In May 2022, Clemente Cebrrián and Lola López from the Spanish sustainable fashion label El Ganso found a solution to a problem that had given them a headache: they had unused fields in western Spain (originally in La Herguijuela) and did not know what to plant there because the summer was dry and hot. The inspiration came with indigo. The plant is tolerant of dryness and requires a lot of direct sunlight. Tintoremus was founded in October of the same year to promote the cultivation of its own dyes and other natural dyes.
By June of the following year, the cultivation area of originally 2,500 square meters rose to 20,000 square meters. In February 2024, the extension moved about 100 kilometers south to Santa María de Las Lomas. At the end of the year, the first items of clothing colored with natural dyes came onto the market. In January of this year, Denim was supplemented with Tintoremus’ Indigo by the Royo Tech Dry Indigo fabric. Today the project is the largest indigo cultivation in Europe with more than half a million Persicaria-InctoriaPlants on around ten hectares.
Re-dye demonstration on the ciff
The brand went one step further. It not only produced clothing that was colored with its nine natural dyes – Indigoremus, Arbor, Lilium, Granatum, Albus, Solaris, Flamma, Olea and Herbalis. She also set up a Redye corner in her business, in which customers can recycle her own clothes on the inside. In order to increase visibility, the brand recently presented its in-store dye service on Copenhagen International Fashion Fair (CIFF).
How does the Redye service work? Customer: Inside simply bring the garment (or sneaker), which you want to color, with – preferably natural fibers such as cotton, linen or silk in light colors – and select the desired color from the nine offered natural dyes. The article is then dyed by hand by the Tintoremus team. This process can be announced: on request. After three to five days, when the garment is dry, the customer can: Customer pick it up in the shop.
The brand creates its own seed (the variety Persicaria Tinctoria), manage all plantations and carry out the various harvests. This is a lot of work, but also worthwhile, since the connection between the production of clothing and the country from which it comes is restored.
“We believe that this is a good way to offer the textile sector and agriculture. However, we had to be patient and learn while we work. We have recognized how dependent on the people who are managing the country and are of the weather,” Lola López told Inside Denim.
Environmental impacts
However, the results speak for themselves: The brand analyzed the environmental impact of Persicaria Tinctoria Together with the Bace sustainability management platform. In doing so, she found that the Indigoplance has a lower environmental impact compared to the cultivation of peppers, for example, and contributes to soil protection in the Spanish region of Extremadura.
“We optimize every drop of water and thus reduce the effects on the water shortage. We also maximize every phase of the process: the leaves are converted into compost and the use of chemical means is minimal,” explains the brand on its website.
Therefore, there is a reduction in water consumption by 66 percent compared to other natural dyes, emissions are reduced by 88 percent and resource raving by 79 percent. In addition, the natural indigo of Tintoremus reduces the effects on global warming by 36 percent, since the leaves used are used as a natural fertilizer when extraction.
This article was used with digital tools translated.
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