Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – Little Cotton Clothes AW17
I have been a fan of Little Cotton Clothes for some time now, my daughter wears clothing from their beautiful seasonal collections, as well as some other independent children’s clothes makers.
With the launch of Little Cotton Clothes new AW17 collection, came a rebrand of their logo as well as their packaging. Living in a throwaway culture as we do, we are living in an age where this ‘culture’ is now spreading packaging waste worldwide…
We all have our recycling bins in our homes, carefully sorting through the plastics and cardboard that comes into our households and then heads out with the bins, however when it comes to the items we order online, there is a huge increase in the sheer volume of packaging. Once an order arrived at my home with a box, the size you would expect to use for packing your house up, with one single cake tin in it; it was wrapped with air-filled plastic and the tin itself was shrink-wrapped with plastic.
With only 14% of plastics actually being recycled, over the years I have become incredibly critical of packaging that companies send deliveries out with, after all, it is here the problem lies, the manufacturers and the online retailers have got us into this mess, and have left it to us and our councils to dig ourselves out.
Little Cotton Clothes have always had very nice packaging, as a graphic designer, someones ‘brand’, from logo all the way through to packaging slips, always grabs my attention, and Little Cotton Clothes have always delivered on this; from day one, their ‘brand’ not only says what it does in the tin, but the packaging works brilliantly alongside the product.
“This, our fourth season, sees the launch of our new logo and we felt that the new logo deserved beautifulPackaging. Our brand is kind of evolving as we build our confidence and as our lovely customers build their confidence in us.”
Imogen, Little Cotton Clothes
Having just relaunched their logo, both Imogen and Leonie from Little Cotton Clothes felt the time was right to explore their packaging, as like me, they feel it plays a important role in not only their brand, but has a hugely detrimental effect on the environment.
Anyone who knows this company, knows that they provide natural, simple and lovely quality clothing and accessories, and seeing how much packaging is simply discarded and never reused, they felt this was an area they really felt strongly about exploring and getting right.
“Paper envelopes were the next obvious step. We hated using the throwaway plastic mailing bags but they are such a reasonable option and they were all we could afford whilst growing the business. This season we have thrown caution to the wind and decided to spend a bit more and invest in our materials, were so pleased we have. The paper bags reflect much better who we are and our brand and we can also stop worrying about filling up landfill with even more unnecessary plastic waste.”
Imogen, Little Cotton Clothes
Beautiful packaging does however, come at a price, but like with most things, by spending a little more on the right packaging Little Cotton Clothes have not only created a look and feel that works perfectly alongside their beautiful products, but they have now created packaging that can be reused.
Having used plastic mailing bags when the company was a mere fledgling, due to start-up costs, now in their fourth season, their investment in their packaging materials has created something that really reflects the product and values of this lovely independent company.
So what can you expect when you receive an order from Little Cotton Clothes now?
Well, it’s a real treat… what arrived was a traditional looking and very tough brown paper mailing bag, inside some beautiful canvas, drawstring bags with the new Little Cotton Clothes logo, and all of that was before I had even seen the clothes!
I received two dresses and some accessories, so the dresses were in one canvas bag, the accessories in another, and once again what I took out of the bags didn’t disappoint and far exceeded my expectations of the new collection.
The wonderful thing about the packaging, is that the paper bags can either be reused if you have an envelope cupboard like me for sending things out in, or popped into the recycling, and the cotton drawstring bags can be reused. I used to use a Boden drawstring bag for all my daughter’s reusable nappies, creams etc when she was a baby, preferring to use something that otherwise had no use and saving me money because I didn’t need to out out and buy a ‘nappy bag’. The drawstring canvas bags from Little Cotton Clothes would be great for nappy bags, ballet kits, sports kits… or if you have a daughter like mine, that likes making ‘sleeping bags’ for her toys, then these are great for that too!
Little Cotton Clothes AW17 collection
You will know from earlier blog posts, how a piece of my heart is still in India after many trips there, well the Penny Dress in Floral was the first dress that grabbed me, just like something I would have worn when I was a child, both in classic style, as well as the print. The lovely block print style fabric which was hand printed for Little Cotton Clothes in Jaipur, love that each dress in this fabric will have small imperfections due to the hand printing method. The Penny Dress is the perfect little winter dress with it’s long sleeves with a neat button cuff and a lined skirt with a gorgeous crochet trim peeking out from under the hem. I especially love the sweet peter pan collar, as well as it’s truly unique patterned fabric.
“We were inspired by our childhood holidays in Britanny where we’d come home with traditional Breton stripes, also beautiful Autumnal colours, Autumn hedgerow berries and traditional Indian block prints.”
Imogen, Little Cotton Clothes
The Maud Dress in grey herringbone is another classic from Little Cotton Clothes; A simple smock dress gathered at the waist, and like the Penny Dress it also has the cotton voile lined skirt with a lovely crochet trim visible when worn. The long sleeves with their button cuff and mother of pearl fastening down the back makes it another perfect dress for the months ahead. Made in the softest cotton herringbone fabric, the Maud Dress looks perfect paired with a pair of Little Cotton Clothes cotton tights or socks.
I received two pairs of Little Cotton Clothes signature cotton ribbed tights, one in English Mustard and another in Inky Blue, as I thought both these colours would be great with both dress above… although, I think any of the socks and tights from their accessories would work a treat with theses dresses too.
The final piece that I picked for my daughter to wear over the Autumn and Winter months is the Aubrey Reversible Waistcoat; as a toddler my daughter always wore a waistcoat or body warmer during months as she liked having her arms free of any restrictive material when out playing in the woods, so I was delighted to see that Little Cotton Clothes AW17 collection included the perfect reversible waistcoat!
With blue cotton cord on one side, mustard cotton cord on the other, the Aubrey Reversible Waistcoat can not only dress up, or dress down a look, but because it is reversible it is two outfits in one! This cotton cord waistcoat has a cotton covered button with loop closure, so it is ideal for tiny ones fingers who are learned about buttons, as well as those older children, who just love to button anything up… like my daughter! The Aubrey Reversible Waistcoat would be ideal for both girls and boys and is warm and cosy due to it’s padding.
I asked Leonie and Imogen what their favourite piece was from their AW17 collection:
“Definitely the reversible Jojo coats. When we were little Leonie and I had matching quilted coats that our mum made us with little hidden soft toys in the pockets that matched the fabric of the coats. The Jojo reminds us so much of the fond memories we have of playing in those coats. Also they are reversible so what’s not to love?”
From the packaging, right through to the product itself, Little Cotton Clothes have totally nailed AW17, with beautiful styles, fabrics which are simple, natural and timeless. The Autumn/Winter collection from Little Cotton Clothes is an absolutely beautiful selection of soft cotton dresses, bloomers, tops, pinafores, tights, socks as well as the beautiful quilts too.
Something that I always look for when buying clothing for my daughter, is not only items that look fabulous, I also look for items that are well made, made from hard wearing fabrics, as well as something that can be worn and passed on, not just for any future children, but also to pass on to their children when they are little. Little Cotton Clothes packaging is not only made to be recycled and reused, but so are their beautiful clothes.
By reducing what I buy for my daughter to wear, I am able to be really selective in the items I do; by buying clothing from makers such as Little Cotton Clothes, you are not only doing your bit for small independents and your family, but you are also helping the environment too.
I would like to congratulate Leonie and Imogen on this wonderful Autumn/Winter collection, as well as their fabulous rebrand and packaging, and thank you for doing what you can to encourage people to reduce, reuse and recycle.
For more information or to buy, visit Little Cotton Clothes.
Please Note: I have not been paid for this post, although I received two outfits in exchange for writing an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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