Sustainable Jeans And Why They Matter
To both people and the planet.
I have yet to find a person who doesn’t own a single pair of jeans.
Still, I’ve heard of people who own dozens of them — in every color and shape possible. For every mood, for any occasion.
Usually, a pair of jeans should last someone at least two years.
Apart they don’t any longer — just after a few wears and washes they’re not what you thought anymore. Colour has faded and they’ve lost their shape.
Cheap materials and manufacturing are usually to blame.
On to the next pair! After all, they cost little money so you didn’t expect them to last you that long anyway.
But that’s the problem here — consumerism that leads to waste which leads to pollution.
It’s estimated that 10,000 liters of water are needed to make a single pair of jeans!
And the negative environmental impact doesn’t even stop here—many jeans end up in landfills or are incinerated.
The profile of a sustainable pair of jeans:
Are made from sustainable materials e.g. organic cotton.
Have a low environmental impact.
And are ethically made.
My experience with sustainable jeans.
I discovered Mud Jeans about two years ago—their jeans are made using certified organic cotton and post-consumer recycled cotton. They’re a sustainable denim brand and completely transparent about their supply chain.
They’re based in the Netherlands and follow the principle of a circular economy.
They proudly claim that,
“We’re the world’s first circular denim brand. By applying the principles of the circular economy we’re reducing our environmental footprint.”
I loved that they offer the possibility to lease a pair of jeans. Up until then, I had never heard of this concept.
The way it works — you lease the jeans for 12 months and pay a monthly fee. After 12 months, you can either keep them and wear them for as long as possible or send them back if for some reason you can’t wear them anymore. From my experience, you can wear your jeans past 12 months because they will still look great.
Once back, they will recycle your old jeans and make new jeans from them — so there’s no waste and they don’t end up in a landfill as most jeans do.
It’s important to mention that they offer free repairs for your jeans during the leasing period.
The brand is also vegan — the ultimate dream for me! They don’t use a patch made of leather — like the majority of brands.
The downside I found is that they still use elastane and polyester in their jeans. In a small percentage, it’s true, but it’s there.
These human-made materials are by definition a form of plastic — when you wash your jeans they release microplastics into the water, leading to even more plastic pollution. Moreover, they will eventually end up in oceans where are very harmful or even deadly for sea life.
But they are transparent and honest about it,
“Currently our stretch jeans contain a max of 2% elastane and we use stitching yarn with a polyester core for extra strength. By retaining synthetic content to under 4% we keep the jeans recyclable. To minimise our synthetic use even further we’re currently running tests on cellulose based stitching yarn and biodegradable elastane alternatives.”
Nudie Jeans is another sustainable denim brand that I’ve used. They’re based in Sweden and also transparent about their supply chain.
They pledge to create timeless jeans made of untreated 100% organic cotton.
“Our jeans are not designed to be used a few times and then thrown away. We cherish the well-worn and mended. Jeans that become a part of ourselves when worn a long time — a second skin. A pair of dry denim jeans is the materialized version of our values: No extra treatment or washes. Made with 100% organic cotton.”
Organic cotton is better for people and the planet— it’s grown without being genetically modified and without any pesticides or fertilizers like regular cotton, having a lower environmental impact.
It’s also more durable than regular cotton.
The brand offers free repairs for life but you need to bring your freshly washed jeans in-store — shops are located worldwide or you can request a free repair kit to mend your jeans at home.
You can trade-in your old jeans and they will either repair them and then resell them as preloved or reuse the fabric and make patches used in repairing the old jeans.
Or they totally recycle them and turn them into new jeans.
As a vegan, I really like that they stopped using animal-derived materials in their jeans — it really was unnecessary and unsustainable.
“In 2018, we stopped using leather patches on our denim and replaced them with Jacron patches. 2019 is the first full year where all our patches or labels where made with Jacron instead of leather. Jacron is a material made of FSC-certified cellulose fibers and acrylic polymers made in Germany. Offering leather-free denim was a natural step in Nudie Jeans’ sustainability journey.”
Even though I really wanted to find denim brands that would tick all the boxes in terms of sustainability and environmental impact, they have the same drawback as the brand mentioned above. They use materials that are not biodegradable — polyester, elastane, and polyamide in their jeans.
But I hope that both brands will find a more sustainable option soon and use materials that will not pollute the planet.
The way you care about your jeans will either prolong their life in your wardrobe or damage them — so here are some tips on making your jeans last longer.
Only wash them after a good few wears.
Wash them inside out.
Use a gentle washing cycle.
Wash them at cooler temperatures.
Use mild detergents and mild fabric softeners.
Air dry them— you will not only save up energy but also avoid shrinking your jeans (trust me, that’s happened to me once).
Don’t iron them, unless it’s absolutely necessary, and if you do so, only on the parts that have wrinkles.
Final thoughts
Hope this information above sheds some light on sustainable jeans. There are many sustainable denim brands out there, but I can only recommend brands that I’ve used and liked.
Before you buy new jeans, remember that the most sustainable jeans are the ones that you already own. That’s the most sustainable thing to do for both you and the environment.
You bought them for a reason. Love them and wear them for as long as possible.
