Our Materials
Conventional polyester is a synthetic fiber made from petroleum (crude oil) or natural gas, both of which are non-renewable resources. Polyester became the most used textile fiber because it is cheap to produce and very versatile. For performance purposes, it is still the best choice for certain garments, like outdoor or sports wear.
Conventional polyester participates directly in the extraction of crude oil, which is a direct cause of climate change. Its production is also chemical, energy- and water-intensive. Additionally, there is not yet a scalable solution to collect and recycle polyester garments into new ones. If a polyester garment ends up not properly discarded, it will pollute the ecosystem for years.
To avoid the direct oil extraction necessary to make the chemicals used for polyester manufacturing, other types of already existing plastic products can be recycled, for example, PET bottles. Our recycled polyester derives from discarded plastic bottles, "post-consumer"-plastic, i.e. recycled after it has been used.
The post-consumer waste is then mechanically crushed into pellets, turned into fibers, and then spun into yarns, resulting in a durable, functional fabric mainly used for our outerwear and swimwear. Because it skips the raw material creation, reusing waste to make polyester fabric can save a lot of energy and water, as well as reduce the garment's carbon footprint.
Recycled polyester is mostly made of recycled PET bottles, first because it is easy and cost-effective, but also because the technology to recycle used polyester fibers into new ones isn’t up to scale yet. PET bottles, however, can be recycled into new ones; it's a closed-loop system. Of course, we shouldn’t hinder this system by recycling PET bottles into a product that cannot be recycled. However, at the moment, we are far from a 100% recycling rate for used plastic bottles. But this is something to keep an eye on for the future.
Additionally, even though made of recycled waste, polyester garments still shed microplastics during washing. That’s why we only use that material when necessary, and for garments that don’t need frequent washing. We also recommend investing in innovative washing tools such as the Guppyfriend bag, which traps microplastics before they leak into wastewater. Check our Laundry advice and care instructions for more information.
