At Cosmic, we believe everyone needs to do their bit to protect the planet we live on. That’s why we’re proud to introduce our new range of organic hemp clothing - COSMIC HEMP.
WHY HEMP?
Hemp is a sustainable alternative to many other materials used in fabric. It’s one of the most effective convertors of CO2 to oxygen: cleaning the air, improving the soil and helping fight global warming.
Hemp is naturally less vulnerable to insects and crowds out other weeds, so pesticides and fertilizers aren’t necessary when growing hemp. Hemp uses only 1/20th the amount of water that regular cotton plantations use to grow and process.
Hemp also grows crazy fast, in fact twice as fast as cotton. It can be planted closely together for a higher yield per square metre, and requires less pre-production processing before use.
LOOKS GOOD & GOOD FOR YOU…
Hemp is not just good for the earth, it has some great benefits for you too! UV PROTECTION - hemp can filter UV light, so your skin is protected.
ODOUR REDUCTION hemp resists bacterial growth, which helps reduce body odour on the fabric.
STRONG hemp has four times the strength of cotton, so it won't weaken when washed.
SOFT hemp fabric is soft, with a textured durable feel, and it will get softer with continued washing.
KEEPS YOU DRY hemp absorbs moisture quickly, keeping your body dry.
KEEPS YOU COOL IN SUMMER, WARM IN WINTER the porous quality of hemp fibres lets the fabric breathe. This keeps you cool in the summer, but similar to materials like bamboo and wool, hemp is warm in cooler weather too!
TLDR: Hemp is basically a superhero plant.
WHAT IS RPET?
RPET stands for recycled polyethylene terephthalate, or for short ….recycled PET. So what is PET, and how is it in fabric?
PET is a clear, tough plastic that’s commonly used in water bottles and moulded consumer product containers. For years it’s been recycled for use in the carpet industry, and it’s now gaining popularity as an apparel textile fibre. Post-consumer water and soft drink bottles get shredded into tiny chips, which are then re-processed into tiny fibres and spun into a yarn.
Our suppliers use a blend of polyester that takes recycled plastic items like PET water bottles and other single use plastics to create a fibre which is perfect for our sweatshirts and prevents these plastics from ending up in landfill and waterways. The fabric in this range uses 70% less water, energy, and heat compared to traditional polyester processing methods; a far more sustainable way to produce a fabric that has warmth, longevity and strength.
All of the marle-coloured sweat-shirting in the Cosmic Hemp range is made from a medium weight blend of 55% Hemp/45% recycled PET. The recycler blends organic hemp with the fine yarn spun from recycled bottles. With these products, we can simultaneously use fantastic hemp, keep plastic from our landfills, and give you a great garment you will love wearing.
WHY ORGANIC?
The primary fabrics used in the Cosmic Hemp range are made from organic hemp and cotton blends. This is a step in the right direction for all of us.
The production process for conventional (non-organic) cotton uses more insecticides than any other crop: 25% of the world's total usage. Pesticides contaminate local waterways, destroying the environment and harming animals. Pests build a resistance to the chemicals used, so new pesticides are continuously being developed, resulting in greater pesticide use and perpetually increasing costs for farmers.
In addition to the environmental factors, food and water supplies can also be contaminated from run-off, which in turn can create suffering through disease, illness and birth defects in local communities. The benefits of using organic fabrics are obvious. The health of all people involved in the supply chain is improved, and local communities benefit from relatively clean water and food supplies.
DESIGN & PRODUCTION
Cosmic Hemp is designed by Cosmic’s own fashion buyer Ruby Mulcahy, based in Christchurch, New Zealand. After 12 years’ experience in buying for Cosmic, she felt that the best course of action for our future was to invest more time in creating products specifically for our customer base with a view to becoming more eco-conscious.
Simple styling, high quality fabrics, functionality, and the desire to offer an eco-friendly choice are the basis of Cosmic Hemp. All Cosmic Hemp products are designed in New Zealand and made in China, in a carefully chosen factory specializing in producing eco-friendly products from natural materials, such as hemp, organic cotton and RPET fabrics.
Our supplier has been inspected and assessed according to the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) and Organic Content Standard (OCS) and follows the Oeko-tex Standard 100 code of conduct.
What do those big words actually mean?
According to these ethical & environmental standards, we can guarantee the following with regard to the manufacturing process of our fabrics in China: All of our garments are constructed with only the highest quality GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certified organic hemp and cotton, and farmed without the use of dangerous chemicals, pesticides, fertilisers or genetically modified seeds.
The OCS (Organic Content Standard) certification and Oeko-Tex STandard 100 guarantees you that your new clothes have been processed without harmful chemicals.
