Sustainability – Yarnplaza.com

Sustainability is of paramount importance to us at Yarnplaza. Our mission is to inspire you with beautiful yarns and projects that are produced in a responsible way with respect for people, animals, and the environment. In our assortment, you will find a range of sustainable yarns and knitting and crochet kits. This way you can enjoy endless hours of crochet and knitting, responsibly. But what exactly are sustainable yarns, how can you find them on our website, and what are the different certifications for responsible yarn?

When is a yarn ‘sustainable’?

By ‘sustainable’, we mean products that place little or no burden on nature, the environment, and all who live in them. The sustainable yarns in our assortment are made from responsible materials that, throughout their production and manufacturing processes, have as little impact as possible on the planet and the humans and animals involved. As part of this responsible production process, attention is paid to compliance with social standards. For example, we strive for fair trade with fair prices and wages, and extra consideration is given to creating a safe and hygienic working environment for every employee involved in the production process.

By working (exclusively) with sustainable yarns, you can have a positive impact on the planet. Knowing this, that ball of responsible yarn knits or crochets up all the better, right?!

How can I find sustainable yarns and kits at Yarnplaza.com?

We have made it super easy to find sustainable products at Yarnplaza.com. For example, we have added a category page with sustainable products and added a green ‘sustainable’ logo to all sustainable products. This logo tells you that the product is natural, organic, Fairtrade, and/or recycled. On top of that, you can use the sustainability filters on our category pages to filter sustainable yarns and kits quickly and easily. You can find detailed information about the specific sustainability credentials of a product, including the certifications it has, on the product page below the product description.

Different sustainable yarns

Natural and organic yarns

Organic

The impact on the environment and animal welfare are explicitly taken into consideration in organic farming. Organic yarns—such as organic cotton—are produced without the use of genetically modified organisms, fertilizers, pesticides, and other chemicals. Are you using organic wool? The sheep, llama, or alpaca that produced the fiber for your organic wool, have been given more living space and allowed to exhibit natural behavior.

Natural

When we talk about natural yarns, we are talking about yarns made from natural materials. And by this, we mean that the material has been produced by nature. In our assortment, we have several yarns that are all-natural (also called ‘plant-based’). Think (organic) cotton, jute, hemp, and lyocell.

Explore a selection of natural and organic yarns here

Pink Label Organic Cotton

Katia Tencel-Cotton

Hoooked Natural Jute

Recycled yarns

Yarns made from recycled materials are increasingly on the rise. A yarn is considered ‘recycled’ if it is (at least partly) spun from waste materials. It is a sustainable choice that reuses old materials and reduces landfill waste. For example, yarns can be made using fibers recycled from old jeans and used cotton, as well as polyamide or polyester fibers recycled from plastic bottles.

Discover a selection of recycled yarns here

Phildar Phil Ecojean

Katia Re-Tape

Lana Grossa Per Fortuna

Fairtrade yarns

By opting for a Fairtrade yarn, you are supporting a fair world, in which all farmers and workers who are part of the production process—particularly those in developing countries—are given equal opportunities. These equal opportunities mean that farmers and workers get a fair price for their products and are therefore able to live off their work and invest in a sustainable future.

Explore a selection of Fairtrade yarns here

Katia Fair Cotton

DMC Natura Linen

Get started on sustainable fashion, home décor, and accessories with our complete kits

Organic Cotton Ripple Baby Blanket Crochet Kit

Yarn and Colors It's a Wrap Crochet Kit

Dream Tablecloth 5.0 Crochet Kit

All sustainability certifications in a row

To ensure that a yarn is produced sustainably, various standards and certifications have been established. In the Yarnplaza assortment, you will find the logos of various sustainability certifications on the yarn labels. From these labels, you can tell which standards these yarns have met. Want to know more about the sustainability certifications of the products in the Yarnplaza assortment? We explain what each standard means below.

Yarns with the GOTS label

If the GOTS logo is on the label, you can be confident that you are holding a sustainable yarn that is both organic and Fairtrade. The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) is an international standard established to promote the use of organically grown fibers in the manufacturing of sustainable textiles and yarns. A yarn is only GOTS-certified if it meets all its strict requirements. The environmental impact and working conditions throughout the production process are considered. For example, no harmful chemicals are used, factories are obliged to use sustainable wastewater systems, and must use energy sparingly. The employees receive a fair wage and work in safe and healthy conditions.

Yarns with the OEKO-TEX label

If a yarn has the OEKO-TEX Standard 100 logo on the label, then it certifies that the product contains no harmful substances. OEKO-TEX is a testing and certification system for textiles. OEKO-TEX is not just a single standard, but rather a range of product classifications based on environmental friendliness and usage. The closer the product comes into contact with the skin and the more sensitive the skin, the stricter the requirements. For example, if a yarn meets the OEKO-TEX standard for Class 1 (the highest class), that means this yarn is safe for contact with the most sensitive skin, and therefore, baby skin.

Furthermore, the OEKO-TEX label tells you that the yarn has been produced in an environmentally- and human-friendly way. The yarn has been dyed with ecological dyes. The employees have good working conditions and are not exposed to harmful substances.

Yarns with the GRS and RCS labels

If a yarn is made with recycled materials, then you will (usually) find a recycle symbol on the label. The Global Recycle Standard is a certification given to a yarn (or other product) if it is made with at least 20% recycled materials and if the materials and the production process meet its standards for social, ecological, and chemical impact. The RCS certification is a less stringent version of the GRS certification in that the product only needs to consist of at least 5% recycled materials. The RCS certification also only looks at the use of recycled materials in the manufacturing process and has no other requirements regarding its manufacture.

Yarns with the ICEA label

The ICEA is an independent and expert certification and inspection body that focuses on certifying products based on ethical and environmental sustainability criteria. Products with the ICEA label are therefore always accompanied by other labels, such as the GOTS, GRS, or RCS standards, on which their certification is based. If a product has the ICEA label, you can be sure that all stages of the production process have been thoroughly inspected.

Be inspired by our assortment of sustainable yarns and make a conscious choice for a better world for people, animals, and the environment.