While looking to replace some white T-shirts that were haggard beyond repair, I browsed the racks of a fast fashion retailer. Running my hands over various items, I encountered lurching seams, loose threads and unlined material so inadvertently sheer it would inevitably put your pants on show. These simply wouldn’t do.
Like many consumers, I’m trying to shop more sustainably. That often means choosing secondhand or well-made new clothing that will last. The clothing industry is known to be a major polluter, producing 10% of global carbon dioxide emissions every year, while it is estimated to use around 1.5 trillion litres of water annually. Luckily, Huel, which started out as a plant-based complete nutrition brand, is branching out into fashion, bringing its environmentally conscious, animal product-free ethos to clothing.
Huelwear, the new line by Huel, consists of 18 pieces of casual wear and caters for adults and children. That translates into a core rotation of timeless, well-cut basics that make dressing simple. The eco credentials are strong: GOTS-certified organic cotton and recycled nylon are just a few of the elements that make Huelwear clothes kind to your body and our planet.
From joggers and hoodies to performance wear and jeans, each piece feels weighty in the right way and comes in plastic-free recyclable packaging – plus there’s no sign of wonky needlework. In an attempt to scrub my failed fast fashion foray from my memory, I tried a few of Huelwear’s pieces to see how they fare from the sofa to my daily commute to the gym.
Jeans
Huelwear’s denim for women is designed in a skinny style and made of 99% organic cotton – 1% elastane is added for comfort. These jeans feel robust; they’re cut in 12oz denim, made using a special water-reclamation process that cuts waste by more than 1,200 litres and are rivet-free, so they’re easier to recycle. They’re also vegan, as they don’t have the leather patches most jeans feature. They stand up well to a day of work and an evening of pre-flight errands, earning a compliment from my close friend. I’m a tall woman, and a standard length shows an elegant sliver of ankle, but fits well. File these under a classic style, easy to dress up or down.
Activewear
Let’s just say that the leggings feel as if you’re not wearing anything at all. They marry a super snug fit with breathable mesh panels and recycled Q-Nova nylon. Matching performance T-shirts boast the same credentials. Both do just as well during a HIIT workout (sorry to my downstairs neighbours) and while running a quick errand. Plus, the leggings really are squat-proof.
Sports bras
Huelwear’s black and grey sports bras hit a sweet spot of support – for small- to medium-sized chests, I’d say – and comfort. Like the performance wear, these bras are seamless, made up partly of recycled nylon and covered with an antibacterial finish over the mesh panelling.
T-shirts
We’re so often hunting for this: a soft T-shirt that doesn’t pill after about four washes. Huelwear’s crewneck T-shirts – in black, white and grey – use considerably less water in their production than a standard offering. And they feel what I can only describe as buttery-soft. These are GOTS-certified – an internationally recognised organic textile standard – cotton tops in a relaxed cut, with a solid medium weight that bellows quality. Perfect layered under a blazer for a smart casual look, or paired with a hoodie for a more relaxed look.
Beyond these four pieces, Huel’s joggers have that soft, stepping-into-a-cloud feeling. Its matching hoodies, and the unisex fleece, which is made from recycled polyester, are warming without weighing you down. All the branding looks understated, and each garment comes with a five-year guarantee. If a piece falls apart before then (within reason), you’ll be able to have it replaced or repaired at no extra cost.
Huel set up its food business with a minimal impact on the planet in mind, and it is applying the same logic here. Huelwear is all about looking forward to the future of fashion. About wasting less, and wearing more of the same pieces. Now, that’ll definitely do.
Shop Huelwear’s sustainable clothing collection here
