Trims

Trims.

A majority of our buttons and all of our accessories hardware are made of either zamak or brass. These materials are then enamelled or galvanized with precious metals like gold. All of our metals are cadmium, lead and nickel free.

Buttons made of Zamak.

One of our button styles is made of Zamak. This is a zinc alloy consisting of more than 95 % pure zinc and supplemented by a fraction of aluminum, copper and magnesium. Zinc is in high demand nowadays due to its environmentally friendly qualities: it is infinitely recyclable, and a tiny covering of zinc may extend the life of a metal product by 12 times.

Buttons made of recycled metal waste.

The rest of our metal buttons and hardware are made of brass at our partners, Ascoli and Amom Spa. Brass is the highest grade material used in metal accessories, not only for its durability and strength, but also its unique sustainability properties.

We are also aware of the downsides of brass, Copper mining has significant environmental consequences, as it doesn’t degrade in the environment. That’s why we prefer to work with suppliers that recycle brass internally to lessen the environmental impact of using new copper resources.

Our partner, Amom uses new technologies (machining centers, pantographs, CNC lasers) which have allowed them to recycle all metal waste. Even the residues of precious metals that have been used in the galvanic deposition activity are sent for treatment and re-transformed into precious salts.

As for the environmental impact of surface treatments of buttons, such as enameling and galvanization (or plating), Amom uses a recycling process here too which allows them to reuse metal deposits from the galvanization process.

Organic Cotton & Gold Galvanized Brass Zippers

Our ultimate aim was to find zippers that could be used across all our collections, in order to avoid waste. All of our zippers feature 100% undyed organic cotton tape and nickel-free, gold-plated brass chain and puller.

Our supplier, Zip Goffredo are the leading innovators in zipper production in the world, with a full-service sustainable production line. They constantly research new materials and have always been the first to use certified yarns and recycled waste in their products.

Organic Horn Buttons

We use natural horn buttons in our collection as an alternative to polyester - a natural material, made out of buffalo horns. The main source of the material is India, where buffalos are an integral part of rural Indian families’ sustenance.

The buffalo horns that are sourced from our supplier, DEB, come from domestic farms, where the animals grow and live with the Indian families.

During their life they guarantee the family’s livelihoods as they provide milk, yogurt and excrements for agriculture, heating and insulation.

At the end of their life, the animals become a source of profit for the family. Nothing from the animal is wasted like the horns for buttons, while horn waste is used for agricultural purposes. All of Debs horn buttons are certified organic by GOTS.

Biodegradable Reinforcement Materials

One of our main goals was to source reinforcement materials for our footwear and handbags that are compostable, something that’s not typically found anywhere in the accessories industry where shoes and bags are reinforced with plastic.

We knew that these were the industry standards, but we persisted to find compostable and biodegradable alternatives that would make our accessories compostable at the end of the lifecycles.

We sourced three interesting materials to be used in our accessories: a natural rubber foam with a cotton backing; a cotton with biodegradable coating to give our shoes structure; and a 100% organic cotton twill fabric with a water-based adhesive. For our handbags, we use paper board to create a strong base that holds the structure of the bag even with heavy contents.

Recycled PES Labels

All of our branded interior labels are made of 100% recycled PES polymer from Mion. This is one of the only materials in our collection not made of natural fibers. Although our intention was to find a natural alternative, we chose to create a label that could withstand the test of time and could be reused over and over again if we ever had garments returned to us in our future recycling program.

Our supplier has replaced all of their polyester yarns with recycled yarns, made from recycled PET bottles.

Shoe Soles and Heels

Looking for sustainable shoe soles might have been the hardest part of our sourcing process. We tried to find natural materials but quickly realized they do not last very long, yet our aim is to create shoes that last a lifetime.

We sourced the highest grade recycled PET shoe soles on the market - made of 65% recycled materials from Tre Zeta Group. We also used the company’s wooden heel in all of our boots and pumps, to replace conventional plastic or leather options.

Our sneaker insoles are made of recycled polyurethane foam by Arneplant, an incredibly breathable, antibacterial, and shock resistant material. Recycled polyurethane is created in a closed loop system using internal waste, meaning that there are no leftovers at the end of the production cycle.