There was a time when hemp fabric meant coarse weaves, dull colors and baggy cuts.
But the textile has transformed itself, with help from some creative North American designers, into styles that can be worn by hippie or hipster, at work or at play.
The haute couture of hemp was hot at a recent trade show in Winnipeg. Fashion was front and centre as meeting organizers showcased designs from a dozen collections.
An unusual mix of farmers, bureaucrats, environmentalists, clothing buyers, retailers and wholesalers packed an evening reception to see what surprises might come down the runway.
Read Also
Europe holds promise for Canadian lentils
Pulse Canada is trying to help boost lentil consumption in Europe, which is already the fourth largest market.
There was something for everyone.
Rather conservative golf wear from Ashira Hemp Apparel of Victoria, B.C., started the show. Its shirts, shorts and caps are said to be popular on professional golf circuits because hemp shuts out the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays.
Nomads 1800, a California-based, non-profit design house, featured tank tops with granny slip skirts cut on the bias. The company blends hemp with cotton, muslin and Eco-Spun, a fibre made from recycled pop bottles.
Some Nomad clothing was reminiscent of linen, with looser weaves, and colors like tobacco and cranberry. Other items looked and felt like cotton knits.
Spirit Stream Trading Company presented tailored jeans with classic fit. The Canadian manufacturer hopes to be the first to make jeans from Canadian hemp.
Roomier painter pants and skateboarder cuts were also featured, paired with baggy overshirts and hemp bags, hats and accessories.
Buttons made from rainforest nuts and reclaimed water buffalo bones were highlights on smart suits from Sandstone Designs in Hemp, a Detroit, Michigan company using hemp from China.
The most applauded lines at the hemp fashion show were the silk-like, romantic princess and deceivingly simply peasant dresses from American design house Labyrinth. The elaborate pieces, each hand-sewn, retail starting from $350.
Two Star Dog was also popular with the crowd. The American company bills its clothes as “sweatshop-free” with environmentally friendly dyes and velvet trims, giving its shirts, skirts and jackets “a fashion-driven social conscience.”
The company donates some of its profits to a foundation for children in developing countries.
Wearing a soft yet elegant Two Star Dog rich indigo three-piece suit, fashion show organizer Lori Langtry said she hopes Winnipeg becomes a centre for hemp fashion. The city is already home to a vibrant textile industry, and is on the north end of a central North American trade corridor, she said.
She likes that hemp production requires no pesticides. With the advent of hemp production in Canada, she hopes it won’t be long until domestic hemp spins into local garment factories.
“I really think that we have to be conscious of our environment and think with a green mind, and I think hemp can do that,” said Langtry.
She thinks the fashion show proved hemp clothing no longer has to look rough, “like an old burlap sack,” but now can be soft, versatile and creative.
And she said it was a good chance for farmers to see what their new crop can be used for, and make them “more comfortable with their leap into the unknown.”
