Candiani Taps Atelier & Repairs for 80th Anniversary Denim Collection
Candiani Denim is celebrating its 80th anniversary, and to mark the occasion, it’s reimagining denim with a major leader in regenerative apparel. And the fruits of this collab will be at retail as the denim world convenes in Amsterdam this April.
The Italy-based denim mill is collaborating with Maurizio Donadi, the founder of circular apparel company Atelier & Repairs, to display its Re-Gen Denim, a super-selvedge fabric with TENCEL™ x Refibra™ Lyocell that leverages sustainable technologies for minimized environmental impact.
Culling inspiration from contemporary workwear, Donadi created 12 exclusive garments made with Re-Gen Denim to commence Candiani’s 80th anniversary.
The collection, which was presented at the Los Angeles-based Candiani Denim Development Center in March, sets out to inspire a more sustainable presence for denim through circular design and regenerative fashion.
But benefitting from having denim’s leading brands, manufacturers, influencers and bluebloods in Amsterdam for Kingpins, consumers will be able to buy pieces from the collection at a party during Kingpins, which will take place at the Tenue de Nimes boutique in Amsterdam on April 18.
Dubbed Candiani’s “most sustainable denim fabric yet,” Re-Gen Denim is a result of Candiani’s decade-long commitment to an eco-minded production process.
Re-Gen Denim contains 50 percent recycled fibers and 50 percent TENCEL™ x Refibra™ Lyocell, made from post-industrial cotton scraps left over from wood and cutting operations. Refibra ™ Lyocell fibers minimizes the need to extract additional raw materials from nature, fostering a more circular economy for textiles and apparel. Yarns woven into Re-Gen Denim are created with regenerated materials instead of virgin cotton.
Candiani’s 80th anniversary fabric leverages Indigo Juice®, a dyeing technology designed to conserve water. Indigo Juice®, a Made in Candiani technology, maintains a superficial level of indigo on yarn during the denim dyeing process, enabling Re-Gen Denim to work for easy fade, vintage-inspired jeans. When Re-Gen Denim is laundered, it requires less chemicals, energy and water to wash down the indigo. Indigo Juice® allows Candiani to save 15 percent of energy and 15 percent of water in the denim dyeing process.
To further reduce its environmental footprint, Candiani also uses Kitotex®, a dyeing technology derived from Chitosan, a polymer obtained by recycling the exoskeleton of shrimp. After these shrimp are farmed in South East Asia and consumed in the food industry, their exoskeletons are turned into this polymer. With Kitotex®, Candiani uses 70 percent less chemicals, 50 percent less water and 30 percent less energy, since it promotes a more sustainable denim dyeing and finishing process by replacing pollutants and other harmful substances.