It’s more usually associated with garden furniture and dinner time for pandas, now a Glasgow entrepreneur has launched a range of underwear made almost entirely from bamboo.
Bonnie Lawson-Brown launched the set as part of a bid to find a comfortable bra after breast reduction surgery because none of the mainstream products in shops seemed to fit her.
The garments are made from mosso bamboo, imported from Turkey and processed into an ultra-soft and pliant fabric at a textile factory in the east end of the city.
Around five per cent of the garments are made from elastane to provide support.
The bamboo garments are also more sustainable and 100 per cent vegan, according to Ms Lawson-Brown.
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Having agreed a deal to sell her range at the Scottish Design Exchange, a not-for-profit social enterprise, at its store in Buchanan Galleries and on its online shop, Ms Lawson-Brown now developing a sports bra as well as a range of bamboo nightwear and male underwear.
She says: "Bamboo has developed a natural ability to survive in the most challenging conditions which makes it an ideal product for clothing.
"It’s antibacterial, anti-fungal and it wicks moisture. It also provides 97% UV protection which makes it a great sunblock.”
Ms Lawson-Brown, who previously ran a wifi communications technology business, launched the venture earlier this year after returning to th UK from Germany where her husband, Piers was serving in the British Army.
"I found a company online that sells GOTS (Global Organic Textiles) certified bamboo that’s processed using steam, which is not harmful to the environment.”
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She added: "A lot of bamboo that enters the market has been created by chemicals that have extracted fibres, but the bamboo we use has been created through a steaming process which is a much more ecologically friendly process.
"It is used elsewhere, but what happens is a lot of companies that use bamboo use a lower percentage of bamboo mixed with other material such as cotton or man-made material.
"The reason for that is that it is very expensive and still not a particularly well used material.
"It (the Bonbon material) is 95% which is the highest percentage of bamboo you can use without it becoming almost like a heavy cotton."
Competitive introductory and ongoing rates from suppliers have helped make the venture cost effective, with the bra priced at £55 and the briefs £30.
"It still costs me about four times the amount of a man-made material", she says, "but it is material that can be washed and worn many times, and it regains its shape and support".
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Ms Lawson-Brown has partnered with BeYonder a not-for-profit organisation that specialises in helping designers who use ethically-sourced, organic fibre to manufacture in small or large batches and pays the Glasgow Living Wage to local women.
The Scottish Design Exchange, which provides high street retail exposure to the work of hundreds of artists and craftspeople, has offered her retail space at its Glasgow store and she also plans to sell from its Edinburgh flagship store at Ocean Terminal, Leith.
Lynzi Leroy, Scottish Design Exchange managing director, said: “Bonnie is a great example of the kind of design-led businesses we are here to help.
"She came up with a great idea for a product, designed it, sourced the materials, found a manufacturer and now she’s selling all over the world.
"As well as proving very popular in our store, she’s also received online orders from customers as far flung as America, France, Spain, Germany and Pakistan.”
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