Eco lingerie

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I have looked into eco lingerie because if something can be made that will in long term help the environment then I think its something that should be supported and noticed. I have found some sites that only sell eco friendly lingerie.

Saumarez Lingerie is a boutique that sell only eco friendly lingerie. Their moto is:

At Saumarez we believe women deserve to wear beautiful, luxurious lingerie with a clear conscience. That's why our lingerie is made by designers who care about people and the environment. Principles such as fair trade, organic growing, respecting the environment and caring for workers are at the heart of Saumarez.
Saumarez is sexy, confident, elegant and sophisticated. Who said being good can't be fun!

Here are some of the designs below:


 A beautiful organic silk pair of high waisted knickers trimmed with delicate vintage blue net and cream satin bows. Organic lingerie by Ayten Gasson.


A handmade floral cotton babydoll with a silky elasticated bust made from spun wood pulp viscose trimmed with small cream covered buttons. Beautifully crafted remnant fabric lingerie by Luva Huva.

I also found a website called The Daily Green which had an article on green lingerie. They put together a slide show of 30 companies or designers that made eco lingerie. The link below will take you to the slideshow.

http://www.thedailygreen.com/green-homes/latest/green-lingerie-organic#fbIndex30

The article below has to be one of my favourites. Not only does it explain what "green" means when using fabrics, but it also explain that not all "eco friendly" garments are actually completely friendly such as if they have used a polluting dye house to dye the fabric. I have highlighted statements that I found most interesting.

My Underwear is Green: How to Buy Eco-Fashionable Lingerie

April 11, 2011 By Treacle 5 Comments

Next Friday, April 22nd, is Earth Day, but since it’s also Bettie Page’s birthday, we’ll be celebrating Pin-up Week instead. However, there’s been a lot of interest in eco-friendly and ethically-produced lingerie lately, and I wanted to make sure we talked about it on the blog. So I asked Josh Verleun, environmental lawyer and co-founder of Between the Sheets to share his expertise with us here. He and Layla are also appearing on Sundance channel’s “All on the Line” tomorrow night so be sure to check them out!
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They say “green” is the new black. The world is changing and more and more companies are introducing “eco-friendly” products into their lineups. Although the thought of environmentally friendly apparel may evoke nightmares of scratchy hemp and drab colors, this perception couldn’t be further from the truth. Thankfully some of the softest most comfortable, luxurious fabrics are eco-friendly, and many eco-lines have a vibrant color palate.
With so many companies jumping on the green bandwagon and throwing around terms like “sustainable”, “eco-friendly”, and “green” in a seemingly interchangeable manner it can be almost impossible to sort out what it all means. The fashion and lingerie worlds are no different with new eco-lines introduced every season.

With so many terms floating out there I think it is important to start the conversation about “eco-fashion” from a baseline understanding of what these terms mean. It’s also true that no matter how “green” a new line may be, there are always tradeoffs and environmental costs of some sort. For example a line of “eco” undies could be made from organic cotton or modal, but use spandex or other non-sustainable stretch fibers in their fabric. Even though spandex may not make you think of saving the planet, using a fabric with high spandex content makes the garment last longer and wear better, keeping it in your drawer and out of the garbage.
Apparel companies who set out to create eco-friendly lines must make countless numbers of these types of decisions and have to decide where their fabrics, trims, and other materials are sourced, as well as where the line is manufactured. This makes it very important for companies to be transparent with their customers about these decisions.

What does “green” mean?
It can be a challenge to sort out what each “green” term means, and figure out which terms have real meaning and are more than just marketing buzzwords. For example “Certified Organic” products are regulated by the US Department of Agriculture and must follow certain standards, Fair Trade Certified apparel (which recently was introduced to the US) is certified by several affiliated not-for-profit organizations around the world and works to guarantee fair wages and labor conditions. On the other hand products that call themselves “green” or “sustainable” are using vague and poorly defined terms that could mean a whole range of things.
Even if a garment is made of organic or another eco-material it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is environmentally friendly. This is why transparency from a company is so important. For example—a shirt could be made of organic cotton, but be dyed in a polluting dye-house in China , or could be sewn in a factory that does not pay a living wage. This same organic cotton could come from China, be cut in Mexico, and sewn, in India—adding up to a large carbon footprint.

How to tell “real green” from “greenish”
Even though many lines call themselves green because they use “sustainable” materials, not all “green” is created equal.
Bamboo: Fabrics made of bamboo have been touted as natural, green, and environmentally friendly, but are produced using a non-natural chemical process that leads to air and water pollution. The bamboo plants are broken down to be spun into fibers using acetate (not so different from nail polish remover). These deceptive eco-claims led the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to crack down on companies who were “Bamboozaling” consumers by falsely marketing their clothing made of bamboo fabrics using terms such as natural, and environmentally friendly-when the fabric was in fact Rayon.
Cotton: Other fibers used in fabrics can be more environmentally friendly—although there are still eco-pluses and minuses. Cotton is considered the world’s ‘dirtiest’ crop-even though it covers 2.5% of the world’s cultivated land traditional cotton production uses 16% of the world’s insecticides, more than any other single major crop. Organic cotton is grown in a manner that doesn’t use harmful pesticides, thus sharply reducing the environmental impact. Despite these huge reductions in impact, like all cotton, organic cotton uses an enormous amount of water to grow, which in and of itself is an environmental impact.
Modal: Another eco-friendly fiber is modal. Made from sustainably harvested beech trees-the wood is broken down using chemicals in a “closed-loop” process that reuses much of the chemicals. The fibers are then spun and knit into fabric. Although similar, this process is far more environmentally friendly than the process that turns bamboo into fiber as the chemicals are reused and not discarded.
Polyester: It may surprise you, but Polyester is now emerging as an “eco friendly” fabric. With advancements in production and recyclability, polyester’s environmental star is on the rise, even though it is made from a non-renewable resource.

Environmentally friendly and affordable:
Even though the desire is often there to buy products and support companies who help protect the planet, cost can sometimes get in the way. As more and more companies introduce environmentally friendly lines the price points for these offerings has started to broaden from basic to contemporary to luxury. Although you don’t often find eco-friendly lingerie at bargain basements prices there are lines that hit price points from $15-20 for bottoms and $30-$50 for bras. At most price points the added benefit is often that the lines are produced in the US, supporting our local economy and keeping jobs from vanishing overseas.
It’s Easy to Go Green:
With so many companies offering “green” or “eco-friendly” intimates and other fashion, going green is not so hard or expensive. All that it takes is a little time to become an educated consumer on the things to look for and a dedication to buy from companies who are transparent and market “eco friendly” products real information and not just vague ill-defined buzzwords.
Bio: Josh Verleun lives and works in New York City as an environmental lawyer and business advisor. He currently holds the position of Staff Attorney at Riverkeeper, a not for profit tasked with protecting the waters of New York and serving as a global model for watershed stewardship and protection.
Josh is also the Vice President of Between the Sheets, a designer Loungewear and Intimate apparel manufacturer. In his role at BTS Josh provides legal counsel and contributes expertise in environmental and sustainable business practices. You can learn more about Josh at

Todays lingerie

Todays lingerie is more of a fashion statement then a necessity. Although lines like Victoria's Secret sold a reported $2,822 million across 1,009 stores in 2003 of standard lingereie, they try to make more of an impact with their fashion shows. The fashion show are about making more of an impact, almost telling stories by using their lingerie as a prop.

Corsets

In a desperate attempt to achieve the ideal, some women had their lower ribs surgically removed.

"Corset diseases" such as fainting, hemorrhoids, coughing, and palpitations plagued many fashionable women.  Corsets could displace internal organs and cause pulmonary disease, and occasionally led to miscarriages. They were eventually replaced in the 1930s by less constricting, but still  reshaping, girdles. Wearing corsets while your pregnant: http://pinterest.com/corsetra/maternity-and-nursing-corsets-through-history/ Pregnancy: Culturally, pregnancy during the victorian era was a taboo, essentially confining a woman to home during the time she  was "showing" . As a consequence, tightlacing was sometimes used to extend the period of time that expecting mothers were able to present themselves socially or for work This  was or is safe because, during the first two trimesters the fetus is very small and well protected by the amniotic fluid  from the higher intra abdominal pressures. Although a pregnancy was often unintentionally concealed well past the 1st trimester due to regular tightlacing, women who were aware used this to  their advantage to conceal their pregnant state. By continuing tightlacing, they could be five to six months pregnant without showing a noticeable expansion,  allowing them to continue their activities outside the home. During the last trimester  the maternity corset (right) would be relaxed, accommodating the growing abdomen, while supporting it. For pre-marital expecting mothers, the corset offered and still does a safe solution to conceal the first few months, avoiding embarrassing questions during the wedding. For the remainder of the pregnancy, modern (left) maternity corsets are recommended as they provide valuable upward support and greatly reduce  fatigue. In the classic maternity corset, additional lacing adjustments allowed for the abdominal  expansion, without forgoing the upper body training . In particular young women,  who had invested considerable time and effort in training, were unwilling to forgo all this during pregnancy, and remained tightly corseted as long as they could tolerate.   Once expansion would start, the lacing would gradually be relaxed to retain a reasonable comfort level. It was not uncommon to deliver with the corset still laced-on,  but then it was only to support and limit the discomfort from over extending the ribs.  Another reason for extending corset wear was to avoid stretch marks. Women who  laced through the 6th month showed considerably fewer marks than those lacing  3 months or less. (Surgery, Gynecology & Obstetrics By The American College of Surgeons, Franklin H. Martin Memorial Foundation - 1913) Reducing "time-off" for maternity leave, by means of corseting is practiced again today by a number of actresses, e.g. Helena Bonham Carter concealed her condition allowing her to continue to play her role in Anne Boleyn in the historical TV drama Henry VIII. Other modern actresses have (and are) doing the same. In Indonesia women have and still do practice very tight body binding immediately after delivery in order to restore the body to it's natural shape. These bindings are as tight as a corset.