Mon Coeur Makes Children's Apparel From 100% Recycled Materials

There's something about having a child that makes you view the world through a new lens. For Louise Vongerichten Ulukaya, it was no different. When her first son, Miran, was born, she found it was difficult to find children's clothes that were as kind to the planet as they were comfortable and stylish to wear, so she decided to start her own company.

Mon Coeur launched in January 2021, and it adheres to an impressively high standard of environmental responsibility. All of the pieces for boys, girls, and infants are 100% recycled, made from post-industrial recycled cotton, polyester from upcycled plastic bottles, and recycled Roica elastane. 

All of the accessories on the clothing, including buttons, zippers, labels, embroideries, and hangtags, are also made from recycled materials, using plastic bottles, post-consumer yarns, recycled paper, and recycled thermosetting fillers (for the paper-based buttons). 

Influenced by the entrepreneurial spirit of her father, celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Louise Ulukaya said Mon Coeur was created for a world where "imagination meets ingenuity, where fun meets function," and clothing is made to last so the planet does, too.

"Imagine if the fabric for kids' clothes could be reclaimed from the atelier floor of more grown-up garments. What if buttons and zippers could help to keep plastic out of the ocean? Could we close the loop on kids’ clothing?"

Refreshing, too, is Mon Coeur's emphasis on European production. Ulukaya explained to Treehugger, "Our clothes are entirely produced in Portugal with Europe-sourced fabrics and accessories to limit emissions, while assuring traceability from the drawing of the collection until our pieces are worn by our babies and kids... To me it is crucial to have my clothes made in the right conditions, where workers are respected financially and humanly."

This shortening of the supply chain does indeed make it easier to maintain high standards of transparency – something that's badly needed in the fashion industry.

Furthermore, Mon Coeur has partnered with the 5 Gyres Institute and is a member of 1% for the Planet, donating a portion of profits to causes such as ocean and beach cleanups, tree planting, and supporting communities that are disproportionately affected by climate change.

With T-shirts selling for $50 and hoodies for $84, this is not exactly budget-level clothing. It is far more expensive than dressing your child in thrift store deals and hand-me-downs, which is another eco-friendly approach we support here on Treehugger. But there will always be those parents who prefer and can afford to buy new, and for them it's good that options like this exist. 

It's clear that Mon Coeur takes sustainability seriously, rather than making half-hearted efforts to incorporate small quantities of recycled content into its fabric in order to claim it's "green"; Mon Coeur means business when it says it wants to make green clothing. The more support there is for companies like this one, by people who can afford to, the more widespread this kind of recycled fashion will become.

As Louise Ulukaya told Treehugger, "Making clothes the 'right way' has lots of challenges. I picked the hard road making 100% sustainable clothing, but I am hoping parents will push their purchase choices and their voices, and that more companies will make their clothes Earth-friendly, because that's the right way to do it."