Eco-Friendly Women’s Underwear & Lingerie for Every Body
By Ella Hackworth
Image: Proclaim
There are very few things as personal as your undies. You want them to be breathable, good quality, help you feel confident, reflect your personal style, and reflect your values for ethics and sustainability. That’s a lot of pressure to put on your intimates but if you wear them every day, why settle for anything less?
In the spirit of making your skivvy drawer eco-friendlier, we’ve done the research and are bringing you our recommendations for sustainable undergarments no matter what your style is. We’re also providing a few tips on how to extend the life of your good quality garments even longer.
Feminine
PANSY
On-trend, dreamy minimalist basics
Laura Schoorl and Rachel Corry founded Pansy out of a need for comfortable, dreamy, and sustainable underwear. They both dreamt of the ideal undies: minimal, quality, beautiful, locally-made underwear that makes you feel incredible. They created just that.
Location: United States
Sustainability Efforts:
Organic cotton grown in Texas and milled in North Carolina.
Underwear sewn in a factory 20 minutes from their studio in California.
Garments are dyed with fiber-reactive dyes in California.
Price: $$
Our Picks:
Cross Bra ($54)
Low Rise Underwear ($39)
VATTER
Chic undergarments with attitude
This edgy basics brand wants you to know that organic is the new sexy. They believe that undergarments can be both sustainable and fashionable, and offer a variety of styles in neutrals and cheeky prints.
Location: Germany
Sustainability Efforts:
Products certified by Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) as certified organic cotton.
All products come in recycled packaging.
They trace their supply chain and ensure payment of living wage throughout that supply chain.
All products are vegan.
Price: $$
Our Picks:
Brazilian Briefs ($23)
Triangle Bra ($40)
ORGANIC BASICS
Organic, functional staples
Sustainable thinking is the center of this minimal basics brand. They “only choose fabrics that care for the environment and only partner with factories that care about their impact.” Their products are designed to last, which means using good quality materials but also designing with simplicity and function in mind.
Location: Denmark
Sustainability Efforts:
They work with trusted, certified factory partners that have the same sustainable vision as Organic Basics. (Factories that ensure their workplace is free of child labor, forced labor, surround their workers in a safe workspace and pay a living wage)
They handpick every fabric based on its environmental footprint and durability.
Recycled nylon: Made from pre-consumer textile waste that would otherwise go in a landfill. It takes 80% less water to make and creates 90% fewer CO2 emissions compared for virgin fabric.
TENCEL: Produced from wood pulp from Aspen and Birch trees in central European forests. This uses 80% less water in comparison to cotton plants. The trees are responsibly thinned out rather than cut down and the wood is turned into pulp.
Recycled wool: Using recycled wool cuts out the dyeing process, saving water and chemicals and eliminating wastewater.
SilverTech: 2/3rd of environmental impact of clothing is created during the wearing phase. They use real, natural silver for their SilverTech collection. Polymer fibers are coated in silver and blended with organic cotton to make soft, odor controlling, heat regulating products that won’t wash out over time like commonly used nano-silvers.
Polygiene: This is a safe permanent fabric treatment made from recycled silver salt that keeps fabrics fresher for longer between washes. It inhibits the growth of odor causing bacteria and remains permanently on the fabric. This allows you to wash less – saving time, energy and water!
Recycled cashmere: They use certified recycled cashmere from old garments that are shredded and respun back into new yarn and can almost always eliminate the need to use dyes. This process saves water, chemicals, energy and CO2.
Seamless knitting: This is a knitting process that means no weak points in the fabric. This provides better stretch and comfort and reduces fabric waste during the production phase.
Price: $$
Our Picks:
Tencel Lite Bralette ($60)
Organic Cotton Briefs ($39)
Tomboy / Sport
THUNDERPANTS USA
Quirky, fun underwear
Thunderpants USA began after owner Celeste discovered the brand through her sister who was living in New Zealand. When Celeste opened a small boutique in Portland, she imported Thunderpants and helped grow the US market. In 2016 Celeste licensed the NZ brand and started Thunderpants USA that is made in Oregon. With a sustainable mindset and principles of slow growth, Thunderpants embodies embracing the important things in life like enjoying the fruits of your labor and slowing down. Thunderpants hopes that their customers don’t take life too seriously and enjoy a sense of freedom and peace of mind when you wear their underwear.
Location: United States
Sustainability Efforts:
Core values: Ethical manufacturing, sustainable business practices, great quality
Uses a high proportion of eco-friendly materials including organic cotton. Manufactures locally to reduce carbon footprint. Uses low impact non-toxic dyes in all production.
Final stage of production is undertaken in USA.
The organic cotton they use in their fabric is grown in India without the use of chemicals or pesticides and processed to strict SKAL standards (International Standards for Sustainable Textile Production) and is Fairtrade certified.
All aspects of production from how the fabric is made and how the garments are sewn is traceable, tested, and controlled for quality. Thunderpants only works with companies that pay living wages, treat their employees with dignity and respect, and make efforts to minimize their environmental impact.
Price: $$
Our Picks: Marine Whales Matching Bralette & Underwear
Women’s Original ($24)
Women’s Bralette ($38)
TOMBOYX
Confident, practical undergarments
Tomboyx is a brand with an agenda. They promote respect as their universal language and encourage their customers to be unapologetically themselves. This translates to gender, size inclusivity, and ethical and eco-friendly practices.
Location: United States
Sustainability Efforts:
Fair trade practices
Majority Oeko-text 100 certified (a highly-regarded international standard for non-toxic fabrics).
The process that gives its activewear quickdry and antimicrobial properties uses crab and shrimp shells instead of finishing with synthetic chemicals.
Luxury MicroModal fabric is made out of sustainably harvested and processed Beechwood fibers.
Their Signature Prints use a water-based, earth-conscious method, that recycles water well above the standards required.
Continually researching greener and cleaner methods.
Price: $-$$$
Our Picks:
Essentials Soft Bra ($32)
Boy Shorts ($25)
Plus Size
PROCLAIM
Find your nude
This inclusive nude lingerie line is made in Los Angeles. They believe that fashion should represent all women (shapes, sizes, skin tones, etc.) and can both do good for people and the planet. They are pushing the boundaries of what “nude” means, one bra at a time.
Location: United States
Sustainability Efforts:
Made from earth-conscious materials.
TENCEL – produced from wood pulp from sustainably managed sources.
REPREVE – made from #1 plastic water bottles (fun fact: these bottles have the same chemistry made up as polyester).
Bras are cut and sewn at a facility that meets the strict labor standards of the City of Los Angeles and state of California. By manufacturing locally, they are proud to support and contribute to the diverse and sustainable economy where they live.
Their poly mailers, wrappers, and hang tags are made in the USA from 100% recyclable materials and are 100% recyclable after opening.
Their label fasteners are made from natural hemp fibers instead of the plastic alternative that is most commonly used in the garment industry.
Price: $$
Our Picks:
Tencel Bralette ($59)
Tencel Mid-Rise Brief ($28)
WARP + WEFT
Perfected no shows
Warp + Weft began in the denim business 30+ years ago and since has launched an underwear line intentionally designed to be invisible. The anti-pinch bikinis and briefs are lined in 100% cotton and made from cellulose reconstituted from beech trees. The denim collection is also inclusive of sizes 00-24 and has designed their underwear to reflect their customers’ sizes.
Location: United States
Sustainability Efforts:
Recycles 98% of the water it uses, saving over 572.4 million gallons of water since launching in 2017
Partner only with factories with ethical practices, fair wages, reasonable hours and positive working conditions.
Underwear made from cellulose reconstituted from beech trees.
Price: $
Our Picks:
BII Plus Bikini ($12)
BII Bikini ($12)
VEGE THREADS
Sophisticated, simple basics
Vege Threads aims to keep every day dressing simple. They create clothes made locally in Australia that can handle everyday wear and tear. They believe their business is a constant work in progress and continue to reevaluate their practices to be the best for their customers and the planet.
Location: Australia
Sustainability Efforts:
GOTS certified cotton and Modal (material made from wood pulp)
Eco-friendly materials limit the amount of chemicals, water, and wastewater in production.
Vege Threads uses a non-toxic solvent during the production process and close to 100% of the solvent is recovered - whatever is not is broken down in water treatment plants.
Price: $$
Our Picks:
Modal Crop Bra ($69)
Modal High Brief ($59)
LA FILLE D’O
Avant-garde lingerie
This avant-garde lingerie company seeks to support a woman’s body while giving her a unique design. La fille d’O hopes to empower the modern woman and rid her of any heavy doubt and shame she has about herself.
Location: Belgium
Sustainability Efforts:
Offer a repair service that will resuscitate your beloved undies so you don’t have to throw them out.
All products are Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certified.
Uses a limited production run to minimize textile waste.
Manufactures locally to reduce the carbon footprint.
Price: $$$
Our Picks:
Changes Bikini Bra ($160)
Sea Sea Lingerie Briefs ($148)
How To Extend The Life Of Your Undergarments:
1. Regularly rotate your bras: Purchase 2 or more and regularly rotate between wears to ensure they last longer.
2. Wash bras properly: Make sure to latch the closure on your bras, place them in a mesh lingerie bag, and wash on gentle. Be sure to lay your bras flat to dry - throwing them in the dryer ruins the stretch properties!
3. Wash delicate fabrics by hand: Everyday cotton undies are fine to throw in the washer and dryer but lace, silks, and other thin fabrics should be hand washed as these fibers break down quicker and you won’t get as much wear out of your favorite pairs.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ella Hackworth is a Brand Account Manager and Contributing Writer for SISTAIN and has a background in design, dance, and visual arts. She celebrates her love of nature, beauty, and connection through her passion for living mindfully and sustainably.
