NC Farm to Closet Clothing
Companies in NC are selling truly local clothing. Let's take a couple of weeks to learn about their stories.
The Carolinas have a history of clothing production mills and two committed companies are making local clothing we all can purchase! Although neither is part of a specific Fibershed affiliate identified on their website, these companies demonstrate the value system of the Fibershed movement.
Let's strengthen local Fibersheds around the country. Locally we can't do it all, so let's support those who are part of the local clothing movement elsewhere in the US to fill in clothing gaps here in New England.
These businesses are creating farm to closet clothing regionally, or creating clothing and fabric regionally from Texas organic cotton. Either way these companies are leading the way in bringing back industry to the US.
- What a great effort to strengthen our country's resilience.
- And, a model to bring back industry in other regions with a history of mills.
Week 1 Spotlight: Solid State Clothing Company
100% Pure North Carolina Grown & Made T-shirts
North Carolina's Piedmont region is home to the farm to closet business Solid State Clothing. Their story shows it IS POSSIBLE to bring back the garment industry to the US AND that a region can play a big part in this endeavor. Solid State named their project the 10k Cotton Project and crowdsourced funds to create t-shirts from NC cotton. The company committed to purchase 10,000 lbs of cotton from farmers, and at a higher rate than typically paid. Then, they locally produced the t-shirts paying fair wages in the local community. Read more about their incredible story here and watch their video below.
Lesson learned?
It took teamwork across North Carolina and commitment from the company & crowdfunding supporters to bring this project to life.
It's easy to make a buck. It's a lot tougher to make a difference. Tom Brokaw
Wondering about the steps a t-shirt takes from farm to closet?
Solid State Clothing displays exactly where each step of the process takes place on their website! Just find the QR Code on your t-shirt, scan it with your electronic device, and you will see where the cotton was grown and every process afterward that made your t-shirt a reality.
Where my Blue T-shirt Traveled:
Grown in NC on Andrew Burleson's farm - it even provides a phone and address so if I desired I could call and ask about farming techniques.
Ginned at Rolling Hills Gin.
Spun into Yarn at Park Dale Mills.
Knit into fabric at Contempora Fabrics.
Fabric Finished at Carolina Cotton.
Cut and sewn at Opportunity Threads.
Printed and dyed at TSDesigns.
My t-shirt traveled farther to my doorstep (approx. 800 miles) than in its entire processing cycle (within 200 miles). Globally produced t-shirts today can travel a whopping 20,000+ miles before hitting someone's doorstep!
The next time you need a t-shirt, think about investing in one that is super soft and NC locally made. It will last a long time and you will be supporting a company that believe local makes a difference.
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