Sep 28, 2022

Organic Cotton Bralettes vs Regular Cotton Bralettes: The Key Differences

Organic cotton bralettes are getting more love from women across the world, and for good reasons. So, if you’re still wondering what the fuss is all about with organic cotton bras and bralettes, we’ll try as much as possible to break it down in this post.

To help our readers better appreciate the beauty of organic bralettes and undies made from this fabric, we’ll try to compare these with regular cotton bras made from regular cotton fabric. Hopefully, you’ll also jump on this train before you read this to the end.

So, let’s start with what exactly is organic cotton.

What is organic cotton?

According to this research in Science Direct, organic cotton describes cotton fibres cultivated naturally without the use of synthetic agricultural chemicals such as fertilizers, pesticides, and transgenic technology.

Cotton accounts for half of the world’s textile fibre needs.

organic cotton bralette

The quest by farmers to meet this growing demand has led to different tactics that include using genetically-modified seedlings, fertilizers, pesticides, and more to spur rapid growth. This cotton ends up containing chemicals that are not only harmful to the environment but may also induce allergic reactions on the skin. Organic cotton, however, solves that problem.

There is a night and day difference between organic cotton and regular cotton. The rest of this post is dedicated to highlighting these differences, with regard to regular and organic cotton bralettes.

Organic cotton bralettes are made from purer and higher-quality cotton

The first noticeable difference has to do with the quality of both fabrics, especially considering they are both the same cotton. Organic cotton is harvested manually, via handpicking. This helps avoid damage to the fibres, compared with regular cotton that is harvested mechanically to save time and labour.

HOPE - Organic COTTON & SILK BRALETTE

Machine harvesting damages some of the fibre in the process, ultimately impacting the quality of the end product. This is why organic cotton is always softer and more durable, regardless of how soft and durable regular cotton is.

And how can we forget about the rare breed of cotton known as the Pima cotton?

That cotton variety has extra-long fibres which give them up to 50% more durability than their regular cotton counterparts. This is one of the reasons why organic Pima cotton bralettes such as Julie May’s are loved for their quality and durability.

No harsh textile dyes and chemicals during manufacturing

Because the essence of organic cotton includes reducing environmental impact to the barest minimum, it will seem counterproductive to later introduce some of these same chemicals in the manufacturing process that was avoided during cultivation. This absence of chemicals and toxins makes organic cotton bralettes the best choice for people looking to avoid allergic skin reactions, rashes, irritations, etc.

Organic cotton bralettes give you your bras in their most natural allergy-free form. Some organic cotton brands like Julie May even back their products with verifiable laboratory reports that indicate that none of the nastiest 22 harmful dyes and chemicals used in mainstream clothing manufacturing was used in producing them. These products meet the strictest industry regulations, including the Organic Content Standard (OCS) certified by Control Union Certifications B.V.

Price and value differences

As with most things in life, the more work that goes into something can mean better quality and hence, increased costs. For organic and regular cotton, this is partially true.

True in the sense that organic cotton bralettes cost more and in the other sense because they represent better value for the money considering some organic cotton fabrics such as the Pima cotton, for instance, can be up to 50% more durable than regular cotton because of those extra-long fibres that make them better resistant to tears, wrinkles, and fraying, and of course, the manual harvesting process that reduces the damage done to those fibres.

You don’t want to imagine the environmental harm that happens with producing just a single bralette!

1 kilogram of conventionally-grown cotton takes roughly 10,000 litres of water to produce. So, you can imagine how many hundreds or thousands of the world’s scarce resources have gone into producing the bralettes you currently wear.

The main reason why cotton is so thirsty is because it is often grown repeatedly on the same piece of land. This allows the cotton to continuously degrade the soil quality while also removing nutrients. Again, this situation leads to the growth of unhealthy cotton sprouts that need more water to grow and be harvested. Considering we already have a water scarcity problem, conventional cotton farming still contributes further to this problem due to the need for massive irrigation. But cotton not only consumes more water, but it also pollutes our water sources too. Organic clothing is far more sustainable and more reasonable from an environmental point of view.

The ‘human price’ of cheap cotton

Organic Workers on such large farms are also exposed to unfair working conditions and crazy low wages. It is appalling considering most of them often have to work long hours while exposed to all forms of harmful pesticides and chemicals that could put them at risk of nauseous, skin irritations, seizures, and other serious conditions, including cancer. If you see that your regular cotton bralettes are unbelievably cheap, most of the time, it’s because someone else had paid the price.

Organic bralettes and organic clothing

Organic cotton bralettes are almost always a better choice, regardless of any perspective you choose to see this from.

They are a much healthier choice for something that will stay on the most delicate areas of your body.

Organic clothing is also a more socially responsible option if you’re the socially-conscious type. And if you’re the economical shopper who’s always looking to save a few bucks here and there, organic cotton bralettes are more cost-effective when you consider their longer-term durability.

There are too many reasons to like them and hardly any reason to want to hate these beauties. And if you’re not sure how to get started, Julie May sells some of the best organic bras and bralettes you can find anywhere, at reasonable prices that don’t cost an arm and leg.