The case for no frills
As its name suggests, sustainable fashion label Sans Faff is doing away with the glitz that fashion is typically associated with. Founder Brandy Dallas shares how she’s encouraging responsible consumption, one wardrobe essential at a time.
1 Alexa bamboo viscose T-shirt dress, $165
2 Brenda bamboo viscose crew neck T-shirt, $60 he’s roughed it out as a human rights activist, worked in a cotton textile mill in Punjab, and lived the glam life in Singapore as marketing manager of a luxury jewellery brand. But Brandy Dallas gave that up to start her own sustainable fashion label after she had an epiphany while on a surf trip to Canggu, a village in Bali, Indonesia, in February 2019.
“I suited up and started paddling out to the break, but I soon found myself completely covered in garbage. I had a large black
SBritt bamboo viscose playsuit, $135.00
4 Monica rayon dress, $165 plastic bag caught on my foot, along with sandals, bottles and food wrappers. When I jumped off my board, I felt the rubbish move with the waves around my legs, and it was in this exact moment that I reached a tipping point. I headed home and re-evaluated everything, from the plastic in my fridge to the clothes and materials I had in my wardrobe,” says the 31-year-old, who’s based in Singapore. That, coupled with her struggles to find sustainable womenswear essentials at an affordable price point, prompted her to launch chic minimalist label Sans Faff in February this year.
The founder and creative director says she wants to shift attention away from fleeting trends to focus on enduring essentials. Its debut collection “Future Proof Essentials” comprises sleek, wearable and timeless basics such as a crew neck T-shirt, button-up playsuit and T-shirt dress – all in black or white only.
“I want to make well-made
wardrobe staples that can be worn season after season,” she says. “After all, a formidable dress will always be a formidable dress regardless of the time of year.” The word “formidable” is key as Brandy, who is sole designer for the brand, isn’t just designing for any woman. She says: “The Sans Faff woman is intelligent, irreverent and fiercely honest. She is an activist for the future, and she understands the power she has as a consumer to make a difference.”
The secret to the durability and comfort of the pieces lies in the bamboo fabric. Prior to its launch, Brandy spent six months sourcing and product testing to formulate the signature material, which does not pill or fade and is as gentle to the skin as it is to the Earth. As one of the fastest growing plants in the world, bamboo is considered a renewable resource, and a sustainable alternative to materials such as rayon and viscose.
And it’s not just design and philosophy that Sans Faff has nailed down. The homegrown label has all its pieces made in Singapore by a local family-run factory that operates in a Jurong Town Corporation (JTC) industrial estate. The strict tenancy guidelines of JTC real estate, including clean working conditions, structural safety, and fire protection, quells common worries surrounding fashion brands that outsource their production and risk unsafe or exploitative practices.
While Sans
Faff is still in its infancy, Brandy has big dreams. She ultimately hopes for Sans Faff to be fully accountable for the entire life cycle of its raw materials and products.
“By 2021, it is my goal to be able to trace everything, from where our bamboo fibre is grown to the textile manufacturer making the fabric, and how it is disposed or repurposed at the end of each garment’s life.”
At the same time, she’s also keeping her eyes peeled for new types of sustainable materials. “Pinatex is my latest obsession,” she said. “It is a new plantbased textile, made from the waste of the pineapple harvest that can be used as an alternative to leather. The quality looks and feels amazing – I’m just trying to see how we can explore these exciting options while maintaining our affordable prices.”
Sans Faff is available online at Sansfaff.com. Prices range from $60 for a T-shirt to $232 for a jumpsuit.
ustainable luxury is the future. Ethics and aesthetics can co-exist when brands make efforts to end poverty, fight inequality and stop climate change, while creating beautiful watches and jewellery. Whether through making more environmentally friendly decisions, or making a conscious effort to invest in the education of children, and providing everyday necessities to the underprivileged, luxury watch and jewellery brands are stepping up to make this world a better place. “It is a bold commitment, but one that we must pursue if we are to make a difference to the lives of people who make our business possible,” says Karl Friedrich Scheufele, co-president of Chopard.
SEMPOWERING THE VULNERABLE
Since 2012, Cartier Philanthropy has invested 54 million Swiss francs (around S$79.5 million) in non-profit organisations that are impact-driven, excel in their fields of expertise and share Cartier’s values of trust, integrity and respect. “Modern philanthropy is committed to clear goals, evidence-based and data-driven strategies, rigorous accountability and meticulous evaluation, so that it can continually improve how it helps people to lift themselves out of hardship, strengthen their capacities, and find their own way to thrive,” said Cyrille Vigneron, president of Cartier Philanthropy’s Council.
The aim of the foundation is to implement solutions that allow individuals to regain control over their lives, and shape their own destiny to find a way out of extreme poverty. Almost 50 per cent of the foundation’s funds are spent on giving access to basic resources, such as clean water, ecological toilets and medical care. With a focus on empowering women and children in low-income countries to thrive and reduce social inequality, the foundation also helps victims of domestic violence to recover, and access skills and resources to earn a living.
ENSURING SUSTAINABLE ECOSYSTEMS
Since 2018, 100 per cent of all Chopard’s gold has been certified ethical, having met international best practice environmental and social standards. That means conflict-free mined material or recycled material, and miners working in safe conditions with reduced handling of chemicals. As a family-run business, the Swiss brand has always championed sustainability as a core value, and this is the culmination of a vision that started more than 30 years ago. Today, Chopard is the largest buyer of Fairmined gold, and two mines in Colombia and Bolivia have now achieved Fairmined certification through Chopard’s direct support.
The L.U.C Tourbillon QF Fairmined was the world’s first haute horlogerie watch made with Fairmined gold, and since then, there have been new timepieces launched at Baselworld such as the L.U.C Full Strike and Happy Palm. “True luxury comes only when you know the handprint of your supply chain, and I am very proud of our gold sourcing programme,” said Caroline Scheufele, co-president and creative director of Chopard.
Celebs have also lent their star power to the cause: Rihanna collaborated with the brand to design an Ice Cube collection crafted from 100 per cent responsibly sourced gold, while Julianne Moore, Marion Cotillard, Cate Blanchett and Arizona Muse are friends of the brand who have worn the designs on the red carpet. “This commitment to ethical gold and to the continuing support of artisanal gold will really make a difference to the people at the beginning of the gold supply chain – people who are often forgotten,” says actor Colin Firth, a long-standing advocate of the Swiss brand’s commitment to sustainability.
Prices for Harry Winston’s Hope collection start from $4,000.
SUPPORTING CHILDREN AND UNDER-REPRESENTED COMMUNITIES
For a more direct approach to charitable giving, Harry Winston launched the Hope collection – which includes a bracelet and a charm with a white gold and engraved mother-of-pearl design, set with a 0.04 carat round brilliant diamond in the centre – in 2014. Proceeds from the sales are donated to charitable organisations, as part of the efforts from the Harry Winston Hope Foundation.
The foundation supports programmes that remove barriers for disadvantaged youth to obtain a quality education and skills necessary to be successful in life. For example, the American jeweller supports Chance for Children in Japan, which gives children access to after-school programmes and tutoring, including English lessons. The company is committed to donating annually a minimum of 5 per cent of its pre-tax profits to charitable organisations.
Watch brand Longines, on the other hand, provides something more basic – food. It has provided more than 300,000 nutritious meals to children around the world in the seven years that it has funded nonprofit organisation Justworld International. Many children living in the communities Justworld serves come from families who struggle to provide basic living conditions, and such meals are often the only sustenance they receive.
The Swiss watchmaker has also supported former tennis champ Stefanie Graf and her foundation Children For Tomorrow for more than a decade. “For over 20 years we have specialised in treatment, with our trauma therapy providing care to as many children as possible who have suffered through war, exile and violence,” says Graf. The nonprofit organisation has a qualified team of specialists to help children and teenagers overcome trauma through different psychological treatments and activities, such as art therapy.
New motifs like the rhinoceros and lion have been introduced to Tiffany & Co.’s Save The Wild collection, which benefits the Wildlife Conservation Network.
SAVING ANIMALS AND WILDLIFE
“Tiffany has historically used the power of its brand and voice to speak on important issues like wildlife conservation,” said Anisa Kamadoli Costa, chief sustainability officer at Tiffany & Co. “In particular, Tiffany has long been dedicated to the environmental, social and economic well-being of Africa, where we source many of our rough diamonds and operate state-of-the-art diamond cutting and polishing workshops.”
Nature is what inspires Tiffany & Co. designers, and the source of the precious materials used in iconic jewellery pieces – and this includes its Save The Wild collection. All profits from this collection benefits antipoaching, anti-trafficking and ivory demand reduction projects around the world.
The brand is also committed to the Elephant Crisis Fund (ECF), an initiative of Save the Elephants and the Wildlife Conservation Network, which aims to stop the slaughter of elephants and the trafficking and demand for their ivory. Up to 30,000 elephants are killed each year, so this jewellery collection aims to raise awareness with elephant charms and brooches in 18K rose gold with diamonds and sterling silver accented with tsavorites, a stone discovered in a region near Tsavo National Park in Kenya. The park is also home to the big tuskers of Africa – elephants whose tusks have grown so large they reach the ground.