Sustainability and our commitment to the environment
We really care about the environment. For us, sustainability is a lifestyle, not a gimmick; we are conscious of everything we do, from using paper tape instead of sticky tape on our dress patterns, right down to the recycled paper in our ladies’ room. And we recycle everything. (EVERYTHING. Even ballpoint pens, crisp packets, and the Tetra Paks from the oat milk we put in our tea. It's a bit of an obsession here.) Everyone who works here is an eco-warrior, and we are so proud of the tiny amount of rubbish we send to landfill. All our fabric offcuts are donated to crafters, makers, and artists so nothing is wasted, and we package our dresses in biodegradable bags, recycled acid-free tissue paper, and unbleached cardboard boxes. We strive to run our business as ethically as possible in every way. It takes a painstaking amount of hours sourcing fabric, trims and thread that fit with our ethos but we are so proud of the work we do and the steps we have made to make our pieces as sustainably as we have. There is always more to be done but we think it’s a great big leap in the right direction.
We make EVERYTHING in our atelier which is next door to our showroom. As soon as the fabric arrives into RIR HQ it doesn’t leave again until a bride walks out of the door with it. The collections are designed here, the patterns are drafted in house, the fabric cut and stitched by Ellis and Sophie, the fitting is in our fitting room and all of the alterations are done in the atelier too. This small-scale production means we can always guarantee the exceptional finish of our dresses and achieve artisan quality workmanship with all its divine hand-finished details. No production lines or faceless factories here; each dress is made from start to finish by one expert artisan who knows your name and your wedding date, and who personally takes care of every last detail.
Ok so lets talk fabric! We spend an insane amount of time sourcing luxury materials which are not only divine to look at and wear, but also ethically produced from eco-friendly fibres. Our commitment to lowering our impact on the environment borders on obsession; we consider every detail throughout our production methods, from the organic cotton thread we use for construction, right down to our elastic inserts made from natural biodegradable rubber and our organic cotton size tags. So please allow us to shout loud and proud about some of our incredible new fabrics, and what makes them so desirable…
Organic. All organically certified fabrics not only guarantee a chemical-free production which protects the earth and surrounding habitats, but also a high level of water conservation and ethical production which protects workers. Factories are inspected regularly to make sure they meet the high standards required. No slave labour, and happy insects abound.
Closed-loop. Natural cellulose fibre viscose is produced using a circular system which cleans, recycles, and reuses all the chemicals and water used during the processing of the fabric. It is such a joy for us to be combining our traditional and ancient dressmaking techniques with such modern innovative technology as this.
Recycled. We are so excited whenever we find incredible, luxurious recycled fabrics. One fibre is produced using the cotton linters which are the by-products of the cotton industry which would otherwise end up in landfill, and another has fibres spun from reclaimed plastic waste taken from the oceans; so not only are these luxury fibres a dream to wear, but they are also cleaning the earth rather than polluting it. An absolute delight.
Low-impact. The viscose fabrics we use are produced using natural wood-pulp from bamboo and eucalyptus forests, which grow quickly and freely without the use of pesticides and fertilisers. These forests are also protected to ensure no over-harvesting is endangering habitats or eco-systems.
British made. Many mainstream fashion fibres are produced in one country, then spun in another, woven into fabric in another, and sewn into garments in yet another, meaning the carbon footprint of the finished pieces are incredibly high. Which means that, comparatively, our British-produced lace and silk has the lowest possible carbon footprint.
We’re doing the best we can, but things can always be improved. If you have any questions about our fabrics or would like to order a dress in an alternative material, please don’t hesitate to ask, it’s literally our job to make your dream dress and if that means altering and adjusting then we are here for it. If you are considering a dress with us but want to customise have a read of what you can do here
The nature of made-to-order bridalwear is inherently sustainable as it’s not mass-produced and therefore there is no over-production. But obviously we want to encourage our brides to make the environmental impact even smaller by altering, dying, restyling and wearing again their wedding outfits. Our bridal separates are great for this; styling blouses with vintage jeans and killer heels or shortening a skirt and wearing it with your favourite boots. Most of our fabrics can easily be dyed and we are happy to advise on this; we would LOVE to see more pictures of our brides re-wearing their nuptial outfits! Cyclical fashion is the way forwards, friends. Let’s start a bridalwear revolution.
