This giveaway is sponsored by Luciela.
I’m always excited when I discover a new sustainable lingerie brand that’s actually pretty, and that’s exactly what Spanish brand Luciela by designer and founder Lucienne Rutherford is. Inspired by her love of colour and print – and her pet peeve of elasticated waistbands that dig in – she set out to create a lingerie line that was fun, feminine, ultra-comfortable, and created with environmental responsibility in mind.
Although sustainability – in life, not just in clothing – is something I care about deeply, it can sometimes be difficult to reconcile that with my equally deep love of beautiful lingerie. Most eco-conscious lingerie brands skew plain, which is something Luciela talks about on its website: the fact that almost all lace, embroidery and mesh is made using synthetic fibres, and the natural fibre alternatives such as cotton lace and silk tulle costing as much as twenty times the price (which makes them unviable for most brands and most consumers), which has led to brands committed to using sustainable materials traditionally only focusing on the basics.
If you want something prettier, that’s where recycled and biodegradable synthetics come in. Recycled fabrics are fairly widespread now in the lingerie industry, but biodegradable synthetics – ones that will decompose rapidly into only organic matter – are still an emerging technology and there really aren’t that many lingerie brands using them yet.
Why is that? Well, as Lucienne discovered when she started developing her brand, “providers within the sector don’t advertise or have much of an online presence, so if you’re not ‘in the know’ (as I certainly wasn’t), they can be very hard to find. Once I did find them, the minimums were astronomical.” Not prohibitively expensive per metre, perhaps, but still a major investment overall for a small, self-funded brand.
Determined to make her vision a reality however, Lucienne ended up being the very first to invest in a new elastic edging, developed locally in Spain, which is made with fully-biodegradable polyamide. And it’s only one of multiple ‘next generation’ sustainable fibres she ended up selecting for the debut Luciela collection. Others include Amni Soul Eco®, a biodegradable polyamide that decomposes in landfill into biomass and biogas within 5 years, and ROICA™ V550, the world’s first Cradle-to-Cradle Certified compostable elastane which degrades into CO2 and water.
Combined with exclusive prints – designed via a combination of digital and traditional watercolour, and digitally-printed to minimise water usage – this has allowed Lucienne to create a brand in which every single component (right down to the sewing thread!) contains either recycled or biodegradable fibres, while also being full of colour and lace.
There’s a ‘Wisteria’ range in printed lilac with baby blue mesh and lace. A ‘Poppy’ range featuring another lilac-background print surrounded by soft blush pink. And a ‘Thistle’ range in a beautiful teal green, for those who are after something a bit more punchy. Each one offers dainty bralettes, lacy bottoms, chic bodysuits, delicate babydolls, and beautiful sheer robes perfect for a hot Spanish summer.
Luciela lingerie is manufactured in a small atelier in nearby Lisbon, Portugal. All of the fabrics and components are sourced from within Europe, and each product page gives you a clear breakdown of where each element came from and what it’s made from, whether it’s the Tencel thread made in Portugal or the cotton care labels made in Spain. (You will notice that there’s no elastic trim mentioned on the brief and thong pages – as per Lucienne’s original vision, there are only flexible, stretch lace waistbands that won’t dig in at Luciela!).
Win a Luciela babydoll, bodysuit or bra set
Can you picture yourself wearing Luciela lingerie? You might just be a few weeks from now! Lucienne has kindly offered to give one of my readers their choice of any babydoll, bodysuit, or bralette + bottom set from the Luciela website. All are available in sizes XS to XL (you can find a sizing and measurements guide here) and entry is open to the US, UK and Europe.
To be in with a chance to win, all you need to do is subscribe to the Luciela newsletter via the form below by 11th March 2025. The best of luck!
a Rafflecopter giveawayLet me know in the comments section below which piece(s) you’d pick if you’re the lucky winner.