Eco Fashion Friday Featured Designer The Hempest

This morning I was doing research into what this week’s Eco Fashion Friday feature could be so I put the question out to some friends and one simply said ‘Hemp clothing’. It occurred to me this is one area we haven’t covered very generously over here at GLR as primarily bamboo or organic cotton seems to be the fabric of choice for most eco conscious designers. So while researching clothing made from hemp I came across The Hempest and was so impressed I may just pick up some of their cozy looking fashions for gifts in the near future!

The Hempest, founded in 1995, provides environmentally sound fashion choices made from organic hemp for both men and women. In addition to their cool clothing they also provide a line of body care, accessories like purses and fedoras and even hiking shoes (not to mention books, hacky sacks, lip balm journals and other fun stuff)! For the more adventurous types they even sell their own spun yarn so you can make your very own hemp statements.

The one drawback of the clothing is that it is pretty pricey for the average consumer considering many of the pieces are hemp/cotton or hemp/bamboo blends. The sweater in the photo above is 45% cotton (not noted if it is organic) and listed at $98.00, the fedora at $45.00. Although it is important to point out the tensile strength of hemp fabric so these items are definitely going to last when they are cared for correctly, making it an overall great investment.

I like the colors and styles available as they resemble more mainstream fashions but make use of an unconventional material such as hemp. Additionally, other than the one brick & mortar location in Vermont, all three of their other locations are right here in Massachusetts! Because of their commitment to using rapidly renewable resources such as hemp, cotton and bamboo I am granting a Four Leaf Rating to The Hempest!

Nice job bringing this environmentally responsible fabric choice into the mainstream consciousness Hempest. You might just see me in your Harvard Square location one of these days!