If you have been following the progress of the Dany DIY kits & sewing patterns, then you KNOW that one of the hardest parts in putting the kits together was finding the right fabric. (Seriously took months of sewing samples to get it right!) I happily landed on a beautiful organic cotton knit from Birch Fabrics, so with this week's post I wanted to go into WHY organic cotton matters.

Because it 100% does matter. There are SO many fabric options out there to choose from, it's honestly a bit overwhelming. Organic or non organic? Natural or synthetic? Cotton or hemp? How do you make the right decision?

Now, we all KNOW that organic is better. Whether it's the food you are eating or the clothing you are wearing, it has been drilled into us that organic is cleaner and healthier. But do we know WHY?

Before doing my fabric research for the DIY kits, I had a vague notion about why organic cotton matters. I worked for a vegan clothing line when I was living in NYC, that made a point to only use organic cotton. It was a major selling point of the brand, so I knew it was important..

But I never really knew the WHY behind it.

I feel like I have probably mentioned this to you guys in the past--But my husband and I have been vegetarian for.. Going on 7 years now? (What the what?) Initially, we went veg because we didn't want to eat animals.

As time passed though, we became more educated about our vegetarianism, and we learned that there are SO many other benefits to it besides just not eating animals. And they're not small things--I'm talking our physical health and the overall health of the environment. Big, big things that are actually REALLY important.

And I feel like the benefits between organic food & organic fabric are actually pretty similar, when you think about it. Not only are organic fabrics better for your body, but they are so, so much better for the environment as well.

And, just like how factory farming conditions are not healthy in any way, shape, or form.. The same goes for non organic cotton farming. All pretty important reasons on why organic cotton matters, am I right? Let's get into it.

(Sewing patterns & DIY kits for the Dany are so close! Get on the list now and be the first to learn when the *extremely limited* Sunny Daisy kits are available. Oh, and ONLY our closest friends will be getting a free gift with their kit or pattern!)

Why organic cotton matters, reason #1: No pesticides or toxins

I'm not sure how many people realize that not only is non organic food commonly treated with pesticides and toxins--But non organic cotton is as well. I mean, cotton is a crop too!

Which means that a MAJOR benefit to organic cotton is the fact that it is not treated with any type of pesticide, insecticide, herbicide, or chemical toxin. #yesplease

And no matter who you are or where you live, limiting the amount of exposure you have to any type of chemical is a major win. Because in the modern world, there is no getting around the exposure to certain toxins. (Think: Gas fumes from vehicles, toxins baked into the foundation of buildings, etc.)

So, if you could choose to lessen the amount of chemicals exposed DIRECTLY TO YOUR SKIN..

After doing the research, it's actually pretty horrifying what chemicals some companies will apply to non organic cotton. Toxins applied to conventional cotton range from ammonia to heavy metals to MF FORMALDEHYDE--Yes, one of the fluids used to embalm dead bodies in.

I had my first really bad reaction to regular cotton sheets a few years back.. And I will never ever buy non organic sheets ever again. My skin developed this terrible rash--Tiny red bumps all over that itched like crazy. I stopped using the sheets and the bumps vanished--Terrifying.

Who knew what was actually in those sheets, what I was breathing in 8-10 hours a night? No thank you. Protecting your skin and your body is a major reason as to why I think organic cotton matters.

(Sewing patterns & DIY kits for the Dany are so close! Get on the list now and be the first to learn when the *extremely limited* Sunny Daisy kits are available. Oh, and ONLY our closest friends will be getting a free gift with their kit or pattern!)

Why organic cotton matters, reason #2: It's better for the environment

So, we've covered that non organic cotton is farmed using pesticides. Which is never a great thing for the environment, but it gets worse when it comes to traditional cotton farming.

Conventional cotton farming not only uses insecticides and pesticides.. But it uses more insecticides than any other crop in the world.

In my research, I discovered that each year cotton producers use as much as 25% of the world's insecticides and 10% of the world's pesticides. That is an insane amount, all used for a SINGLE crop. Think about all of the crops out there in the world.

Not only are pesticides & toxins bad for you as a human, but they are bad for the environment as well. These chemicals can seep into run-off water after heavy rains, thereby poisoning lakes, rivers, and waterways.

Oh, and not to mention the fact that less than 25% of the chemicals sprayed on traditional cotton fields actually land on the plants themselves. Where do you think the other 75% is landing?

And one final note.. Organic cotton production uses FAR less water than conventional cotton production. Which is saying something, because cotton farming uses up A LOT of water. So yes.. I think lessening my impact on the environment is yet another excellent reason as to why organic cotton matters.

(Sewing patterns & DIY kits for the Dany are so close! Get on the list now and be the first to learn when the *extremely limited* Sunny Daisy kits are available. Oh, and ONLY our closest friends will be getting a free gift with their kit or pattern!)

Why organic cotton matters, reason #3: No poisoned workers or farmers

This last point goes hand in hand with the previous two, but (unfortunately) isn't really something most people think about when buying non organic cotton products.

Farmers and workers that produce conventional cotton are the ones that are constantly being exposed to the toxins that the crop is treated with. Which, of course, leads to major health issues.

If exposed to any type of chemical for a long amount of time, you're going to have problems.

According to the World Health Organization, up to 20,000 people die each year in the developing world in relation to pesticide poisoning. And here in the US of A, up to 10,000 farmers die each year from cancers related to the chemicals used in treating traditional cotton.

There's something seriously wrong here. Why should farmers be dying of horrific cancers related to pesticides if there's a better option? Of course, growing organic cotton is more expensive--As is buying organic food.

But if we are talking about people literally dying from producing a chemically ridden crop.. What are we doing?

I think the health of the farmers and workers producing our crops is yet another reason as to why organic cotton matters.

(Sewing patterns & DIY kits for the Dany are so close! Get on the list now and be the first to learn when the *extremely limited* Sunny Daisy kits are available. Oh, and ONLY our closest friends will be getting a free gift with their kit or pattern!)

Buy organic: Your choices matter!

Now, I know that not everyone can afford to buy organic. I'm not delusional. But for those that can.. I like to follow the same reasoning as to why organic cotton matters that I do for my vegetarianism. The choices we make every day DO make a difference.

By altering the demand (or lack thereof) we will ultimately alter the supply.

When you stop buying fast fashion and put that money towards a responsible, sustainable business owner, it makes a difference.

The big name fast fashion company will see the drop in sales, and the sustainable clothing company will be able to build their responsible business up even higher. Eventually the fast fashion companies will have to pivot--We are already starting to see it happen.

We have the power to control these companies and how they operate--We just have to utilize it. And we do that each day with what we purchase.

SO. For all of these reasons, I am so very excited to be providing you guys with a beautiful, pesticide free organic cotton knit from Birch Fabrics when the DIY kits are launched. I straight up refuse to contribute to fabric producers that are not being responsible or sustainable.

And, as a small business owner, that's part of MY responsibility. To provide the consumer with ethical, responsible products.

I hope that this post on why organic cotton matters has been as eye opening for you as it has been for me. And that you will think twice next time when you have the choice between traditional cotton & organic cotton. Because your choices do matter!

(Sewing patterns & DIY kits for the Dany are so close! Get on the list now and be the first to learn when the *extremely limited* Sunny Daisy kits are available. Oh, and ONLY our closest friends will be getting a free gift with their kit or pattern!)