TENCEL

Tencel is almost a verb now, ubiquitous and of varying (and sometimes questionable) grades and origins, so much so that sometimes it’s used interchangeably with viscose and modal, all types of rayon. Essentially, all these cellulose fibres are made using the same method. Dissolve wood pulp, mix it with a solvent to produce a wet mixture, dry it through spinning and push this mixture through small holes to form threads, that will be spun into yarn and woven into cloth.

The differences between viscose or modal (both chemically intensive) and the closed loop Tencel used at King & Tuckfield, are two. First, the chemical solution used at Tencel is more easily recoverable, and a closed-loop solvent system means almost no solvent is dumped into the ecosystem. Instead, it is recycled time and time again to produce new fibres and minimise harmful waste. Second, Tencel is made from sustainably sourced wood (PEFC or FSC tree plantations), while around 30% of rayon and viscose used in fashion is made from pulp sourced from endangered and ancient forest.

The “silky” handfeel you get from our garments, is due to the quality and length of fibers used to produce the twill fabric we purchase from the Netherlands. And since our belief system revolves around Longevity, know that breathability, odour resistance and 50% more than cotton moisture absorption, makes our Tencel garments both luxurious and friendly to our body (warm in the Winter and cool in the Summer, like merino) and the environment.

As for our prints, the actual design is neither computer generated nor CAD drawn, but hand painted, digitised and directly printed (always with 100% eco-friendly ink), also in The Netherlands on the fabric of the same origin, in a small high-tech facility. We minimise the miles our product has to take, so you can put in all the miles you need for as long as you want, knowing we did our bit to protect jobs and the environment.