Last year I started thinking about what it means to make truly eco sustainable swimwear. I had already been purchasing recycled polyester swimwear fabric from Blue Moon Fabrics - The bold rich and colorful fabric is an eco-friendly stretch knit comprised of high CLO spandex and polyester made from recycled PET. Along with being a recycled textile, it’s also chlorine and saltwater resistant. It also performs super well and looks beautiful! That said, I wanted to go deeper and wondered if folks were trying natural fiber based fabrics for swim. I came across a super nice and sturdy hemp spandex blend - 53% Certified Organic Hemp, 43% Certified Organic Cotton, 4% Spandex. This stuff takes dye pretty well and holds up to hot water and wear very well. I will say, it is a hemp/elastane blend and my jacquard dye bath didn’t permeate the fibers as much as it would have if it were 100% natural fiber. I can’t wait to explore with this material and new dye and print techniques, truly inspiring to think of a swimwear collection made of hemp, avoiding polyester all together.