Let's talk about naturally performing linen with Sam

Sam Binstead is a professional fashion and portrait photographer, who spends his spare time advocating for a slower approach to living. His work champions makers who craft useful, beautiful products with longevity in mind.

Since finding my feet with my personal style around 10 years ago, linen has been an integral part of my wardrobe. In the past 5 years of diving deeper into sustainability and slow style, it has become part of my personality.

As corporations try to squirm their way out of the climate crisis by chasing new tech; inventing new fabrics; and selling us more and more new stuff, smaller designers and brands - the brands I revel in working with and advocating for, those with a genuine belief that it can be done better - are turning to natural, renewable, ancient flax.

Imagecredit:SamBinstead

I’d love to wax lyrical about how flax can flourish in poor soil conditions, how it doesn’t require anywhere near the pesticides that cotton does, how the whole plant is used (linseed oil and flaxseed are valuable products!), how it’s a stronger and more durable fibre than cotton, how it’s an incredibly versatile fabric and not just for floaty summer shirting, and how it’s completely biodegradable (if it’s pure linen, with plant based dye, it can even start to decompose in just 2 weeks!), but I’m not really a writer so here’s some photos of my favourite linen pieces

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Image credit: Sam Binstead