Why Washing Less is More Sustainable

We have learned so much about fashion and its impact on the environment since beginning this JJwinks journey. We want all our friends to look beautiful when they feel the most comfortable, but we want to be sure all this fabulousness isn’t at the expense of the environment. We are realizing the importance of even the small things like how you wash your JJs can make a difference.

In an effort to extend the life of our product, our care label instructions say “to machine wash cold and tumble dry low”. But, did you know that we should all be doing that with just about everything we wash?

As reported in Elle magazine, April 2014, there has long been a movement to encourage consumers to purchase clothes from higher-quality materials like our  modal (so they last longer) and to reduce its carbon footprint through more eco-friendly washing. Thirty-six percent of a garment’s climate impact comes from being washed and tumble dried, and that’s before you even take into consideration that textiles comprise 5 percent of all waste in U.S. landfills.

According to Procter & Gamble, the average washing load uses 27 gallons of water to wash a full load of clothes (and that’s only on the newer machines) and the average household washes 6 -7 loads per week. All this wastage of potential drinking water is taking place at a time in the world when 1 in 9 people do NOT have access to clean drinking water.

The bottom line is to make your clothes last longer and reduce the environmental impact of cleaning by washing less frequently and at lower temperatures. Even just using the “gentle cycle” or “quick wash” on the washer makes a big difference. Now go get your JJs on and show them and the earth some love the next time you wash them.