Sustainable Business Practices

It is important that we know about sustainability as it is vital to the health of our future generations. Read more to find out more about alternative materials, recycling, and about how My Lovely Muse is creating a sustainable business to serve you and our Earth!

Promotion and Packaging. My Lovely Muse utilizes a local sustainable print shop with similar eco-conscious values to print all business cards and merchandise labels. Shipping packaging has switched over to sustainable packaging including compostable kraft paper mailers and 100% recycled plastic poly-mailers and any paper used is made of recycled material. An invoice is emailed to you after purchase to eliminate the need of an additional receipt enclosed with your order, unless otherwise requested.

Fabrics. After our first year in business, we have been actively pursuing more eco-conscious alternatives to synthetic fibers (polyester, rayon, nylon, etc.) widely used in the fast fashion industry. Our focus has been on purchasing exclusively sustainable and natural fabrics, specifically organic cotton, as a more sustainable alternative to what you can find elsewhere. Our goal is to offer lasting housewares made exclusively of natural, sustainable, or recycled materials.  In order to continue to provide the best quality products, using a higher quality material is imperative.  Any fabric that is colored is customized by using natural dyes. The cloth used in the beeswax wraps is upcycled and the fabric used to make the reusable snack and sandwich bags is made from a newer type of PUL (Polyurethane Laminate) called Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU). The TPU is a "green" adhesive that is solvent-free, environmentally friendly, and releases no volatile organics. The TPU lamination film is also very safe for human health compared to the PUL of the past that was made with solvent-based adhesives. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the adhesive were not good for the environment, or for the workers making the fabric. Read more about the fabric used in our reusable snack and sandwich bags on our FAQ page.

Fabric scraps/waste. We are proud to say that all fabric scraps, since our opening in January 2017 and even before when this was just a hobby for Christina, have been recycled, donated, or used to make dog beds. In January 2020, My Lovely Muse donated nearly 60lbs of fabric scraps to Terracycle, another 60lbs again in June 2020, and 25+lbs. of fabric to another fabric/clothing recycling program. In 2021, we have recycled approximately 120lbs of fabric scraps with Terracycle. So far in 2024 we have recycled another 60lbs with Terracycle and countless of bags of smaller usable scraps to a local seamstress that exclusively sews scrappy projects. Over time, we have donated over 30 large boxes of usable fabric scraps to local sewists/art programs for creative use and have made 3 small and 3 large dog beds from fabric scraps from the sergers to donate to local shelters. In 2024, we rolled out a line of products made exclusively from scraps from cloth napkins and other projects. Not a single scrap has been tossed into the landfill, and we pledge to keep it that way!

Notions. We have already transitioned out of using satin logo and care tags and currently utilize either a logo/care/tracking stamp or an organic cotton iron on tracking label. Very gradually, we are using up our polyester thread, plastic zippers, plastic buttons/snaps/hook & loop and replacing them with natural and organic cotton thread, metal zippers, and buttons made from coconuts.  It's easy to overlook these small details that are vital to the durability and life of your custom piece, but there is so much that is used to create the clothes we wear and items we use on a daily basis that is not sustainable. It is our mission to make these small changes in our production so that when you make a purchase from us, you will have no longer have to worry about the sustainability of your purchase. You can be sure that anytime you purchase an item made from organic cotton fabric, we have paired it with organic cotton thread already, so rest assured that our synthetic materials are not being used with your organic fibers.