Finally, Some Fair Trade + Ecofriendly + Organic Clothing on Amazon: Introducing Fair Indigo
Recently, I’d been on the hunt for some classic tees. My criteria: flattering, comfy, ecofriendly and ethically made.
I also wanted shirts that I could dress up + dress down. Think: ultimate closet chameleons. Plus, it needed to be durable—hanging with my pretoddler means (among other things) that the shirts needed to withstand being bathed in baby food and tons of crawl-time.
I’m also an Amazon Prime junkie, and wanted the shirts to supplement my minimal, yet-ever-laundered basics. Fast.
It took a bit of sleuthing, but I stumbled across Fair Indigo on Amazon. Between the rave reviews and ethical brand overview, it felt like a win.
Fair Indigo launched when Bill Bass (former pilot, turned paratropper, and Land’s End alum) and his coworker Robert Benke quit their day jobs. With their enduring philosophy, “Look good, feel good, do good” they partnered with a handful of co-ops in Peru to make GOTS certified pima cotton, fair-trade and oh-so-ecofriendly apparel. At the same time, Bass and Benke also started the Fair Indigo Foundation, a nonprofit that supports two schools in the heart of where the co-ops are are located.
I’ve been wearing (and washing) Fair Indigo shirts for a month so far. Here’s the three different styles I purchased, and a summary about each:
Blush, don’t mind the yogurt and wrinkles on this shirt—it’s just a visual example of the joyful (yet, a bit messy) grind these shirts experience with me and baby “R” in tow.
Relaxed Pocket V-Neck Tee: With a subtly rounded v-neckline, I adore that the fit is not-too-tight, and works perfect for tucking into high waist jeans.
Ingredients | Organic Pima cotton
What I Love About It | The shirt is especially loose in the waist area, making it ultra flattering for tuck-ins. It’s light-weight fabric works well in the summer heat.
Good To Knows | It tends to wrinkle more then the cotton-spandex blended shirt.
Ideal For | The purist—someone who loves a cotton-only tee.
Essential Scoop Neck Tee: While this shirt isn’t purely organic cotton, the hint of spandex adds just-enough stretch. This is my favorite neckline of the three shirts. It’s a quintessential option for any closet.
Ingredients | 95% organic Pima cotton 5% spandex
What I Love About It | I adore the weight of this shirt, it’s rather thick without looking or feeling too bulky. Plus, it’s pre-shrunk so you don’t have to work about sizing.
Good To Knows | The shirt can roll up a bit on the bottom if you don’t lay it flat to dry.
Ideal For | The poised—someone who loves a tee that’ll look polished.
Relaxed Crew Neck Tee: This is the perfect casual shirt. It also has some spandex to make it subtlety stretchy across the chest—all without too much cling. The “relaxed” fit makes for a looser cut near the bottom half of the shirt; great for the tuck-in-tie trend.
Ingredients | 95% organic Pima cotton 5% spandex
What I Love About It | If feels super soft and launders well—even when I accidentally put it in the dyer on high heat. Whoops.
Good To Knows | Size down if you if you like a tighter-fit.
Ideal For | The minimalist—someone who loves a classy crew-look.
I love the biodegradable polybag these Fair Indigo shirts come in too. Neat.
Good for You - The majority of Fair Indigo’s shirts are made from non-GMO, GOTS-certified Pima cotton. I love that they offer 100% cotton shirts (as well as leggings) if you aren’t a fan of syntheic spandex-infused blends. The shirts are colored with Oeko-tex certified dyes without azo colorants, formaldehyde or pentachlorophenol.
Good for Others - Fair Indigo’s clothing is sewn in 100% safe surroundings - not sweatshops - and each worker earns a “living” wage rather than a “minimum” wage. This is because Fair Indigo doesn’t believe in a one-size-fits-all wage, instead, the company partners with the University of Wisconsin to continually upgrade an ideal, livable pay for workers in the various communities they source from. Fair Indigo also offers their workers additional benefits, like on-site medical treatment. Every year, Fair Indigo’s staff visits the cooperative farms and small business they employ in Peru to ensure everyone is paid fairly and treated with respect. There’s also the Fair Indigo Foundation, a non-profit, that supports two schools (Manchay and Separis) in the Peruvian communities where most of the company’s cotton is grown. 100% of the foundation’s administrative and fundraising costs are covered by Fair Indigo. You can even opt to donate $5 to the two schools during Fair Indigo’s checkout process.
Good For Earth - The majority of Fair Indigo’s Pima cotton is sourced by partnering with small, organic farms in Peru. These farms sustainably grow the cotton using natural irrigation techniques. The cotton is picked by hand to limit environmental impact of the cotton harvest. During the off-season, Fair Indigo helps the farmers grow quinoa. The clothing is dyed with eco-friendly, low-impact dyes and the water is then treated and disposed of properly. Fair Indigo also recently opted to eliminate all hang tags on their clothing for even less waste. They also send their clothes in a fully bio-degradable poly bag. Recently the company received the Green America’s People & Planet Award.
C&C Overall - Fair Indigo is one of my favorite brands from 2019. The more I read and interact with the company, the more impressed I become. Plus, they’ve got a serious track record—they’ve been involved in fair-trade, organic farming since 2006. Their products, their mission, their ethics. It’s all inspiring. I’m also a super-fan of their highly-personable (and in-depth blog) they maintain. The posts cover everything. If you have a chance, check out their gorgeous embroidered wool belts too.
Happy shopping.
XOXO,
Lemon
