her degree. She loves fashion and travelling and enjoys learning new languages in her spare time. She is currently learning French.
Twitter: @thisnewoldthing
