Exclusive Preview Summer Collection 2010

To create awareness of the importance of wearing organic cotton, our very own designer, Simone Janintz, created a tee made from cotton grown and harvested at the hessnatur organic cotton project in Burkina Faso.

The message, “the flowers of tomorrow are the seeds of today” on the outline of the African continent, doesn’t just speak to the cotton itself, but also to the belief that the environmental seeds we plant today will determine the flowers of our future.

Win Today’s Tee!
If you want to join in spreading the awareness, the tee can be yours when you comment below, telling us why.  The winner will be chosen based on creativity and originality.

If you’re chosen, hessnatur will email you and ship the tee to the address provided in your email.

Environmental and social crises are called out in “lawn” signs around the earth, from over-fishing to the destruction of the Amazon rain forest.  Designer Miguel Adrover created a compelling message and graphic to inspire awareness and action.

Created from organic cotton grown at the hessnatur organic farming project in Burkina Faso, West Africa, the tee was produced at Grameen Knitwear in Bangladesh, part of the network founded by Dr. Muhammad Yunus, recipient of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize.

Win Today’s Tee!
If this is the tee that inspires you, you can win it by commenting below, telling us why the tee reflects your beliefs.  The winner will be decided based on creativity and originality.

If you’re selected, hessnatur will email you and ship the tee to the address provided in your email.

Contest Rules
Must be 18 years of age to enter.  Please, one entry per person.  Giveaway is available to residents of the U.S. only  If we don’t hear back from the entrant within twenty-four (24) hours, we’ll pick another winner.  No substitutions for cash. By submitting, you are agreeing to the full rules and restrictions.  Open for entries until Thursday, March 18, at 11:59 p.m. EST.

The winner of the hessnatur/planetgreen.com Eco-Tee Challenge, Lindsay Seligman, California designer, created this special tee with one simple line depicting creatures of the earth forming the message “One Life”.

The tee is pure organic cotton from our organic farming project in Burkina Faso, West Africa.  Produced at Grameen Knitwear in Bangladesh, part of the network founded by Dr. Muhammad Yunus, recipient of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize, the tee is made with the highest social standards.

Win Today’s Tee!
If this is your message tee of choice, win it by commenting below, giving us your reasons why.  The winner will be chosen based on creativity and originality.

If you’re chosen, hessnatur will email you and ship the tee to the address provided in your email.

Contest Rules
Must be 18 years of age to enter.  Please, one entry per person.  Giveaway is available to residents of the U.S. only  If we don’t hear back from the entrant within twenty-four (24) hours, we’ll pick another winner.  No substitutions for cash. By submitting, you are agreeing to the full rules and restrictions.  Open for entries until Thursday, March 18, at 11:59 p.m. EST.

Tiny animals and plants create the earth with the message “Love Life”.  An endearing statement that reminds us everything we do – and wear – affects every living creature.

The tee is the finest organic cotton, grown and harvested at the hessnatur organic project in Burkina Faso in West Africa.  It is produced under strict social standards to protect the workers.  There are no harmful toxins or dyes in the tee, only pure love.

Win Today’s Tee!
If you would like to win this tee, comment below, telling us why it expresses what you feel about life or the planet or the future.  The winner will be chosen based on creativity and originality.

If you’re selected, hessnatur will email you and ship the tee to the address provided in your response email.

Contest Rules
Must be 18 years of age to enter.  Please, one entry per person.  Giveaway is available to residents of the U.S. only  If we don’t hear back from the entrant within twenty-four (24) hours, we’ll pick another winner.  No substitutions for cash. By submitting, you are agreeing to the full rules and restrictions.  Open for entries until Thursday, March 18, at 11:59 p.m. EST.

Last February I visited the hessnatur/Helvetas (the Swiss NGO) organic cotton project in Burkina Faso.  I returned in late November to learn more about the planting, growing and harvesting at this important venture.

We arrived in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso in West Africa, and headed eastbound to the town of Fada N’Gourma. As we drove I could see the cotton plants just beginning to grow. The last month had provided perfect conditions under the West African sun.  Most of the fields I saw beside the road were conventional cotton fields. Not the organic fields that I was expecting during my visit.

After driving for two and a half hours to Fada N’Gourma we arrived at a small and simple track that led us to the organic cotton fields of the village of Fuanliedi. Here I met with the farmer Ouba. He  remembered us from our last visit and was happy to see our team again. With me were Georg Felber, the Project Manager from Helvetas, our translator, Daouda, our driver, Samba, and our videographer, Hartmut. I can’t speak or understand the local Oubas dialect (which is call Gourmantché), but Ouba communicated with his eyes, his smile and his body language.

Ouba told me – through our translator – that this year’s harvest wasn’t as good as last season’s because of the heavy rainfall in the past few weeks.  The amount of organic cotton was less than last year, but the quality of the cotton had improved. So, for him the harvest was on the plus side. In addition to organic cotton, he also grows organic peanuts and sesame – important for feeding his family and providing additional income, because peanuts and sesame can be sold at the local markets.

As the sun set, we left the organic cotton field and walked with Ouba and the other farmers to the center of the village. Here the first cleaning of the cotton took place before its journey to Ougadougou. I brought pictures from our last trip with me, also a movie that we made on that journey with Wolf Luedge, our CEO (which can be seen here on YouTube).

Everyone from the village stared with fascination at my laptop. People from the village saw themselves on the computer monitor – quite a never-before happening here in Fuanliedi!

More about my trip to Burkina Faso will follow in my next blog posts.