This month we celebrate the birth of the NEW collection from maternity brand SECRET SAVIOURS.

A conscious brand with a difference, not only do they authentically care about the physical and emotional journey into motherhood and have applied this care to every step of the product development process but they are also pioneers of the unique Derma Dot™ Intelligent Skin Support Technology, which is clinically proven to prevent stretch marks, when used as part of their revolutionary 3-step system. 

" Made from 85% recycled yarns and OEKO-TEX approved, the products have been designed to support, smooth, and sculpt the body, providing a comfortable and stylish solution whilst enhancing every woman’s natural curves. This game-changing technology plays an integral role in our 3-step stretch mark prevention system, which like all good skincare routines, focuses on maintaining healthy skin. "

You can head to their website to read more about the incredible science behind this.

https://secretsaviours.com

Supporting Secret Saviours with the technical product build: sourcing, fitting, sizing, grading, testing, quality control and manufacturer liaison, we have relished this unique opportunity to connect and collaborate on such a sensitive and vulnerable topic, to develop truly caring, precise and functional garments that lovingly support and hold you as you transition to motherhood.

"Life- changing wear for when your life is changing “

Huge congratulations to founder Sophie Hooper and acknowledgement to the expert team at THE NEST.

" Nicola joined THE NEST as an expert consultant for ladies intimate apparel and quickly established herself as an absolute asset to our team and to the clients we work with. Her knowledge is outstanding and her collaborative approach to working with our team has really helped to elevate the services we can offer. Nicola's attention to detail and ability to problem solve has helped us to develop complex products that are functional, fit well and look beautiful "

Nicola Perring, Founder at THE NEST

As you may have seen on our 'About' page, Bold Intimates is a member of the ECOSYSTEM INCUBATOR project, a sustainable fashion community which uses living systems thinking to adopt new circular models throughout the fashion industry.

Using the analogy of a forest to represent the fashion industry as a living system, we are proud to be a seed ambassador of the Intimate Apparel tree. Within our tree, we are currently working around the enquiry of material sourcing and how we can better streamline and collaborate; sharing nutrients, inspiring change and building supply chain efficiencies for all.

This initiative is particularly suited to young brands who have the agility to pivot and flexibility to collaborate from this mindset. Coming together to combine orders and drive change, creating more opportunities, which mutually support brands, material producers and the land.

You can find out more at the ecosystemincubator.com/intimate-apparel-tree

If this is something that speaks to you, we'd love to have a chat and if you feel ready to join us in the IA tree, we have a special discount code for Bold Intimates affiliates: PANTS 100 for your first free month!

See you there!

A fantastic and regenerative start to 2023 as we joined industry peers in Paris last month at the Salon International de la Lingerie and Interfilière trade show, under new management of WSN.

A precious opportunity to join Jos Berry for the Sunday VIP conference to present our growing eco- system for technical practitioners in the lingerie, swim and lounge industries, the Intimate Apparel Technical Collective .

Further more we were able to celebrate some of our cherished members and their craft in the trend forum though our expression of meaningful collaboration with Concepts Paris, Darquer and Noyon lace using archive/dead stock laces to re-connect to craft and beauty in a sustainable way.

You can read more about the show highlights in the Concepts Paris blog here:

https://www.conceptsparis.com/blogs/news/important-novelties-at-salon-international-de-la-lingerie-interfiliere-paris

Congratulations PAMBA on the launch of your synthetic free plant dyed underwear collection!

A simply beautiful and unique combination of soft and textured bamboo terry towelling emersed in the ancient and natural supportive qualities of plants, not to mention their beautiful colour palette!

Pamba is one of the brands disrupting the chemical dye industry in fashion by restoring artisanal natural dye practice to our most intimate garments, ensuring not only non-toxicity but breathability, anti-bacterial, soothing and medicinal qualities which can actually benefit the skin in our intimate areas. With our skin being the bodies largest organ and highly absorptive, surely there is much more to be explored here!

The style pictured here uses the Indigo plant which has active ingredients which can provide anti- inflammatory relief and helps to flush away toxins. During the Edo period, Japan's Samurai wore a layer of indigo dyed cotton beneath their armour to help heal injuries!

It was a true inspiration to support Pamba with their product development journey last year and witness their passion for the restoration of our connection to Mother Earth.

As we heal the earth she can heal us.

As we approach the end of the first year of the Intimate Apparel Technical Collective we are blessed with our subscribers crossing the 100 mark!

A professional network launched at the beginning of 2022 to connect and celebrate technical practitioners: designers, technicians, pattern cutters, graders, fit models and machinists in the lingerie, swim and lounge industry.

Our community is one based on authentic connection and collaboration and my goodness how it is thriving! The warmth, openness, support and abundance of life and opportunity we have co-created is more than we ever imagined and we know there is so much more for us to grow into, harnessing thriving change for the industry at large!

To celebrate this milestone we're going to host a LIVE Q&A on Instagram on Tuesday 22nd of November, at 5pm UK time.The core team, Nicola Hopkins (Founder), Trudy Gardner (Admin) and Sofía Luzón (Social) will be chatting all things intimate, technical and community as well as sharing our ideas and plans for the evolution of the Collective.

If you are curious about the Collective and would like to hear more of what it's about you are welcome to join us! You'll be able to ask your questions live or beforehand via Instagram: @ia_technical_collective_

We are proud to announce and celebrate our membership of the Environmenstrual Coalition.

Working with the London based non profit organisation WEN, we are members of a group of businesses standing for healthy, sustainable, safe and affordable body and planet friendly menstrual products for all.

We are passionate about working with aligned brands to create intimate garments which support the health of the menstruating body. Our garment builds celebrate the wisdom of cyclical bleeding bodies and understand that by supporting these bodies we are also supporting nature and the planet, we are one and the same.

Furthermore,  through our partnership with 1% FOR THE PLANET, 1% of our income from product builds this year have been donated directly to WEN to further nourish and enrich this movement.

This week 17th-21st October 2022 is ENVIRONMENSTRUAL WEEK and the focus this year is on ending period shame- period poverty, cycle and reproductive health, continence and the persistence of stigma and taboo around menstruation.

Head over to @environmenstrual on Instagram to learn more about this movement and spread the word to amplify the conversation and join the revolution!

Read more about Wen's work at https://www.wen.org.uk

Thank you for the interview this month UNDERLINES MAGAZINE!

Such a lovely chance to share about our journey through and out of the pandemic, the learnings along the way and our new community initiatives making waves throughout the Intimate Apparel product development sector.

For the full scoop, you can read the article at https://underlinesmagazine.com/2022/06/17/the-friday-interview/

Super excited to shout out PANTEE this month for our client feature!

We connected with Pantee back in May 2020 when we were both part of an expert panel discussion for the Sustainable Fashion Collective, discussing starting an underwear brand, sustainable fabrics and the current opportunities in the Intimate Apparel sector.

PANTEE stand for a circular economy by taking pre consumer waste T-shirt stock (over production, cancelled orders etc.) and turning it into underwear. They design out the waste, ensuring all resources are kept in the system.

Pantee's fresh perspective and raw energy for innovating a way to use a waste element of the supply chain and turn it into a brand new and completely different product continues to inspire and galvanise us! Embodying the crux of true regenerative innovation and transformation by bringing two things together which before then had been entirely separate. It reminds us of the power of connections outside of our usual circles and systems and how the answer is not about creating or doing more of the same but looking at what we already have and changing our relationship to it.

" True innovation occurs when things are put together for the first time that had been separate " Arthur Koestler & John Smythies (1969)

Proud to have watched Pantee's journey and recognition in British Vogue, The Independent, Hello Magazine and more, we relished the opportunity to connect again with Pantee this year to support refining the fit and sizing of their now established favourite core lines.

As a fellow member of the 1% FOR THE PLANET movement and recently joining our ECOSYSTEM INCUBATOR in the 'Ones to Watch' category in the Drapers Sustainable Fashion awards, being able to collaborate in alignment and inject our technical expertise at just the right moment  is what we're all about!

It's International Women's Day and we are taking this opportunity to celebrate our belief and vision for personal and planetary healing by embracing feminine leadership.

The natural energy that flows through all humans is ONE with the planet and the natural world, the trees and the oceans. We have been taught for some time now that natural feminine and maternal qualities such as feeling, tenderness, nurturing, rage and passionate expression need to be made smaller and controlled. We have been taught to not be in our bodies, not to allow the natural flow and force of energy surging through us. When a human does this they can become traumatised, stuck, anxious and depressed. It is very painful to hold these energies internally and can lead to numbing or coping behaviours such as addictions, including over consumption. It is very difficult to give outwardly and love others and our planet when we are in survival mode.When we dismiss and oppress the feminine we are also dismissing Mother Nature. To value nature, we must first honour the feminine.

" Ecofeminism is an integral facet of the women's movement because it addresses the severing of women and Mother Nature and the exploration of both" Lissa Brown

Through our '1% for the Planet' commitment, we have donated to two fantastic organisations this year, who are working on the ground to ensure a positive and thriving change in our planetary issues by working directly and closely with women whose environments are being the most effected:

WEA (WOMENS EARTH ALLIANCE)

WEA is on a mission to protect our environment and end the climate crisis and ensure a just and thriving world by empowering women's leadership. In some of the most environmentally threatened places in the world, WEA leaders are defending forests and rivers, saving threatened indigenous seeds, launching sustainable farms, conserving coral reefs, and protecting land rights. The model identifies grassroots women leaders working on the frontlines to reverse climate change and protect their communities' natural resources, livelihoods, and health. WEA invest in their long-term leadership through training, funding, and networks of support. These women leaders spread their solutions to many others for years beyond project investments - creating a ripple effect that benefits women’s communities, regions, our Earth, and future generations.

WEN (WOMENS ENVIRONMENTAL NETWORK)

Wen acts to achieve equality, justice and joy at the point where gender and environmental issues meet. They work both in London and nationally to support women and grass-root movements with the mission achieve environmental justice, and we do this through providing women with equal access to knowledge, resources and opportunities to better their day-to-day experience.

" We are either going to have a future where women lead the way to make peace with the Earth or we are not going to have a human future at all". Vandana Shiva

Introducing the Ecosystem Incubator, a collaboration space for sustainable and regenerative fashion.

We connected with Rachel Sheila Kan, founder of the space and movement back in 2020 through our aligned ethos and vision for a fashion design and development industry with regenerated systems, working with the flow of life: with nature and our human nature as opposed to against it.

Bold Intimates has been an active contributor in building out the Intimate Apparel niche/'tree' ever since, alongside our peer Emmaline Vaughan Ronson of Source Lingerie. You can listen to both Nicola and Emmaline's podcasts in discussion with The Ecosystem Incubator now to learn more about the vision and to be a part of this growing niche branch of the Ecosystem.

In Nicola's podcast, she discusses in detail concepts of circularity, shifting mindsets and reconnection to the human experience as a starting point for building a new healthier future for us all and our planet. We are not stuck in the current systems that are not working, we can create and be a part of the emerging new systems, simply by tuning into what feels true for us.

We speak about our vision for the Intimate Apparel Technical Collective (our niche within a niche) and the power of making aligned and authentic connections that can then ripple out into the larger Intimate Apparel and fashion ecosystems.

" For a considered, holistic life and human centric approach to the industry delve in here, the birth of a new industry space is upon us"

Rachel Sheila Kan, founder of CIRCULAR EARTH and THE ECOSYSTEM INCUBATOR.

To find out more about the Ecosystem Incubator in a collaborative networking setting you can join a 'try it on' intro session for your fashion business every Friday at 1.30pm GMT.

Go to theecosystemincubator.com for more details.

Towards the end of 2021 we began to feel strongly that we wanted to stand for empowering and regenerating the product development sector of the Intimate Apparel industry. We knew that there was more that could be done and there was still what felt like a lot of disconnect in the industry, especially between direct peers.

We set about building a network of like minded, conscious designers, pattern cutters, technicians and machinists from all areas of the industry and also the globe. We wanted to bring together aligned product creators who truly hold people and the planet and the core of their values and believe in the power of building intimate garments with authenticity, accuracy, integrity, trust and above all a human connection.

The Intimate Apparel Technical Collective was born and we met for the first time at our 'seed gathering' this month where the founding members were able to connect, introduce themselves and share ideas of what we want from this space.

Coming away truly inspired and galvanised by our peers, our goal now is to nurture this Collective of professionals for our niche skillset, to create a safe and welcoming space where we can connect, share, celebrate, collaborate and also ask for support!

We've set up monthly online gatherings where we have an opportunity for real time face to face connection and also a Slack group with channels for news, sharing, quick tech help and work opportunities so we can feel connected and supported on the move and whatever we are doing.

We believe deeply in the power of the feeling technician, who is able to combine technical precision with the full human experience to allow the flow of creativity to come to life in a supported and loving way and we recognise the importance of community to support a sustainable and thriving flow of life throughout the eco system that is the Intimate Apparel industry.

If you are an Intimate Apparel technical designer, technician, pattern cutter, grader or machinist and would like to hear more or join our next monthly online gathering, please do get in touch at hello@iatechnicalcollective.com

Whatever level of experience or particular strengths you have, we'd love to hear from you! Together we really are stronger.

Come curious.

Leave connected.

In the wake of the COP26 summit we are sitting with a range of emotions and reflecting on our core belief that how we feel and how we choose to show up in the world has the power to enact positive change.

We are reminded of the power of like minded connections and alignment and our drive to stand for taking responsibility for how we feel is stronger than ever. Whilst government and systemic policy is necessary and may not always be where we need it to be, we can drive actual change right now, every day, by fully expressing ourselves and remembering our shared humanity. Political representation is ultimately in service to this and we need the courage of individuals to continue to stand for what they believe to be true.

Understanding that how we personally feel determines our experience in the world and how we show up is not a new concept in building intimate apparel garments. We know that our undergarments play a special role in supporting us in our most intimate and vulnerable places. On some level we have always known that a bra wire digging in or an itchy gusset makes us feel uncomfortable, annoyed and restricted and in turn that impacts our relationship with that garment and ourselves and how we go about our day.

So with this knowing comes a great opportunity for Intimate Apparel designers to recognise the wearer's experience on an acute sensual and emotional level. Those designers and brands that can connect with this essence have the ability to create products which support, heal and guide real emotional and physical needs rather than continuing to fuel the current addictions to self image, validation, speed or low cost.

We can create products with so much value that they have the power to shape our day, on a level which even the consumer may not always be aware of. They can have the power to shift mindsets and halt purchases of anything which is less meaningful. This means designing with complete integrity, being so aligned with our emotional experience as creators and wearers that we use that to guide the products we bring into being.

Designers are used to working with constraints, what is being asked of us now is to shift the focus from the constraints of margin, profit and delivery deadlines to constraints required for personal, collective and planetary healing and evolution. Trust your instincts, your intuition, your unique humanness and let this flow through our industries, homes and communities and through the products you design and bring into being.

We have so much power if we choose to use it.

It is with great joy that we introduce Cou Cou Intimates to our portfolio and followers.

Launched this summer, Cou Cou set out to embrace the gap between our underwear and lingerie drawer and to re- imagine comfortable and cute daily underwear that is kind to our bodies and planet, embracing and celebrating the full embodied female experience.

Our product development journey with Cou Cou has been authentic, aligned and collaborative, which ultimately has allowed the creation of something unique and powerful with passion, truth and love.

Founder, Rose Colcord, has a unique ability to see and seek out fresh opportunities with a combination of holistic feeling and blue sky thinking. Her unbridled drive to create something that feels right in her heart and on her body is a true inspiration. To work alongside Rose as she learnt and compassionately navigated the traditional ways of the industry with new conscious and sustainable practices has been a gift of mutual learning.

Elevated, comfortable intimates were born using (GOTS certified) 100% organic cotton, beautifully delicate and soft pointelle and a romantic french lace trim. The core collection, available in white and black, encompasses refined and flattering shapes so while the cotton nurtures the skin with the rhythm of beauty and purity, allowing it to breathe and relax, the styles give us full expression to fearlessly step into the power of all that we are!

"Bold Intimates has been on the journey building Cou Cou since day one. We had a strong vision and high standards for the collection in wanting to bridge the gap between our lingerie and day underwear. Nicola not only played a key role in perfecting our bespoke material but her technical expertise, precision and attention represented a level of passion and enthusiasm which is hard to find. I cannot thank Bold Intimates enough for exceeding what I dreamed of for the core collection and for truly believing in Cou Cou from the beginning "

Rose Colcord, Founder at COU COU INTIMATES

Being 'Climate Neutral', reducing our Carbon impact. What does this really mean for fashion brands?

Currently the planet has too much carbon dioxide in it's atmosphere, which is the main factor in the heating up of the planet. Humans have abused the earth's natural carbon sources, through increased fossil fuel extraction for energy, transport and to power industry, thus releasing huge amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Further more, we have depleted the earth's natural ability to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by not taking care of our natural carbon sinks such as forests, soils and the oceans.

So what can the fashion industry do to change and make an impact fast!? Being aligned with Government policy and regularity profession bodies working for a positive change at a systemic level is an important factor in reducing carbon emissions but unfortunately it’s not working fast enough! The choices and collaboration of brands, suppliers, producers and consumers TODAY can help to accelerate emission reductions by bringing awareness to our supply chain and how we work together.

The fashion industry accounts for approx. 4% of greenhouse gas emissions and when this is broken down into sectors, 70% of the emissions are from UPSTREAM activities. This means supply chain, including RAW MATERIAL PRODUCTION + PROCESSING. (globalfashionagenda , 2020). Whilst achieving comprehensive, accurate information and transparency in this area can be challenging for designers and buyers, we know that yarn preparation, dyeing, finishing and fibre production tend to be the most carbon intensive phases.

Many fashion brands overlook their responsibility and impact on these areas and focus on accountability for their own operations (such as office, transport, retail) only. To really be making a maximum and immediate impact towards climate action, brands need to bring awareness and accountability to carbon emissions throughout all operations, including material source and production.

Start up brands, although have the huge challenge of learning a lot, quickly, are actually very well placed to be able to make a clear, conscious impact without the ways of the 'old systems' holding them back. Supply chains can be considered thoroughly from the beginning and authentic, transparent and sustainable partnerships with suppliers established. New and small brands can learn and adapt quicker to the current opportunities and limitations to embrace a carbon neutral supply chain, thus setting themselves up for sustainability and longevity.

Micro and small businesses make up over 99% of businesses in the UK and by watching how they are operating through the current challenges, we can get vital insights which governments can then have the opportunity to cement into policy.

For further reading, check out:

@beclimateneutral : provides tools and a framework to help brands to measure and offset and reduce their emissions, including upstream supply chain (see Scope 3 criteria).

@fash_rev : the global movement for a fashion industry that values people and planet over profit. Fantastic source for providing clear facts and communication tools.

@sustainable_fashion_collective : a holistic and expert members club offering vast and in depth resources on all areas of sustainable fashion. Particularly great for start ups and entrepreneurs looking to learn about what’s involved in starting a brand and how best to approach it in the most eco responsible way.

@thesustainableangle : support projects with a focus on sustainability in fabrics and textiles and founders of #futurefabricsexpo 22 June- 2 July 2021! A fantastic in person and virtual destination for clear and educational information on sustainable materials, networking and advice, with supplier insight.

Full of delight to introduce our collaboration with PICO to refine their range of organic cotton underwear.

We love the PICO project as it works directly with a small fair-trade garment factory in Southern India, using organic cotton sourced from fairtrade farmers’ cooperatives.

PICO compassionately and respectfully follows and flows with every step of the organic cotton journey from sowing the seeds, management of the soil and water, harvesting by hand, ginning, spinning, knitting and finally either leaving fabric un-dyed or using Oeko-Tex and GOTS certified dyes within a zero waste unit.

Additionally for some items they have collaborated with the wonderful natural dyer Kathryn Davey in Dublin, creating some truly mesmerising and natural colours and effects.

We carried out an in-depth conscious, technical analysis of the current line alongside Isobel and Pheobe and considering all current customer and wearer feedback. We were able to review and elevate the fit, construction, sizing and wearer experience for current styles as well as introduce a new Full crop top style, with improved lift and enhanced support and comfort, working to ensure that these garments flow with the natural body as well as they do with the sustainable manufacturing processes and the communities that produce them.

Finished off with a hand written note and a handspun, hand woven Karunganni cotton bag, the whole process and experience speaks to our hearts and we are so happy to be able to work in this way with like minded brands.

Head to project-pico.com to read more and to check out these beautiful styles!

P.S Nicola's mum is in love with the new Full crop top and has already re-ordered two more for life in Spain!

"We felt really fortunate to work with Nicola and her team and were really impressed with the professionalism and efficiency of their service. Nicola has a very in-depth knowledge of underwear pattern cutting, production and sourcing and helped us to refine and alter our existing styles to make them fit and perform better, without losing the simplicity and aesthetic of our original design. We especially appreciated her guidance and work on grading our patterns and fit testing each style and size on different models to ensure the grade worked across the full size range. We are really delighted with the final outcome and very grateful to Bold Intimates for the work they have done which has given us confidence to release the updated and new styles in the knowledge that they have been thoughtfully designed and tested to fit beautifully and comfortably. "

Isobel Williams- Ellis, Founder at PICO

The 'Interfiliere Connect' lingerie industry sourcing trade show is in full swing and the Concepts Paris AW22/23 trend book has arrived and it's truly inspirational!

As we eagerly peel back the pages, we consider and reflect upon the authentic and fruitful conversations we have had this passed year and bask in the warm sensation of our community and what we can create together.

We are deeply honoured to have been asked by Jos Berry and Concepts Paris to be the guest designer for this season as we collectively imagine and bring forward new ideas for creating Intimate Apparel in a post Covid landscape.

In response to the Concepts Paris theme of 'Workwear', we presented the important relationship between how we feel and what we choose to wear. We propose that the pandemic era has increased awareness of our range of human emotions and what we need to balance them. We recognise the need for our daily intimate garments to be multi functional, identifying both physical and emotional needs and offering supportive solutions. We show how each material, pattern and construction choice can be considered with explicit intention in order to add up to a full and meaningful experience for the wearer, ensuring garments will be loved and will last.

It is our belief at Bold Intimates that supporting the human experience and our full range of emotions is integral to sustainable health for individuals, communities and our impact on the planet and our purpose is to achieve this through conscious and precise intimate product builds.

We hope you all enjoy the book as much as we do and have a wonderful sourcing and networking season.

As technical specialists, we admit that colour is not the primary focus of our work at Bold Intimates, however we are acutely aware of it’s importance and magic!

Colour means something and is experienced in a unique and subjective way by each individual who witnesses it. Colour is not used randomly, it is strategically and passionately selected by designers and artists to stir and connect to an emotion. When we feel creativity deeply, whether it be through art, music or fashion, our hair stands on end. We have engagement and a clarity which brings emotional satisfaction and well being. We believe supporting and nurturing our range of emotions in this way is integral for sustainable health of humans as individuals, our communities and ultimately our impact on the planet. Therefore is it not the soul purpose of the designer to feel an emotion so vividly that the consumer can connect with it?

“ With colour one obtains an energy that seems to stem from witchcraft”  Henri Matisse

So we arrive at the current dilemma, we are hearing a huge frustration amongst Intimate Apparel designers regarding using colour in a responsible way. There is an increasing and alarming awareness that most synthetic materials (and some natural ones!) use chemical dyes which can be toxic and hazardous to both human health and the environment. Alongside this there is the knowledge that we already have a surplus of existing materials available, without producing new ones. Both designers and consumers know they want to make sustainable choices and they also deeply desire to feel something about the product they are investing in.

Designers too often feel that there is a choice to be made between the desired aesthetic and human and planet health. Many mainstream recycled or natural fibre based materials still have a very limited colour offering and with large production minimums and most still use chemical dyes. Natural dyes are often approached with apprehension with a lack of confidence around the palette, the visual possibilities as well as the colour fastness and performance. Essentially, there is currently not enough accessible and transparent information and choice when it comes to sustainable colour for the designer (and ultimately the consumer) to be satiated in their creative process and consequently we are seeing a breakdown of connection between passion and sustainability.

“We have researched natural dyes but have been told by others in the industry that the colour fastness isn’t very good, which in turn encourages the customer to chuck the lingerie, which of course is the least sustainable thing to do."  Georgia Larsen, Founder & Director at Dora Larsen.

As with all sustainability issues, we can only start from where we are today and bring awareness to it. We want to invite this conversation into our community and urge lingerie and swim designers to talk to suppliers and material producers from the heart and with curiosity, consideration and expansion. To work together to explore alternatives for positive growth as we have proven over the last year we are hugely capable of.

Don’t be afraid to ask your material and dye suppliers what systems they have in place to manage their chemical risk and to comply with current regulations and accreditations.  Look out for responsible labelling schemes such as Blue sign, Oekotex and GOTS which work with companies to implement chemical controls and minimise their effluent output. Many suppliers are well underway in innovating non toxic substances and processes who would be delighted to discuss it with you.

Additionally we are seeing a strong resurgence of skilled natural dyers who can work with a variety of raw materials and plant and agricultural ingredients using non-toxic and regenerative dyeing processes. An expert natural dyer is able to create unique recipes, specific to each material and product specification, considering colour, application, visual effect, performance and fastness using ancient techniques. Natural dyeing is a heritage craft with colours proven to last centuries when treated correctly and we are so excited to be seeing the growth in interest, market availability as well as the talented people who know how to use them.

“Inspiring radically positive activism through natural materials & colours"   Botanical Inks natural dye studio, Bristol.

As the demand and appetite increases across the wider industry safer coloured materials will become more available, with more choice and with less restrictive minimums, prices and knowledge gaps. It will take strong, passionate and authentic communication from brands to tell this new non toxic message and story to the consumer. The good news is that we are undergoing a global collective shift and currently there is not only a raw and open mindedness which is unique to this time but there is a real returning appreciation for the colours nature gives us.

Special thanks to all the wonderful pioneering brands and designers we have spoken to who opened the space for authentic conversation around colour and sustainability challenges and to the inspiring natural dyers and artisans for energising us to the possibilities of sustainable, natural colour.

What a year for period care! A topic very close to our hearts and vaginas!

We've seen tampon tax be abolished in the UK and Scotland become the first country in the world to allow free and universal access to menstrual products, including tampons and pads, in public facilities, a landmark victory for the global movement against period poverty.

Doing our own bit for period care evolution, during lockdown 1.0 we used our technical knowledge for intimates design and passion for conscious product to work closely with DAME and their community to develop a re-usable period pad for the 21st Century.

Softer, drier and thinner than anything you would have seen before, we are incredibly proud to have been part of the journey to create a conscious, modern solution not only for period care and feminine health but in the fight against period plastic waste.

In the UK alone, 2.1 million single use pads are flushed down toilets every day! That’s 766 million pads a year - or - the equivalent of 3 billion plastic bags ending up in our water ways and finally oceans! Making the switch to reusable pads has never been more important.

" Nicola and the Bold Intimates team have been amazing at helping to bring our product to life. Always organised and structured and helped guide us through making a product that we didn't have a huge amount of experience with. Their expertise and rigorous eye for detail has meant we've ended up with something we are really proud of and that customers have been loving. Timings were always as advised and they were very transparent with deliverables and capacity of the team vs what we needed. I really can't recommend Bold Intimates enough, it's been a joy working together! "

Anna Williamson, New Product Development Manager at DAME

 

The Biondi London collection, launched in 2013 by former Harvey Nichols buyer, Claudine Davies, has always been synonymous with superlative craftmenship and exemplary fit. Producing high quality pieces encouraging conscious consumption and creating classic and beautiful fashion that will be loved and treasured for years to come!

This summer we celebrate the introduction of Eco fabrics to the swimwear collection, with fabrics made using 82% ECONYL yarns, made from recycled fishing nets and industrial plastic waste. After these nylon plastics have reached the end of their useful life they are recovered, regenerated and transformed by Aquafil into ECONYL, with guaranteed same performance as the original virgin nylon yarns. The new regenerated swim styles sit alongside Biondi's Ready-to-wear collection which is made using natural fibres such as linen, organic cotton and silk.

For Biondi, sustainability means ethical manufacture, everything made by people who are treated fairly, with respect and who are paid well for what they do. Whether manufacturing takes place in the UK, Italy or India, production runs are kept small to keep the carbon footprint as low as possible. Products are made from sustainably-grown or recycled materials, using low impact processes.

Bold Intimates are proud to be a part of Biondi's product development journey to establish responsible and regenerative sourcing routes and ensuring impeccable technical attention to detail to create the most elevated of product fit and feel, meaning these garments continue to feel good and do good!

" Bold Intimates' technical expertise is second to none, they can quickly translate our innovative ideas into viable designs. Nicola is quick to understand brand positioning and concepts and communicates with our team efficiently and effectively. Nicola is excellent in fitting sessions and always knows how to fix a pattern that is causing us fit problems. I  love that she has a strong creative side too and we can get valuable input on the aesthetics of the design at the same time. Furthermore, they are passionate about responsible and regenerative sourcing and have been crucial in assisting us with our eco strategy. I highly recommend Bold Intimates who go above and beyond to help the brands they work with "

Claudine Davies, director at BIONDI.