Because caring about the environment means not stopping at planting trees

This week I’m taking you a little further into the behind the scenes decisions I’m making to put color out into the world and still caring for it. 

I love color, and I love what I do, but I'm also aware that I need to pay attention to more than just those pieces of Ten Thousand Dandelions - and part of that is thinking about my eco footprint.

So here's the starting point - all my silk scarves are 100% silk, dyed with low-impact, professional-grade dyes.  That's very condensed, and even a little obscure.  Let's unpack that.

• Low-impact is an industry term of art – it means that 70-90% of the dye used in a dye bath will attach to the fabric, so there is almost no dye left in the water when I’m done.  It also means the dye doesn't contain heavy metals or other harmful chemicals that have long been accepted as necessary evils in parts of the dyeing industry.

• In addition, the dyes I use are also checked for hazardous substances against multiple U.S. regulations, including the standards for the Clean Water Act, the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act, the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act, and California Proposition 65.  (They come up clear under each.)

• Professional grade dyes also mean your scarf’s color is as light- and water-fast as I can get it, without resorting to those heavy metals and very harmful chemicals, so you’ll get years and years and years of wear out of it as long as you keep it clean.

• And because things do wear out eventually, I’ve also made a conscious decision to dye 100% silk scarves, so that when the scarf is finally done it will, in fact, biodegrade as opposed to breaking down into pieces of plastic that just get smaller and smaller.

There’s more to it than that, of course – being environmentally responsible means analyzing all kinds of processes to see what can be improved, and it’s definitely a work in progress.  But I’m also a firm believer that every little bit helps.  So we plant trees, and we don't stop there.

Warmly,

Clare