Sustainability

Sophie Darling has a slow fashion ethos of quality over quantity creating longevity, inevitably making your purchase a far more sustainable option. We are always striving to improve our processes and materials - it is a continuous journey of development. Below are some keys details in our joureny.

Production:

Our fabrics are printed in the UK, both in-house in our Darling studio and with a digital print studio. Then they are finished by local artisan seamstresses here in Brighton.  

Most of our pieces are made post order, this means that we are reducing the amount of energy, water, ink, and manpower that often is wasted by overstock. By ensuring that we keep our productions small and considered it ensures that we are not left with any unsold garments which inevitably are waste. 

Printing and Print placement:

Our digital printers are based in the UK and use certified Azo free dyes which are less harmful to the environment and the people working with the dyes. The high tech equipment used to print the designs means that there is less water usage and the water is treated after disposal to prevent chemicals being released into our water systems. 

Garments are cut from whole panels making each piece individual, much like the clients who wear her work. This means there is little waste fabric from each panel. Any fabric that is left we use for our beautiful face masks and other accessories.

Fabrics:

All of our fabrics are purchased in the UK and we are making steps to research a more sustainable fabric range to potentially include in future collections. 

We use OEKO-TEX® Certified TENCEL™ to create our beautiful Yohji jacket, Haori kimonos, camisole vests, shirts and joggers. Tencel is an environmentally friendly fabric, made from plant materials. The process of creating Tencel is closed loop, meaning that it uses less energy than cotton and requires less dye. As Tencel is a natural fibre it is also biodegradable. 

We use OEKO-TEX® Certified Cotton to create our cotton jackets. 

Global organic textile standard (GOTS)

The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) was developed by leading standard setters to define world-wide recognized requirements for organic textiles. From the harvesting of the raw materials, environmentally and socially responsible manufacturing to labelling, textiles certified to GOTS provide a credible assurance to the consumer.

OEKO-TEX® standard 100

STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® is one of the world's best-known labels for textiles tested for harmful substances. It stands for customer confidence and high product safety.

Packaging:

We use Noissue tissue paper which is 100% compostable, made from FSC certified paper, using cellulose fibres and soy based inks which are not harmful to the planet. We have printed them with one of our beautiful designs with the aim for you to reuse the paper. Noissue is part of the Eco-Packaging Alliance, where our orders contribute to trees planted across the world. 

Our postcards are printed locally in Brighton with recycled cardboard. 

We don’t use any plastic in our packaging, our items are posted in cardboard boxes which are 100% compostable and recyclable. 

We use fully compostable stickers made from corn fibre from the amazing Green Label co. 

We hand deliver where possible and we collect and drop production pieces by hand. All of our team either walk or cycle to our studio and shop.

Carbon Offsetting:

We use CarbonClick an organisation which helps businesses fight climate change. With every purchase on our website you can choose to help our green mission by adding a sustainable contribution to climate change by offsetting emissions. CarbonClick’s offsets fund worldwide projects such as tree planting, renewable energy generation and forest restorations. 

We will be making our own contributions to offset emissions, and we hope you will join us to help create a more sustainable future.