Hemp / Cotton Blend

A perfect summer weight fabric that is light and breathable, beautifully soft to touch yet also holds its own and gives a pretty structure to garments. 

Hemp’s had a bad rap over the years but it’s time to take another look at this misunderstood fibre which may just be the answer to the fashion industry’s eco-prayers.

As a plant, Hemp packs quite a punch, meter for meter being more effective at removing CO2 from the atmosphere than trees. Hemp requires less than a third of the irrigation of cotton is pest resistant and actually improves the quality of the soil on which it grows.

We’ve blended hemp fibres with our organic cotton as we inch forward in our quest to work with the world’s most sustainable fabrics.  

Tencel

Tencel is big news in the world of textiles. It is one of the most environmentally responsible fabrics available and we are really excited to be making 50% of our dresses from it. Tencel is made from sustainably sourced wood pulp and is breathable, biodegradable, wears really well and retains colour amazingly.

Our Tencel skirts and dresses feel quite different from our linen/cotton dresses - Tencel is drapey and soft and silky to touch - much like the beautiful rayon that was used in the 1940s. Tencel is produced in a ‘closed loop system’ where 99% of the chemicals used in the production process are recovered and recycled. The base material for tencel comes from eucalyptus trees - which grow happily in harsh, dry conditions (no need for irrigation) and are very resilient (so don’t require pesticides to thrive).

All in all, Tencel is a bit of a wonder-fabric. 

Organic Cotton

Cotton is the stalwart trooper of the fabric world. Classic, comfortable, breathable and natural, it’s got a lot of things going for it and we love the structure and feel it gives to our dresses. We also use it for all of our deliciously soft cardigans.

Our cotton is grown in Turkey - where it is also woven and printed upon. Keeping all these processes within the same country helps us keep carbon emissions due to transportation as low as possible. 

The cotton story isn’t all rosy and we are constantly assessing and re-assessing our use of this much loved fibre. Today, conventionally cotton growing uses a crazy 16% of the world’s insecticides and this is having a very negative impact on soil fertility and the surrounding ecosystems. At Palava, we decided to start using organic cotton in 2016. Growing organically is a lot less damaging to the soil and no chemicals are used on the crops.

Being organic doesn’t solve everything though. One of the current debates surrounding cotton production surrounds the consumption of water. Cotton is a thirsty crop and the trouble starts when inefficient irrigation diverts water from nearby rivers and lakes. This can have a devastating effect on the surrounding ecosystem. Certified organic cotton requires commitments to limit water consumption - which is a big step in the right direction - but we still have a way to go before we can claim that Organic cotton has no negative impact on the environment.

Linen / Cotton Blend

This fabric is light, breezy, has beautiful texture and is kinder to the planet than pure cotton.

Linen has been worn for millennia and is the original sustainable material. It is made from the Flax plant - a hardy plant that requires no irrigation, pesticides or fertilizers for it's production. So Linen gets the big thumbs up environmentally - but that's not even the best of it....

Linen is a bit of a super fabric. It's famous for being the go-to material for summer but its insulating properties make it not only cooling in hot weather but also retain heat in cooler weather. Pretty cool , eh?

Blending linen with cotton means you'll get less of the crumpling and a finer finish to the fabric.