I'm currently enjoying these photos I found on the Honest by. website which I came across perusing chic Belgian store Haleluja's pages. I discovered Haleluja when I visited Brussels last year, a haven of high-end but environmentally-friendly or ethically-minded design. Honest by. is a range they seem to have been stocking since early 2012, created by Bruno Pieters. The company shares the entire cost breakdown of all its products, showing clearly what goes to the people who produce the garments right down to the very last button. They have no seasons, conduct research into organic materials and the working conditions in all their factories, and choose to produce only vegetarian or vegan products. The wool is British because apparently we now have the best welfare laws protecting farm animals.
Bruno also invites different designers to collaborate with them, each donating 20% of their profits to a chosen charity. On the site at the moment they have collections by the likes of Nicolas Andreas Taralis and Muriée (who I know already produce environmentally-friendly garments using water-based dyes derived from berries). The first and second rows of images are from the Honest by Bruno Pieters collection, the last row is by Nicolas Andreas Taralis. They are quite simple garments, made well. Bruno clearly still gets to play around with shape and cut as he did in his own brand which closed a few years ago; I love a sweatshirt slit open from waist to pit on one side and a tight, cropped jumper.
The clothes aren't cheap but you pay for quality and providing producers with decent wages. It's about time people realised that. Fashion can be as fast as you like but if you're buying cheap junk, someone else in the world is paying the cost.
xxx
Duck
