By: Blonde Two

Living a more sustainable life can be a complicated and confusing business. The science is there but the website that answers all my ‘better or worse for the planet‘ questions has yet to appear. So I’ve turned to the ‘use less’ mantra. This is proving easier in some areas than others. Of course, living an outdoor life has taught me lots about using less but my love of outdoor gear (and being sent it to try out) has been causing me much thought. Take for example, my latest pair of leggings.

Leggings are great for lots of outdoor activities

Leggings aren’t my favourite choice of trouser for walking but they are fantastic for jogging, changing after swimming, wearing underneath waterproof trousers, and (my favourite) sleeping in at camp. They also make a great thermal layer if you can squeeze a pair under your walking trousers.

Leggings and the environment

Leggings are however often made out of planetary-unfriendly fibres and can have a limited life span. In the UK we send around 140 MILLION POUNDS worth of clothing to land fill each year. And yes, a percentage of that clothing is outdoor gear.

So it makes sense not only to think carefully about outdoor gear purchase choices but also to prolong the life of our gear, and find new uses for the fabrics when we’ve finished with them.

When to buy new outdoor gear

Here’s what happened when my last pair of traditional leggings started to wear out.

  1. I mended them
  2. I mended them again
  3. I decided mending was no longer working
  4. I chopped them up to make plant ties for the garden
  5. I did a bit of research
  6. I decided to go for bamboo leggings from BAM as my current pair are lasting well
  7. I chose leggings with pockets to increase their usability

The pros and cons of bamboo clothing

Bamboo is a fascinating fabric with lots to be said for it (plus a few negatives) on the environmental front. BAM have written a good breakdown of the sustainability pros and cons of bamboo clothing, if you’re interested I recommend giving it a read.

Bamboo leggings with pockets

Bamboo leggings with pockets

Needless to say I’m really pleased with my new leggings. They were a gift from BAM in exchange for a bit of promotion, and their pockets have ensured their place on my ‘definitely packing’ list.