Sustainability

A personal message from Rachel

Stoned and Waisted started by operating a policy that no animal should be farmed for fashion. I have always been attracted to the luminosity and feel of a beautiful quality sheepskin from a young age. I always remember the heavy, musty shearlings that I would be drawn to as a student. I loved the look, feel and frankly the texture.

The Winters I spent in Manchester made a girl from Southern California crave the warmth and tactile nature of what sheepskins bring. I would even throw it on top of the bed to try to keep warm in our student flat with frost forming on the inside of the window from December through to February. Goodness, it was heavy and a little musty I think that is where the romance with this beautiful raw material began. Many years later we now have all beautiful elements that only sheepskin can bring without the weight and thickness of the old fashioned “Dell Boy” Shearling you might remember from your youth!

We source the best quality skins

We pride ourselves on sourcing the best quality skins that are selected for their quality thinness, texture, and luminosity. We then choose our colour pallet carefully to bring about the most stunning colour combinations that compliment this amazing skin. People always are drawn to our colour, shapes, volume, and swing of what we do but then fall in love with the weight of our shearling coats. It is no good having something that is exquisite if it is too heavy to enjoy wearing. Our coats are no heavier than a Burberry Raincoat. Our coats may not be the cheapest sheepskin on sale but I challenge you to find anything that is made with this grade of sheepskin with the swing and the drape of what we do. I like to think we deliver to you this timeless piece in your wardrobe.

Our shearling is a by-product of the food industry

I am a great believer in 'buy it once and buy the best'. Many of our ladies save for a year or get our coats for weddings, anniversaries and to mark a special event. Investing in something beautiful and stunning that when they slip it on they know they are wearing something flattering, timeless and special. We only use shearling that is a by-product of the food industry. We are committed to good ethical practices in both our shearling and our leather supply chain. We only source from the highest grade shearlings, we source only from European tanneries who show commitment to good social environmental and welfare practices within their operations. We believe it is better to put a natural material to good use rather than it going to waste. We work with factories who comply to IS0 1 4001 this means amongst other things they have an environmental commitment to reducing waste, and their impact on the environment in addition to a strict employment policy for all their workers.

We also try to manufacture as much as we can here in the UK working with small artisan companies across are whole range from skilled craftsman making our beautifully soft ruffle edged leather collars, a small factory in Suffolk making our woven range, belt manufacturers here in Northampton and one just outside Florence.

Our concerns with faux fur

I have a particular concern with the amount of faux fur that is being sold. I really don’t think that people understand that faux fur is essentially plastic. Faux furs are typically made from synthetic polymeric fibres such as acrylic, modacrylic, and/or polyester, all of which are basically plastic. The raw materials used to make faux fur can start either as a powder or a pellet form which gets melted down and spun like cotton candy. The cotton-like fibres you are left with are then woven through a fabric backing before being trimmed and sheared to the desired length.

I am acutely aware that plastic is harmful to our environment. Faux fur is not bio-degradable. Instead, it can last for hundreds of years without breaking down. Even if it is labelled as “bio-degradable” I know not everyone can afford our coats and I totally understand that all I am asking that you think twice before buying faux fur.