[Ad - a collaborative post]
As a family we are doing are best to be as eco-friendly as possible. We walk to and from school, we recycle and upcycle, we are cutting down on our plastic use and, when I take the dog for a walk, I am picking up other people's rubbish. I am planning to do a big litter clean up in the area behind our flats, there is so much rubbish and it is an eye-sore as well as bad for the environment.
I have switched to bamboo toothbrushes, we have reusable water bottles, we are using soap and shampoo bars and I try and shop for our fruit and veg at the market when I can - we even have steal drinking straws. But, I was keen to start looking into sustainable fashion - whilst searching I came across a brand called Fferal.
I love the name - Fferal - it's right up my street. Fferal evolved from the ethos of creating products on a slow fashion basis to help reduce the environmental impact of textile waste.
Their aim is to encourage recycling and upcycling as much as possible.
There are no labels in their clothing, or tags and they don't use plastic bags. The company are also vegan so they never knowingly use animal derivatives.
Their manifesto
To only use materials that are either organic, recycled or sustainably sourced.
To reduce all the plastic waste within the making and shipping of their goods.
To offer product that is made ethically by people who earn a living wage.
For the brand to be loved for its comfort, style and ethos.
To offer advice on how to preserve the life of your products and then recycle or up cycle them so they do not go to land fill.
How awesome is this?!
So, what do they sell?
Fferal make and sell ethical adults and kids clothing and accessories as well as bedding. The lounge pants are made from 100% sustainably sourced cotton and they look super comfy. They also have a range of cotton slouchy beanie hats and neck gaitors.
There are a small selection of kids slogan tee shirts, I love this one "Eat Beans, Not Beings" again, label free, no plastic packaging and super soft cotton.
The kids pyjama sets come with a free cotton bag to keep them in, there are a few designs available, perfect for chilling out in.
The bedding sets are made from naturally soft organic cotton, and come in trendy Scandi colours, I love the grey set. Being plastic free all the duvet covers have self fabric tie openings – no buttons or poppers.
To help prolong the life of your clothing and bedding, they recommend washing it inside out and using a fabric softener.
The family behind the brand say: "We developed Fferal as an antidote to fast fashion and cheap landfill clothing, which pollute our planet second to the oil industry. We offer a product that is well designed, practical and comfortable and will biodegrade within months at the ultimate end of its life; offering people an option to buy goods that are made by workers who are paid well in safe working conditions and treated properly, as opposed to the poverty labour we find in mass produced high street brands. That’s why we chose to source our product from Portugal, our manufacturers are ethical and environmentally aware so together we are aiming to change the way garment making works. For example; most garments are shipped in their own individual plastic bag and then into cartons. But we insist that our goods are shipped in 20 pcs to one bag for tee shirts and our lounge wear comes in one plastic lined carton, so we have already eliminated ¾ of the plastic in shipping. Our printers are GOTS approved so no toxic chemicals are used in the print process."
What I also love is the Bee's Tee - they donate 50p to the Association of British Beekeepers when you buy a beesforlife tee shirt.
It has been a pleasure to discover the Fferal brand, the world needs more company's like this. We are trying to do our bit to save the planet - every little change counts.
