After experiencing disappointment in all the high-priced legging options on the market, Ellie Dinh just didn’t feel that they were thoughtful enough in their quality and origin. “I could not find, no matter how hard I looked, activewear that was thoughtful. Thoughtful in terms of design, thoughtful about where clothing was coming from, and thoughtful about quality.”
To create a legging that fit her desire for a sustainable product that also looked and felt great when worn, Ellie collaborated with her husband Quang, the founding fashion designer of Sling & Stones, a fair trade organic denim brand. After nine months of labor, the result is The Girlfriend Collective and their first product, a sheer-proof, high-waisted legging made of their Tite Tech fabric, which molds to your body shape, is constructed from 25 recycled water bottles, and is assembled and made ethically.
But don’t just take our word for it. The Girlfriend Collective has Oeko-Tex and SA8000 certifications, and their leggings are certified Bluesign, which guarantees product safety in five areas: consumer safety, resource productivity, water emissions, air emissions, and workplace health and safety. And don’t think Ellie and Quang are hanging up their design hats with just leggings. They’re planning a full line to be launched in early 2017, for which they are currently sourcing a recycled discarded fishnet material to use for other apparel.
As if these leggings couldn’t get any better, The Girlfriend Collective is currently wrapping up a campaign that is offering them to consumers for just the cost of shipping up until mid-November 2016. That’s right, the actual pair of recycled plastic bottle leggings are free, and the fact that they’ve saved almost 2.5 million water bottles from landfills with their Tite Tech textile is even more reason to get behind the brand. Head over to The Girlfriend Collective website to learn more and order your pair now.
Images by Sisilia Piring.
xx Alex