It was over 10 years ago that H&M debuted its first capsule collection made of organic cotton. What felt like a novelty at the time has become mainstream and almost expected; if you aren\u2019t using organic cotton, then what are you even doing? It\u2019s a pattern H&M is hoping to repeat with its latest eco-forward materials, which debut today in its new Conscious Collection.<\/p>\n
Ranging from startlingly high-tech to almost-DIY, the collection follows last year\u2019s push into bio-based materials and a move way from strictly-recycled fibers. The most surprising, potentially game-changing one is Vegea, a soft vegan leather alternative made from the byproducts of wine; H&M discovered it through its own Global Change Award in 2017. You\u2019ll find the Vegea \u201cleather\u201d on chain-strap handbags and a few pairs of shoes. Also rooted in nature but ostensibly less complex is a new dye made from the coffee grounds in H&M\u2019s offices in China.<\/p>\n
\u201cGoing forward, we need to be using more bio-based materials and use more waste in our collections,\u201d Pascal Brun, H&M\u2019s sustainability manager, explains. He\u2019s still excited about recycled materials, but is focused more on \u201cfiber to fiber\u201d recycling, like Renu\u2019s recycled polyester, which comes from actual garments, not plastic water bottles. Similarly, a new material called Circulose is made from recovered cotton and viscose\u2014making it 100% natural\u2014and is making its worldwide launch with H&M. Brun hopes it will eventually become a permanent part of the collection, not just the Conscious Exclusive capsules. \u201cThese collections are here to help enable the scale of these new innovations, and make them more commercial [to us and to other brands].\u201d<\/p>\n
Still, buying a dress made from recycled viscose or polyester isn\u2019t a shortcut to \u201cbeing sustainable.\u201d Brun and Ann-Sofie Johansson, H&M\u2019s creative advisor, agreed that the big challenge is still their garments\u2019 end of life; recycled polyester sheds micro plastics in the wash and doesn\u2019t biodegrade in a landfill. \u201cIn 2020 and beyond, we need to take the concept of circularity to another level,\u201d Brun adds. \u201cIt\u2019s the only way to think about our goals for natural resources [in the next decade]. It isn\u2019t just about materials, though, it\u2019s about how we can design clothes to last longer and to be eventually recycled, and how can we involve our customers to have more sustainable behavior? It\u2019s a holistic approach.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johansson also name-checked H&M\u2019s garment collection initiatives\u2014you can take old clothes to any H&M store to be recycled or donated\u2014and a few potential new business models in resale and rental. As far as design, she and her team are thinking about longevity and timelessness rather than trends, falling right in step with the luxury fashion conversation. \u201cWe\u2019re talking about making clothes that are more durable and recyclable, but there has to be emotional durability, too,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you fall in love with a garment, you take care of it and keep it for a long time. The price doesn\u2019t matter\u2014if you really love it, you\u2019ll care for it, you\u2019ll mend it, and when you don\u2019t want it, maybe you can resell it. The emotional feeling is quite important.\u201d<\/p>\n
The one-shouldered recycled polyester blouse with an XXL ruffle Anna Ewers models in the lookbook certainly qualifies: It\u2019s covetable and makes a statement, but isn\u2019t so of-the-moment that it will feel dated. The same goes for the easy printed dresses and recycled glass jewelry. By 2030, those might not feel novel at all; H&M\u2019s goal is that 100% of its materials will be recycled or sustainably-sourced by that time. Until then, mark your calendar for March 26th when you can get your hands on the capsule\u2019s \u201cwine leather\u201d bags and recycled-poly gowns.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It was over 10 years ago that H&M debuted its first capsule collection made of organic cotton. What felt like a novelty at the time has become mainstream and almost expected; if you aren\u2019t using organic cotton, then what are you even doing? It\u2019s a pattern H&M is hoping to repeat with its latest eco-forward […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","nova_meta_subtitle":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5572],"tags":[13444,15461,11323],"supplier":[8351],"class_list":["post-71415","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bio-based","tag-fabrics","tag-garment","tag-naturalfibers","supplier-h-m"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71415","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71415"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71415\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71415"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71415"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71415"},{"taxonomy":"supplier","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/supplier?post=71415"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}