Photo, left to right: Heather Schibli, Wendy Trass

Passenger Pigeon has been a Greenloop favorite for many seasons now, with their hand printed patterns and unique, vintage inspired cuts. In fact, we just received a fresh crop of fantastic spring frocks that are simply irresistible. With that said, we are happy to share more about the ladies ‘behind the label’. Victoria Everman, writing for Green Living Magazine Online recently spoke with Heather and Wendy about their brand.

The label was previously named Calledyourbluff and was changed to Passenger Pigeon when the brand began using sustainable textiles. Why did the collection change to eco-fabrics? Do you find working with sustainable fibers to be more limiting when coming up with designs?

Wendy: Do we feel limited? Yes and no. In the past we’ve dyed fabric because it only came in beige, and the very reason we use prints so much is because much of the available fabric is quite basic. Working within these limitations means that we have to get pretty creative sometimes, but I think that’s where the charm of our line comes from.

There’s actually a good range of eco-friendly textiles, especially for more casual fabrics like knits and twill. The one thing that we would like to see more of is affordable organic wool and other heavier fabrics for winter. However, it seems every week we get new, exciting swatches from different suppliers. There seems to be a lot happening in the textile industry to develop beautiful, new, sustainable fabrics.

Heather: A common theme found in my art work while I studied for my BFA was that of solid waste and responsibility with material use. After graduation, and during the first year of selling clothing and accessories I had made to local stores, this theme kept resurfacing within my mind. So, in order to curb my sense of guilt for manufacturing goods that would inevitably end up in the landfill, I opted to use materials that had a lighter bearing on the environment during their production and manufacturing. In addition, once these materials do decompose, they will leach a lot less back into the environment than their non-organic heavily dyed counterparts. I love making clothes and other items and being green alleviates my guilt for doing so!

In many ways, working with sustainable fibers is more limiting, for there is much less to work with, and fewer colors to choose from. However, in some ways this makes it easier for me and Wendy, since our decision process is that much shorter. I only wish there were more eco-liners (lightweight fabrics to line clothing) as well as more affordable organic wools (and I so miss working with herringbone and hound’s tooth woven wools!!)

Do you find people often asking you about the plight of the passenger pigeon, your brands’ namesake and a now extinct species?

Wendy: A lot of people ask about where the name came from. I’m surprised the story isn’t better known, so we end up telling it often. I love the part about passenger pigeons being so plentiful that when they flew by people held up umbrellas as protection from their droppings. I still think it’s just the perfect name for our company. It works as a great reminder that some of our resources are finite and we have to preserve them.

Heather: I have been surprised to find out that very few people are aware of the Passenger Pigeon. Wendy and I often find ourselves educating people about this extinct species. The plight of the Passenger Pigeon is found on our website as well as in wikipedia and other websites dedicated to this fine bird. Editor’s note: The Smithsonian has an excellent web page devoted to the bird.

You design, screen-print and sew everything in Toronto. Do you find it more expensive to keep your production local or is the cost similar to what you would pay to have the goods made elsewhere and then shipped back to you?

Wendy: We know other designers who have made the move offshore for production, and we can’t believe how cheap it can be done! Despite all the shipping involved, producing garments offshore is undoubtedly cheaper than producing them in Toronto. It means that our garments work out to be more expensive than mass produced clothing that you find in the malls. However, our prices are competitive with other locally made clothing lines. Although it is sometimes tempting to cut production costs so dramatically, supporting local economies is a major priority for us. For us it goes hand in hand that we avoid exploitation, both of the environment and laborers.

Heather: We have never considered sending our clothing off shore. We believe in supporting local industry, and we try to keep shipping to a minimum. However, we have compared notes with other local designers who do produce off shore, and their costs are lower.

Read the rest of the article here, at GreenLiving.