Hemp Eyewear is a startup company from Scotland, started by product designer Sam Whitten and myself. The initiative is to use one of the world's most useful but under-appreciated resources, hemp, to produce the world's first sustainable, renewable hemp sunglasses. In doing so, we hope to increase the fashion industry's awareness of hemp as a material to start a drive towards more sustainable fashion. Additionally, we are commited to helping support the rural communities who make a living from growing hemp, those who are the true masters of this material.
The glasses idea was born during Sam's research at uni, where he discovered the benefits and challenges of working with hemp. A prototype of the glasses was highly appreciated at the New Designers show in London, 2014, promting us to make more of this opportunity.
I looked into how a company making sunglasses out of hemp could fit into the wider fashion landscape. From our initial understanding of the industry and a vision of how it could look, we built a brand.
Most of the images here are of the older prototypes. The glasses are now much thinner, more curved and better finished with new photographs coming soon.
Website
Hemp Eyewear required a website to introduce the product, the brand, and as a platform to purchase the product. I approached the design of the site as similar to telling a story - introduction to Hemp Eyewear, why we use hemp, and then going into detail about specific models.
The goal here was not to shout about the product. This isn't "BUY BUY BUY". There is an important lesson to be taught about hemp material. How it can be a substitute for wood, paper, fuel, cotton, and countless other uses. How it can transform the rural communities in which it's grown. And lastly how, by making sunglasses out of hemp, we can contribute to a change in attitude and a move towards more sustainable fashion.
It is because of this focus on informing and educating, that the site has a news section where stories about renewables, sustainability and great ideas from around the world are shared.
The first prototypes were made in Glasgow, where I shot a few pics of them being worn and in a studio environment. The glasses have been developed a long way from these very early images.
We had a logo stamp made up to brand the hemp boxes. Each customer will recieve their pair of Hemps in one of these boxes, along with a protective hemp pouch and a compliments slip.
Crosby100
Following our Kickstarter campaign, we produced 100 extra units from the first batch of the Crosby frame. To promote theses glasses, the price was reduced considerably until the 100 pairs were sold. I named this the Crosby100.
Look book
For Spring/Summer 2016 I designed a look book to distribute to retailers. This is the first proper print application of the Hemp Eyewear brand.
