Browsing Tag

Sustainability

Ombai furniture blends earthy materials with modern silhouettes

Posted on December 21, 2024

Handcrafted in Indonesia, using sustainably-sourced materials of the greatest quality, OMBAI is designed for those who want to live in harmony with the elements.

New to the region, OMBAI are solid wood specialists who ensure their environmental footprint is minimal. Their sustainable collection is handcrafted by artisans using age-old techniques such as Shou-sugi-ban, an ancestral Japanese wood curation technique that consists of burning the wood for durability. Not only is this skill eco-friendly but it also gives furniture unmatched allure.

According to a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), sustainability is actually a crucial factor for three-quarters of consumers when they are buying furniture.

So what makes furniture more sustainable? Other than upcycling or upselling it once you’re finished with it of course… Using use renewable, reclaimed or recycled materials in the manufacturing. Making sure the materials used have minimal chemicals, including in the varnishing and also using local materials and local fabricators to save on transportation.

These are my top pics:

Vilya Oval Coffee Table Sugar Wood, crafted from natural Sugar wood with a burnt black finish.

Briza Bench Natural Suar Wood, crafted from natural Suar wood.

Rimba Rope Detail Armchair Teak Wood, featuring a blend of natural materials, such as wood, metal and rope.

OMBAI has now opened at the new Goshi warehouses in Al Quoz, Dubai.

fashion

Shewak brings creativity and sustainability to the catwalk

Posted on December 19, 2024

Istituto Marangoni alum and ex-Roberto Cavalli assistant accessories designer, Shewak made his London Fashion Week, 2022 debut with his now infamous double heeled stilettos. As seen on ‘Dubai Bling’, the designer ensures that his unique creations are in fact planet forward in construction.

To help ensure Shewak offers a sustainably minded product, they reduce leather wastage by using innovative cutting techniques, employ biodegradable insoles, save 70% of the water used in heel painting with PVD sputtering instead of galvanic processes, and use metal-free linings. In production, Shewak collaborates only with government-certified factories that prioritize sustainability, maintain a cap on carbon footprints, and ensure a safe, hygienic environment for workers.

Thinking post-consumer too, they give back to the community by donating $5 from every product sold to Dubai Cares.

Eco Friendly Sustainable

Dubai’s Sustainable Kidswear and Toys Directory

Posted on December 11, 2024

Did you know that an average child uses over 200 pieces of clothing! Babies will outgrow 7 clothing sizes in their first 2 years, which is not sustainable at all.

The $200 billion global kid’s clothing market is growing faster than adult’s, expected to reach nearly $300 billion by 2030. 180 million+ pieces of kids clothing go to waste each year. That’s not all, most modern textiles exact some form of environmental tax. Regular cotton is grown using pesticides, but organic cotton must often be shipped consumes lots of water. Plus, human-made materials like nylon and polyester come from petroleum. Toxins also get involved in the spinning, dyeing, and overall production of many fabrics, which contributes to the release of greenhouse gases and can leach toxins into the soil and water supply.

But there is hope… for used outfits and items that remain in good condition, there is a thriving secondhand market for children’s clothing, toys and equipment here in Dubai, both on and offline.

Christmas is as we know, a very consumer heavy holiday and we could all be more mindful with the gifts we buy in order to make them more sustainable. For me, that means shopping local, ethically minded brands of course, and I get asked a lot of questions about just who and where I recommend for tots and babies here in the U.A.E., so have compiled a list of my favourites for you:

Ideal for clothes:

Beaux Desert

Beautifully made collections for the whole family using eco-friendly materials and ethical manufacturing practices

Birdsn’Bees

A local family concept store specializing in clothing, beachwear, and swimwear

Little IA

The perfect place for personalized gifts for little ones

Atlas & Maya

Exclusively creating collections using certified sustainable materials

Baby Bazaar

A monthly circular pre-loved pop-up at Times Square Centre, Dubai

Reloved

A marketplace for buying and selling second-hand clothes, baby items, furniture, accessories, and more

Bump and Baby

A pre-loved maternity & baby store

Ideal for toys and equipment:

Made By Nature

Dubai’s only family concept store offering sustainable brands

Little Ones Arabia

Premium sustainable baby products, clothes and gift hampers

Maisontini

Experiential showroom and sustainably minded concept store

Eggs n Soldiers

Natural & eco-friendly baby products

Monki Box

Sustainably designed bilingual purposeful play program

Secondful

A secondhand online marketplace for pre-loved kids and baby gear

Secondgear

A secondhand online marketplace for pre-loved kids and baby gear

fashion Recommended

The Clean Beauty Brand At Sephora You Need To Know

Posted on December 5, 2024

The beauty industry impacts us in a whole range of environmental ways, Saie is Sephora’s newest clean beauty brand to really focus on a sustainable future.

Current practices can deplete natural resources, damage oceans, hurt wildlife, and produce harmful microplastics. One of the biggest challenges the beauty world faces is post-consumer packaging waste.

But what’s the answer?

Well one way is using more sustainable packaging, which is typically made from materials that are either biodegradable or recyclable. This includes materials like glass, paper, cardboard, metal, and certain types of plastic, like bio-based or plant-based plastics.

Saie, Sephora’s newest clean beauty brand, focuses not only on clean, good-for-you ingredients, but has also established their own ‘Saie Climate Initiative’ to take direct action to combat climate change.

“As a lifelong lover of Mother Nature, I believe it is our duty to be responsible for the impact we at Saie make on the planet. This unprecedented commitment is our way of taking action, because action is the only way to enact change. I know this is just the beginning, and I couldn’t be more excited to start this journey.” – Laney, Founder & CEO of Saie.

Saie is also committed to cleaning our planet of plastic waste through a three-year partnership with rePurpose Global. This initiative targets the impact of global plastic waste on communities while also investing in women’s development and empowerment. To put it into perspective, their goal is to reduce existing plastic waste by the equivalent of 120 million single-use plastic bottles that eventually end up polluting our oceans.

As well as production changes, Saie are also working towards net zero across all supply chain emissions by 2039 with the following:

Shipping Boxes
Kraft mailers are biodegradable and 100% recyclable.

Cartons
Their product cartons are 100% Recycled FSC-certified paper made in a carbon-neutral facility.

Cotton Balls
Their cushy, comfy cotton balls aren’t just for removing makeup; they actually use them as padding for the inside of the packages.

Paper Tape
Saie use kraft paper tape to safely secure all of their products in transit. The glue on the tape is made of water-activated cornstarch.

fashion

The Moiety capsule wardrobe, a Dubai dream

Posted on November 8, 2024

Swimwear, sustainable, pool, summer, sunshine, Zulu and zephyr, the moeity

The capsule wardrobe, a Dubai dream.

By focusing on essential, versatile pieces that can be worn in a variety of ways, a capsule wardrobe can help you save money, save space and encourages more conscious consumption.

The Moiety aims to challenge the notion that exceptional style and a conscious approach to fashion must come with a high price tag. A capsule wardrobe also helps to remove the stresses of having ‘nothing to wear’, and allows you to invest in higher quality items that will ultimately last longer.

Viktoria & Woods is a brand stocked in The Moiety, as seen above, who are proud to highlight that the greater part of their designs are made in Australia. “We value sustainable textiles and manufacturing methods that leave a lighter footprint on the planet, a philosophy we are committed to.” Their aim is to create effortless wardrobe staples with a pared-back modern feel.

In chemistry, a moiety refers to a part or portion of a molecule that can be separated and exists independently. “In the context of the brand, it is interpreted as a curated selection of clothing that represents exclusivity, affordability and distinction.” A capsule wardrobe is an antidote to fast fashion and impersonal shopping experiences.

More than that, the brand champions the idea of “Conscious Alchemy”, where every piece of clothing is a blend of beauty, sustainability, and ethical production and will only offer brands that also fit within their ethos.

One of their brands Zulu & Zephyr, The Moiety’s latest addition, has been a proud member of 1% for the Planet since 2020. With a focus on a more sustainable future too, 81% of their ready to wear, sport and swimwear categories are sewn in socially compliant factories, where fair treatment and worker welfare is paramount, and are supporting their non-compliant factories in their ventures towards compliance. Global Recycled Standard certified recycled fibres are also used throughout their collections to reduce the use of virgin synthetic fabrications.

Eco Friendly fashion

Birkenstock’s 250 year focus on sustainable materials

Posted on November 4, 2024

Birkenstock shoe, sole, manufacturing process, environmentally friendly, sustainable materials

Celebrating 250 years of this iconic shoe, the focus for Birkenstock is becoming more and more about the environment and manufacturing their creations sustainably.

Dating back to 1774, every Birkenstock footbed is made of natural cork, natural latex, jute and suede, which is used as the top layer.

BIRKENSTOCK AND SUSTAINABILITY

The brand uses the highest-quality leather, working with textile materials, such as high-quality wool felt, made from pure merino wool. For those customers looking for animal-free products, there is our proprietary synthetic material Birko-Flor®.

RESPONSIBILITY IN THE SUPPLY CHAIN

A high proportion of the natural materials that Birkenstock uses are from sustainable sources: cork, natural latex, jute, leather and wool felt are among their most important materials.

One of the main raw materials used is cork – a natural and sustainable product that boasts high elasticity, outstanding cushioning, and excellent heat and sound insulation. It is comprised of dead thin-walled cells that have been filled with air. The cork layer is reproduced and can therefore be harvested again and again without harming the tree.

A single tree can provide 100 to 200 kilograms of cork during its life. To ensure that the cork is hygienically clean, the bark that has been removed is cooked thoroughly in tanks. It is then cut into strips that will be used to punch the bottle corks.Natural cork oak forests only exist in the western Mediterranean basin. The majority of the cork processed by Birkenstock comes from southern Portugal, the world’s largest raw cork-exporting region. Natural and planted cork oak forests in Portugal cover a total of some 750,000 hectares – about 8% of the total surface area of the country.

Then there’s jute, which provides additional stabilization of the cork and latex core in the original Birkenstock footbed. In addition, the plant fibers improve the moisture-regulating properties of the footbed. Jute is a renewable resource as well.

Natural latex serves as the natural binding agent in the production of the footbed. Like cork, natural latex is also a renewable resource. Natural latex is obtained from the resin of rubber trees.

Eco Friendly fashion Sustainable

Breitling is leading the way for luxury watches as a sustainability champion

Posted on June 17, 2024

Breitling is leading the way for luxury watches by putting sustainable manufacturing and materials at the forefront of their DNA. Putting a precedence on traceability with lab-grown diamonds and artisanal small-scale operations, ensures that this 140 year old brand is truly thinking of the future.

These changes start by looking to the source of their precious materials. From artisanal and small-scale gold, lab-grown diamonds, upcycled packaging, and sustainable straps, by 2025, all Breitling’s products will be made with this level of transparency.

Their Origins-label watches are supplied by artisanal and small-scale gold and lab-grown diamonds which are fully traceable to producers who have been individually selected for their responsibility towards their employees, their local communities and the environment. The entire supply chain is documented, verified, and shared back to consumers.

The brand is also rolling out traceablity via blockchain-backed provenance records for their watches, starting with the Super Chronomat Origins and engaging their suppliers to increase their own sustainability performances.

Bold steps for Breitling, but their focus on a green future also includes making a groundbreaking shift to flat-fold watch boxes made of upcycled PET material, achieving carbon neutrality and eliminating plastic waste across all their operations.

fashion

AMANDA x By M.A.R.Y Sustainable Capsule Collection

Posted on June 7, 2024

Sustainable fashion is about three key elements; material, production and community. I believe whole-heartedly that we need to use our consumer choices to help implement actual change. Being a conscious consumer goes past the immediate pat-on-the-back to ensuring the data focused analytics that retailers use to produce en-masse aren’t adding to the problem of over 21 billion tonnes of clothing ending up in landfill every year, with our singular trend-led transactions.

I collaborated with local slow-fashion designer By.M.A.R.Y. to create a capsule collection of linen, silk and organic cotton based timeless pieces that are season-less and sustainable. These pieces also allowed us to profit share with the initiatives that we believed in, both locally and internationally.

As we both had causes close to our hearts… we decided to give back to both. ⁠ ⁠⁠

By M.A.R.Y is an ode to the women we admire, it’s our vision to mix African style with a twist of modern rock and a bang up-to-date contemporary attitude.

For Marie it’s the people.⁠ ⁠ “I believe in the importance of giving back to the continent where I grew up and want to share the success of By Mary. That is why we support the Grand Bassam Orphanage for girls in the Ivory-Coast by giving the girls a chance at an education after they leave the orphanage. In the last 2 years we have helped support 60 young girls.

For Amanda it’s the planet.⁠ ⁠ “Azraq’s mission is to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world’s oceans in order to conserve and protect the marine ecosystem and species.”⁠

Recommended Uncategorized

💙🌊 For The Oceans – Cigarette Butts with Amanda Rushforth and Azraq 🌊💙

Posted on July 7, 2020

Every year 4.5 Trillion cigarette butts are littered worldwide, with a significant percentage finding their way into our oceans and onto our shores. In fact, 30-40% of all items collected in coastal and urban clean ups are butts. Azraq highlights that most people do not realise that cigarette filters within cigarette butts are made from a type of plastic called cellulose acetate which doesn’t biodegrade.

In 2003, The Dubai Municipality introduced a 500 AED fine for littering them. This fine has doubled to 1000 AED with six black points for drivers flicking cigarette butts onto UAE roads. Not only being unpleasant aesthetically, cigarette filters are comprised of thousands of chemical ingredients, including arsenic, lead, nicotine and ethyl phenol, all of which leak into aquatic environments.

As well as smoking being bad for the environment, smoking killed more than 2,900 people in the UAE in 2016 and cost the country $569 million in lost productivity and health care costs, according to the latest report on global smoking. In 2016 it was reported that, 748 cigarettes were smoked per person aged over 15 years, per year in the United Arab Emirates.

Here’s my third video highlighting marine conservation with Azraq ME 💙🌊 I’d love to hear what you think! #marinedebris #fortheoceans #oceanconservation

Recommended

💙🌊 For The Oceans – Useless Utensils with Amanda Rushforth and Azraq 🌊💙

Posted on June 18, 2020

Azraq highlights that it’s no secret that the hospitality sector is one of the biggest contributors to plastic pollution globally, and they think all of those plastic utensils that they give away (you know, the ones that end up among the most common items found during costal clean ups) are pretty useless!

In 2016, Worldcentric.org estimated that 40 billion plastic utensils were used every year in the United States alone. The majority of these were thrown out after just one use and ended up in landfills and waterways… something must be done. In order to highlight this problem, and hopefully get people to think twice about their usage, AZRAQ launched its #uselessutensils campaign in mid-2019 in partnership with Freedom Pizza, Lush Middle East, Carluccio’s and Beitfann Studio (Sustainable City). With your help, they collected approximately 60kg and over 30,000 plastic utensils in six weeks!

Here’s my second video highlighting marine conservation with Azraq ME 💙🌊 I’d love to hear what you think! #marinedebris #fortheoceans #oceanconservation

Older Posts