The next edition of Kingpins Amsterdam will feature the first Most Sustainable Garment collection.
The collection will feature select fabrics and washes Kingpins named the Most Sustainable Products (MSPs) in 2019. Mills represented on the list include Artistic Milliners (Pakistan), Bossa (Turkey), Calik Denim (Turkey), Candiani Denim (Italy), Kilim Denim (Turkey), Naveena Denim (Pakistan), Neela Denim (Pakistan), Orta Andolu (Turkey), Prosperity Textile (China) and Vicunha (Brazil).
Transformers Foundation board member and Kingpins’ technology leader Miguel Sanchez walked the show floors to make the final 10 selects based on three general categories: fibers, application processes and new concepts.
The collection will be designed by consultant Piero Turk. PVH Europe will produce the garments in its Amsterdam atelier and the finished garments will be washed by Italian machinery maker Tonello.
Turk will work with Sanchez to select the fabrics and finishes.
“Innovation, sustainability and transparency are the critical elements of our show today,” Andrew Olah, founder of Kingpins Show and the Transformers Foundation, said about the new project. “MSP is our solution to bring actionable and reliable information to brands and designers looking for the most sustainable and impactful resources at their disposal.”
The list reflects the global scope of denim’s sustainable makeover. Artistic Milliners was honored for its Bio-Vision platform, which focuses on using biodegradable/compostable materials and aims to eliminate polyester in stretch denim while still maintaining the elasticity of traditional stretch. This group of fabrics is Ellen MacArthur Jeans Redesign-compliant.
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Bossa’s winning product is Org Deolinda SavesWorldShield, a denim that features a combination of sustainable fibers and dyeing techniques. The recipe for this authentic look fabric includes 54 percent Refibra, 20 percent recycled cotton, 20 percent organic cotton, 5 percent recycled polyester and 1 percent elastane treated with a water-saving Saveblue dyeing process.
Denethic Denim put Calik in the winner’s circle. The collection employs rinse, rinse and enzyme, and bleach-wash effects that save both water and time during its production and later when the garments are washed.
Candiani Denim was commended for Re-Gen (SK 6256 K-Old Pure), a blend of 31 percent recycled pre-consumer waste cotton, 2 percent recycled pre-consumer waste elastane, 55 percent lyocell and 12 percent cotton that is OCS- and GRS-certified. Significant amounts of water, chemicals and energy usage are reduced when it is dyed.
Morris Middark Cactus PCRD ST (D5329), a fabric that is part of Kilim Denim’s Cactus Project, was named an MSP because the new chemical it uses to attach indigo to its warp yarn decreases water usage by 93 percent. Its warp is 100 percent organic cotton while the weft is a blend of 47.5 percent recycled cotton, 47.5 percent recycled polyester and 5 percent elastane.
Naveena Denim was awarded for its Blue Hemp concept, an assortment of hemp-based denims created from cottonized hemp, Tencel and recycled polyester that are finished with ozone by Jeanologia.
Neela Blue’s Green by NB, which is GRS-, OCS- and GOTS-certified, was cited because its production requires absolutely no dyeing as Green is made with post-consumer waste cotton that was previously tinted for its first life. This cotton is then blended with organic cotton fibers and spun into yarn using an innovative technique.
Orta Andolu scored with its Immortalist collection, a combination of organic cotton and functional, responsible fibers. An important fabric in the line is 79 percent organic cotton with an organic cotton warp, 15 percent Tencel x Refibra, 4 percent Ecomade T400 and 2 percent elastane.
Revelation Blue (RA3713V) by Prosperity Textile was another best in show. An indigo-free denim with authentic wash-downs, it is made with a proprietary eco-dyeing technology that forgoes anilines and hydrosulfites and offers 60 percent water savings.
The final name on the list, Twig by Vicuhna, is a continuation of a project the mill initiated with denim guru Adriano Goldschmeid. This lightweight denim contains no virgin cotton. Instead, it is made with GRS-certified recycled cotton that requires no additional dyeing, thereby saving 95 percent of the water used in other methods.
Kingpins will publish a new MSP list of products after its next New York edition in January 2023.