Ethics and Sustainability

 

APPROACH

Our textile designs are focused on fashion trends that won't age and are mindfully designed to help minimise waste in the Digital & Screen Printing processes.

We offer varied sustainable options within our collections, making it that much easier for you to find a design that will not only look amazing but align with your values as well. Our collections are carefully curated to help you match your perfect print with your preferred printing method, our minimal collections has a strong focus on limited ink usage in order to reduce waste. 

INKS/PRINTING

Our sample designs have been printed with the amazing team at Think Positive in Sydney, Australia, and supplied from ethical sources. Through Think Positive we have applied less ink to our printing which has allowed us to produce a finer result while also minimising usage of low-toxic water based dyes. (The difference between the standard ink setting of 540 and our setting of 360, is the level of ink and the bleed which this produces).

The 360 (or 3d) lesser ink setting uses 27% less ink than the standard. This is 80% less prior to using a new ink recycling system. The 8 printer heads clean 4-5 times a day by flushing out excess dye. Instead of going to waste the dye is re-dispersed back into the printing heads. This process saves 2L of ink from being washed down the drain per machine per day.
Further to this, they use a colour management system that picks the most minimalist of the 8 colours to produce each colour, totally economical. You can produce blue one million ways but our software picks the most economical way of printing that colour. 
It was a big investment for Think Positive but something they felt very strongly about, and we so do we! No harmful chemicals are used in the process, the dyes are not currently certified organic but are made from a low toxic water-based solution. 

FABRICS

Since our shift in September 2019, Kukukachu has endeavoured to use eco-friendly and natural fibres for our artwork sampling. We hope that by showcasing our designs on these fabrics, it will help inspire our clients to choose sustainably and ethically sourced fibres for their manufacturing.

• Chanderi Silk/Cotton

A fine silk cotton blend hand-woven in India, Chanderi is woven by a family of weavers in Varanasi. It is a weaving technique that originated in the city of Chanderi in Madya Pradesh.

The traditional Chanderi was produced as Sarees with beautiful floral and abstract motifs that floated on the fine silk, silk cotton or cotton background. Weavers now weave the plain Chanderi with the same technique producing a beautiful light fabric that is suitable for garments.

The weavers in Varanasi are highly skilled master craftsmen who have been weaving for generations. Many of these plain woven fabrics are still woven in the same way, however due to the high cost of hand crafted textiles and natural fibres such as silk, the introduction of a semi mechanised loom helps with the production of volume and is helping to keep the artisan craft alive.

• The Vita Econyl Nylon Lycra

Made from regenerated nylon i.e made from plastic which is pulled from the ocean. Hip hip hooray! Due to the latest yarn and knitting technologies, it is 20% flatter than your normal Matt Nylon LYCRA, even though it still has the same classic power and coverage. Thanks to its innovative construction and presence of Xtra Life LYCRA®, it is more chlorine resistant than your average swimwear fabric. 

• Silk Crepe De Chine

Our standard Silk CDC is a natural fibre which comes from a supplier who our printers have been working with for 7+ years and trust 100%. They’re a boutique mill which is rare in China, with approximately only 30 workers. They supply to all the top fashion houses in Europe and are serious about quality. 

Please note: we still have some unfortunate Polyester sample fabrics for some of our artworks. We like to suggest once your samples have been used, they make great doggy bandanas for your furry friends, or you can take a whirl at turning them into Beeswax Cloths.