We have good news for all who have been pining over that perfect pair of Madewell jeans. Through Madewell’s partnership with Blue Jeans Go Green™, you can get $20 off your next denim purchase. All you have to do is bring in one of those old pair of jeans sitting in your closet to your local Madewell store. If the $20 discount wasn’t enough incentive, it gets much better.
We all have a pair of jeans in our closet that we just don’t wear anymore. It could be those skinny jeans from college that don’t fit now but “might again one day,” or maybe it’s that pair of jeans with the questionable wash that you loved at the time but now never wear. The good news is that through this amazing partnership, those jeans can be up-cycled into UltraTouch™ Denim Insulation that will provide insulation for the homes of those in need. AND you get $20 off that new pair of Madewell jeans that you have been wanting.
To fully appreciate this program, you need to know a little more about the life of your denim, and your relationship with it.
Before you pick up your favorite pair of jeans, they were first harvested into cotton, spun, woven and designed into a clothing item that is ready to be sold in stores. Then, you purchase them. You go through a honeymoon phase with your new product where they are admired, loved and worn constantly. However, soon they becomes less and less exciting, gets ripped or stained beyond repair, or simply goes out of style. It is around this time that you start eyeing that new pair of jeans that makes your old jeans obsolete. But what to do with the old jeans? You have a few options:
Shove them in the back of your closet and never think of them until you desperately need more closet space.
Throw them out. They end up in a landfill.
Donate them to Madewell and get $20 off a brand new pair!
Every year, millions of textiles are thrown into landfills, adding to the excessive waste already being dumped. To make matters worse, these textiles are extremely harmful when left to decompose in landfills. They release methane, which is a harmful greenhouse gas that is a large contributor to global warming. Textiles also contain dyes and chemicals that leech into soil, causing contamination of both surface and groundwater. This is not good news for our environment.
The Blue Jeans Go Green™ program is taking the necessary steps to make sure some of this waste is redirected, and used for good. According to the Blue Jeans Go Green™ website, UltraTouch™ Denim Insulation, which is manufactured by Bonded Logic Inc., is environmentally safe, highly thermal, has no carcinogenic warnings, formaldehyde, or chemical irritants. It even has a very high Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) that reduces airborne sound transmission such as traffic, airplanes, radio or TV, and everyday conversation sounds that would otherwise pollute those living in the home. All that provided by your old jeans!
It takes approximately 500 to 1,000 pairs of up-cycled jeans to insulate one home and right now, Madewell is using donations to provide housing insulation for Habitat for Humanity.
However, every pair of jeans counts, so Madewell is encouraging you to bring as many pairs as you can. It takes approximately 500 to 1,000 pairs of up-cycled jeans to insulate one home and right now, Madewell is using donations to provide housing insulation for Habitat for Humanity. This is not something new for Madewell. In the fall of 2015, they sent out a traveling, pop-up, recycling truck through the streets of NYC and LA, picking up denim and raising awareness for the Blue Jeans Go Green™ movement. This was initially organized in response to the devastation brought by Hurricane Katrina. Many lost their homes as a result of the Katrina tragedy and Blue Jeans Go Green™ responded by working with Habitat for Humanity to provide the up-cycled, denim insulation for the homes that were being rebuilt. When building an environmentally friendly home, insulation can be one of the most costly features, making the gift of UltraTouch™ Denim Insulation especially appreciated.
Madewell has been a leader in the Blue Jeans Go Green™ effort from the start, encouraging customers to bring in old jeans and educating them on where their donations are going. In 2014, they sent two Madewell employees to experience the donation process first-hand, from start to finish. In a post published by the Madewell blog, the women explain the enthusiasm they saw from customers bringing in their old jeans to donate. One employee even remembered a customer telling her that she had her first kiss in the pair of low-rise flares that she was donating.
When building an environmentally friendly home, insulation can be one of the most costly features, making the gift of UltraTouch™ Denim Insulation especially appreciated.
The enthusiasm from the Madewell clientele is matched by the employees who accept the donations in stores everyday. In the blog post, the featured employees explained the experience of helping to install the new insulation in homes in New Orleans. They learned that any type of denim can be up-cycled, whether it be bleached, studded, washed, or colored. This can be seen in the insulation when it is being installed, such as a red stripe running across a panel of insulation. The installation was done in an hour, providing the new home with new insulation that will keep the home cool in the summer and hot in the winter, thanks to its natural fibers.
Not only do we love Madewell for their perfect fitting jeans, but we are inspired by the initiative and dedication that they have shown, and continue to show in giving back to our communities. As consumers, educating ourselves on the brands we invest in is vital if we are to remain accountable to our environment and those who inhabit it. Small choices yield large results. Something as simple as donating one pair of old jeans will directly affect the life of someone in need. The power to directly affect change is a gift. So take those old jeans, head to Madewell, and do a little shopping. That new pair of “perfect jeans” just became more affordable and those old ones are off to help save the world.
To find the Madewell store nearest you, search here.
Images via Lauren Taylor Watt;Written by Darling Digital Media Intern Jessica Tomkins
1 comment
This is such an awesome initiative! If I was still living in the US, I’d be bringing my old jeans right over!