WE LIKE

• Natural materials with a low ecological footprint, maximizing the recycling of old fibers in their composition:
• cotton grown organically, watered with rainwater, which does not grow too far and whose authenticity can be checked.
• flax and hemp, which are the past and the future!
• Some artificial materials made from natural raw materials:
• Tencel and Lyocell, made by Lenzig from Eucalyptus trees, 5 times less resource intensive than cotton and which grow without pesticides.
• Refibra, a material from Lenzig which mixes Tencel and recycled cotton.
• Synthetic materials only if they are local and 100% recycled

We are all year round in research, development and testing of materials that are ever more natural and beautiful over time. If you are a supplier of innovative and super ecological materials, write to us at hello@patine.fr!

WE BOYCOTT

• polyester and polyamide made from petroleum, cheaper to produce but which take 200 years to biodegrade (#ugh)
• viscose, the manufacturing process of which pollutes the environment (and then our health, obviously).
• ordinary cotton (99% cotton) which looks like an angel but which hides its game well: it consumes too much water, requires too many pesticides to grow and damages the health of those who grow it (# boo)
• exotic leathers, fur, silk and angora, or even simply chrome-tanned leathers without wastewater treatment which terribly pollute rivers and the health of workers. (#eurk)
• the sandblasting of jeans which causes terrible respiratory illnesses to those who practice it, all to artificially age the jeans (#nonsense)
• obviously: controversial substances: Alkylphenols, Phthalates, PFCs

Our standards

• LOCAL: We choose the location based on know-how, rather than where it is cheaper. We favor Europe to limit the kilometers on the odometer of our clothes and to be able to follow manufacturing closely.
• HUMAN: We love visiting our partners, adjusting the prototypes on site, and learning a little more each time about the little secrets that make beautiful clothes.
• LABELS:
• We invest little in labels: they can be useful when you are a multinational which must impose quality standards on complicated sourcing, but we worry about an "organic" label which sometimes no longer means anything.
• Instead of labels, we prefer short supply chains and direct contact with ALL those involved in our manufacturing chains. A bit like picking up your tomatoes in an Amap rather than the organic section of Carrefour, see what we mean?
• In practice for us: organic cotton is GOTS labeled, this guarantees that at least 70% of the fibers are organic and that the partners respect social standards.
• Our manufacturers do not employ children, do not exploit anyone, ensure safe and pleasant working conditions, and pay their employees correctly. They have the GOTS, Fairwear, or SA 8000 label. We met them all in person before starting the collaboration.

PATINA <3 Maths

Because it's complicated to improve without measuring your progress, we measure the impact of each of our garments.

How it works

For each of our garments, we calculate the quantity of water used, the water pollution generated and the carbon dioxide produced throughout the life cycle of the garment: growing the plant, spinning, knitting, the dye; transport, tailoring, machine washing at home...
Thanks to our partner Cycleco, we can compare our data to the production of a standard garment (for example ordinary cotton for a t-shirt). Our goal is to save as much water and CO2 as possible compared to standard clothing. This way you better realize the impact you have on the world by making good choices :)

We are not perfect at all. To be 100% sustainable, the ideal would be to “repay” our water and CO2 expenses by planting trees and financing water treatment programs, for example. This is the vision.