The hoodie
Released in April 2021
We use organic cotton because so-called “conventional” cotton is a disaster for insects, birds, and farmers. Read more in this article.
A fabric typically used for sweatshirts, but slightly denser than average.
This sweatshirt is made in Portugal at the Triwool factory, with which we have been working since 2017.
Techniques That Ensure Quality
Compact yarn
The cotton fibers have been carefully aligned to ensure a soft feel and better resistance to pilling.
Compact yarn
Dense material
Spandex reinforcement
Pre-wash
Dense material
One of the main problems with sweatshirts is that they lose their shape over time. One solution could have been to add polyester, but we chose not to because there was another option: selecting a 100% cotton fabric dense enough to minimize stretching (420 g/m² vs. an average of 350).
Compact yarn
Dense material
Spandex reinforcement
Pre-wash
Spandex reinforcement
To figure out how to knit our ribbed edges without them stretching out, we spent nearly €1,000 on lab tests. And bingo—we found the solution: we had to knit the spandex “in stockinette stitch”—check out the diagram at this link if you’re interested in the technique. It might not seem like much, but it reduces stretching by two-thirds (to be precise, the residual elongation after 1 minute is 11.2% vs. 32.3% for a traditional spandex yarn blend). In short, the ribbing at the waistband and cuffs will retain their shape over time.
Compact yarn
Dense material
Spandex reinforcement
Pre-wash
Pre-wash
This garment has been pre-washed and stabilized at the factory. As a result, it retains its size when you wash it in the washing machine.
Compact yarn
Dense material
Spandex reinforcement
Pre-wash
In the shelter
For this hoodie, we developed a dense fleece (420 g/m²) made from 100% organic cotton to ensure it keeps its shape—we just added a touch of spandex to the waistband and cuffs to prevent it from stretching out. And we decided to leave out the front kangaroo pocket, which always ends up stretching out over time.
In detail
Classic Cut
Neither fitted nor oversized.
French terry
The interior is made of French terry, a fleece with flat, unbrushed loops that make the fabric absorbent.
Embroidered eyelets
They're pretty, and unlike metal eyelets, there's no risk of them coming loose.
Sturdy cord
The drawstring is secured at the top of the hood so it doesn't come loose in the washing machine. We chose a round shape rather than a flat one because it reduces the risk of fraying.
Natural Ecru
The ecru color isn’t achieved with dyes—it’s the natural hue of the (organic) cotton. By skipping the dyeing step, we not only end up with a fabric that has a distinctive texture, but we also avoid using a lot of chemicals and greenhouse gases.
How to Wear It
A few ideas if you're stuck
Composition
100% cotton
Origin and Certifications
- Knitting, dyeing, and garment manufacturing: Portugal
- Spinning and Cotton: Turkey
...manufacture in Portugal instead of France? Of course, manufacturing in Portugal allows us to sell at lower prices. But it’s also easier to produce high-quality items there: in the 1980s, when France outsourced its manufacturing, Portugal strengthened its own. That said, others besides us manage to make very good hoodies that are 100% made in France, likeECCLO.
... does this plain yarn come from so far away? We looked for high-quality organic cotton yarn produced as close to home as possible. We would have preferred a Portuguese spinning mill, but to the best of our knowledge, there are no mills in Portugal that produce GOTS-certified 100% cotton “compact” plain yarn.
... does cotton come from so far away? In reality, it doesn't get much closer than that. Whilea few die-hard Gaulsmanage to grow it in their fields, cotton cultivation is marginal in Europe. The closest places to source it are Egypt, Turkey, and Greece.
How This Product Will Age
How do we know this? We ask our customers for their feedback on the product one year after purchase. And if the product is less than a year old, we provide our predictions based on some unsolicited feedback and our experience with similar products.
This hoodie will remain in very good condition and will never pill. It may stretch slightly. As with all cotton garments, dark colors will fade slightly with washing. The ecru color may lighten slightly over time (due to the optical brighteners in laundry detergents).
Care Instructions
Wash it inside out to prevent discoloration (there’s nothing worse for color retention than the friction caused by wet fabric).
Don’t untie the knots: the drawstrings might get lost inside the hood, and you’d spend two hours trying to fish them out with a paperclip.
You can machine wash it at 40 degrees, but 30°C is just as effective, much more eco-friendly, and will extend its lifespan.
Avoid the dryer—but if you have no choice, use a low temperature (i.e., delicate or synthetic cycle) to prevent the elastane in the collar, sleeves, and waistband from stretching out. Don’t hang it to dry on a hanger either: your damp hoodie is heavy and could lose its shape under the weight of the water. The best way to ensure its longevity (and to help the planet) is to dry it flat on a drying rack or towel.
Environmental Cost
This environmental cost is calculated using the official methodology of the French environmental labeling system (to be rolled out starting October 1, 2025).
The label above shows the product’s environmental cost according to the official French environmental labeling methodology. This represents what its production “costs” nature when considering its impact on climate change, ocean acidification, its toxicity to freshwater, and so on. Currently in use in the textile sector, this label should soon appear on many everyday consumer products (food, cosmetics, furniture, etc.) to help you make more eco-friendly purchasing decisions.
The hoodie therefore has an environmental cost of 1,370 impact points*.
By comparison, a garment of equivalent weight, made of 100% polyester, manufactured in Bangladesh, and sold by a fast-fashion brand, has an environmental cost of 4,202 points*.
Why is there this difference? Here are the main reasons:
- Countries of origin: Manufacturing in Portugal or France requires less fossil fuel energy than in Bangladesh (one of the leading producers of low-cost clothing). As a result, this more local manufacturing reduces the impacts on climate change, ocean acidification, and resource depletion.
- The material: Organic cotton has a relatively low environmental impact compared to polyester, particularly because it requires few pesticides (and thus poses a low toxicity risk to freshwater) and is biodegradable (and thus causes fewer issues with microfibers or end-of-life waste).
- Sustainability: Fast-fashion retailers encourage purchasing—in particular by rapidly refreshing their collections and offering a vast number of styles—and they discourage repairs by charging rock-bottom prices. This, in turn, increases the number of garments sold per person and reduces the number of times a garment is worn. In contrast, at Loom, we’ve chosen to adopt business practices that encourage our customers to keep their clothes for as long as possible.
Even though we've done everything we can to minimize it, this product's environmental impact is not insignificant. So before you buy, make sure to get the most use out of your clothes.
*Calculations performed by Loom on August 24, 2026. Click on the links to access the simulations from the official Ecobalyse tool and get more details on the assumptions used. Please note: The number of points is not always exactly the same on Ecobalyse (whose methodology changes regularly) as on the official environmental label (based on Ecobalyse version 7.0).
Reviews of this product
The standard practice is to send review request emails a few days after the purchase. We wait a month—the minimum amount of time needed to form an informed opinion.
Customer Review Policy
When do you ask customers for reviews?
We’ll send you a review request one month after we receive your order. We believe this is the minimum amount of time needed to have worn and washed an item several times and to form a truly informed opinion. After that, all your reviews are published within a week, whether they’re positive or negative.
Do you request reviews for 100% of the products ordered by customers?
We used to do that at first, but then we realized we were starting to send way too many emails to certain customers who shop with us regularly. In short, we were spamming them a bit. Plus, it was starting to take the team way too much time to respond to reviews—since we want to reply individually and privately to almost everyone who leaves us a review. Today, we no longer ask for reviews on products that meet the following two criteria: 1/ There are enough reviews posted on the site for potential buyers to form an informed opinion about the product. 2/ We on the Loom team have read enough reviews to understand how to evolve the product into the next generation.
Just a quick thought: What proof is there that we aren't manipulating reviews by giving 5-star ratings to everything?
Honestly: nothing—we’re just giving you our word. Just like with everything else, actually: where we manufacture our products, where our wool comes from, our lab test results, and so on. The only times we might edit what you write is if your message contains spelling mistakes (and even then, quite a few slip past us) or if it’s racist, homophobic, etc. (but that’s never happened so far).
Asking for feedback after just one month isn't enough to know if the clothes are really durable, is it?
You're right—that's why we send you another email asking for a review one year after your purchase—we even ask for a photo to see how your garment has aged. We use the responses to improve our clothing and to provide information on “how this product will age” on our product pages. To avoid unnecessarily bothering our customers, we don’t ask for reviews on 100% of the products ordered: as soon as we have enough data to understand where we can improve, we stop asking for reviews after one year.