Where to Buy Sustainable Underwear
Eczema Clothing offers undies for women, men and children. The range includes vests, no-elastic box shorts and even organic cotton long johns!
Nearly ALL ‘sustainable undie brands’ use a little elastane (they say it’s for comfort and stretch). For the rest, it’s best to invest in a microfiber filter (which you can to launder all synthetics, then you catch the microplastics to be sent off for recycling, and get empty cartridges in return).
Sustainable undies for children
ECOOutfitters (which makes organic school uniforms) offers organic cotton underwear for girls and boys. Including briefs and boxer shorts for girls and boys.
Where to recycle your old undies!
You likely know that underwear cannot be returned once bought for hygiene reasons. And for the same reason, you can’t donate it to charity shops. But you can drop old pairs (even torn or worn) into textile banks. From there, the fabric gets shredded and turned into industrial products like carpet insulation.
Rapanui (Isle of Wight) is an outdoor clothing company, which also offers organic cotton underwear (also for men). In many colours, everything is made with clean energy, and sent in zero waste packaging.
Kent (90-day compostable undies!)
Kent offers fully biodegradable and compostable undies, with the slogan that you can ‘plant your pants!’
Community Clothing Undies (sewn in South Wales)
Community Clothing produces locally-made underwear in organic cotton, also for men. Everything is hand-cut and sewn by seamstresses in a South Wales factory.
Earth Wardrobe (affordable organic cotton undies)
Earth Wardrobe offers organic affordable undies from Scotland, in pretty colours. Including boxer shorts for men.
Thunderpants (fun cotton undies for all sizes)
Thunderpants is a slightly bonkers company (for people who love bright patterned undies!) that offers UK-stitched and finished undies, made locally to cut transport miles and support local economies.
The wide waistbands and flat seams prevent digging or chafing, and they hold up after each wash. You’ll also find matching vests and leggings.
Y.O.U. (briefs and boxers for men and women)
Y.O.U. Underwear offers comfortable organic cotton underwear for men and women, from neutral colours to bright prints. Designed to fit a wide range of body sizes, you’ll find bikinis, briefs and boxers, with a focus on comfort, rather than fussy extras.
Sprout Organics (monthly pants subscription boxes!)
Sprout Organic has colourful options for women. From sustainable fabric in India, then made in a workshop in East Sussex by the sea. All scraps are repurposed and items are sent in zero waste packaging. Trim colours depend on the leftover fabric available.
You can subscribe to the pant subscription box to order a fresh pair every month. Or just enter ‘three pants’ at checkout to get a discount. Choose from knickers, high-waisted knickers or unisex boxers. Plus there are unisex pants for children.
Nearly ALL ‘sustainable undie brands’ use a little elastane (they say it’s for comfort and stretch). For the rest, it’s best to invest in a microfiber filter (which you can to launder all synthetics, then you catch the microplastics to be sent off for recycling, and get empty cartridges in return).
Where to recycle your old undies!
You likely know that underwear cannot be returned once bought for hygiene reasons. And for the same reason, you can’t donate it to charity shops. But you can drop old pairs (even torn or worn) into textile banks. From there, the fabric gets shredded and turned into industrial products like carpet insulation.
