Frequently Asked Questions

To choose activewear without plastic, read the composition label rather than the marketing. Polyester, nylon, polyamide, elastane, spandex, and Lycra are all plastics, and most "performance" fabric is some blend of them. Look for a full percentage breakdown, not a vague claim, and check for a fabric certification like OEKO-TEX Standard 100, which tests finished fabric for harmful substances. A brand that won't tell you its exact blend, its mill, or its fabric weight usually has a reason.

Our Strand fabrics contain no polyester, no nylon, and no elastane. Our fabrics are a cotton-hemp jersey (80% organic cotton, 20% hemp, 190 g/m²), a Tencel™-cotton jersey (67% Tencel™ lyocell, 33% organic cotton, 175 g/m²), and a cotton-hemp-Tencel jersey for our tanks (69% organic cotton, 25% hemp, 6% Tencel™ lyocell, 180 g/m²). Every fibre in that list is plant-based. We strive for our full product line to be 100% plastic-free, but we also acknowledge that we are on a journey, and some stitching or labels still contain e.g. elastane or polyester. We will keep you updated on our journey towards 100% natural fibres.

Activewear without plastic can still stretch, if produces well. It however stretches slightly differently. Elastane snaps back hard, which is why compression leggings rely on it. Our fabrics are knitted as jersey, so the stretch comes from the knit structure rather than from a synthetic fibre, giving you natural give through the shoulders, chest, and waist without the tight squeeze. For tanks, tees, long sleeves, and shorts, that's the right kind of movement. If you specifically want high-compression leggings, no genuinely plastic-free fabric will feel like that yet, and we'd rather tell you than pretend otherwise.

No. Recycled polyester is the same PET plastic as virgin polyester, remelted from bottles or old textiles. It still sheds microplastic fibres in the wash, and some testing suggests it sheds more, not less. Recycling a plastic doesn't stop it being a plastic. If your reason for avoiding synthetics is microplastics or what sits against your skin, recycled polyester doesn't solve it.

Natural fibre clothing doesn't shed microplastics. All fabric sheds some fibre in the wash, but cotton, hemp, and lyocell shed plant cellulose, which breaks down, rather than plastic fragments, which don't. Synthetic activewear is a particularly heavy contributor because it's washed after almost every wear and knitted loose for stretch. Switching the pieces closest to your skin is where the change actually registers.

Most activewear uses polyester because it's cheap, dries fast, and holds a printed logo well at scale. It's a manufacturing decision before it's a performance one. Natural fibres cost more per metre, shrink and move during production, and need a mill that knows how to handle them. That's a harder supply chain, which is why the plastic-free end of the category stays small.

Strand activewear is made from organic cotton, hemp, and Tencel™ lyocell. Our fabric is knitted and dyed by Tintex Textiles in Vila Nova de Cerveira in northern Portugal, and the garments are cut and sewn by hand in a Portuguese atelier. Full compositions and fabric weights are listed on each product page, and there's no synthetic content in any of them.

Hemp works well for training. It's more breathable than polyester, moves moisture instead of trapping it against your skin, and resists odour without the antimicrobial chemical finishes synthetic activewear usually needs. It's also unusually strong for a natural fibre, so it survives repeated washing, and it softens rather than degrades. What it won't do is dry as fast as polyester, which is the honest trade.

Hemp fabric contains no THC. The fibre is taken from the plant's stalk, while THC is concentrated in the flower of cannabis varieties bred for it. Industrial hemp grown for textiles is a separate, regulated crop, and the fibre is retted, spun, knitted, and dyed before it ever reaches a garment.

Tencel™ lyocell is a fibre spun from eucalyptus wood pulp in a closed-loop process that recovers and reuses nearly all of its solvent. It's plant-derived and biodegradable, not petroleum-based, so it isn't a synthetic in the polyester sense, though it is a processed fibre rather than one picked from a field. We use it where we want a silkier, cooler hand-feel than cotton and hemp give on their own.

Our cotton-hemp jersey is certified to OEKO-TEX Standard 100, which means the finished fabric has been tested for harmful substances. The organic cotton we use is certified organic, and our mill supplies full technical documentation for every fabric, including composition, weight, shrinkage, and colour fastness. If you want to see the spec sheet for a particular piece, email us and we'll send it.

Strand is made in northern Portugal. Our fabric is knitted and dyed by Tintex Textiles in Vila Nova de Cerveira, and every garment is then cut, sewn, and finished by hand in a Portuguese atelier rather than a mass factory. We chose Portugal for its textile heritage and its small-batch craftsmanship, not for a lower price.

Manufatura Atlética is Portuguese for "athletic handmade." Manufatura comes from the Latin manu, by hand, and factura, making. It's on our label because it describes the production honestly: hand-cut, hand-sewn, in small runs.

Look for specifics. A brand making real claims will name its fabric composition down to the percentage, its fabric weight, its mill or country of production, and any certification it actually holds. Greenwashing tends to stay vague: "eco-conscious materials," "recycled where possible," a leaf icon and no numbers. Ask for a spec sheet. Brands that have one will send it.

Strand runs true to size. Our men's tanks are a regular fit through the body with rib-bound neckline and armholes, and our women's tanks are a relaxed cropped fit. Every product page carries a full measurement chart plus the model's height and the size they're wearing. Between sizes, size down for a closer fit or up for more length.

All our shirts come pre-washed, and will stay mostly true to size. Our mill tests every fabric to ISO standards, and our jerseys measure around 6% shrinkage washed at 30°C and line dried, which is normal for natural fibre knits. Our patterns are cut with that figure built in, so a piece washed to the care label will settle into its intended size rather than shrinking out of it.

Wash Strand at 30°C, skip the tumble dryer, and dry flat in the shade. Iron on low if you need to, and never bleach. Heat is what damages natural fibres, so a cold wash and air dry is the whole trick. There's no need for fabric softener, hemp and cotton soften on their own.

Natual fibre activewear holds onto smell a lot less than synthetics do. Odour in workout clothes comes from bacteria growing in the fabric, and polyester's structure holds both the bacteria and the oils they feed on, which is why old synthetic gear smells even straight out of the wash. Hemp resists that naturally, so our pieces tend to air out between wears instead of needing a wash every time.

Strand ships from Portugal to the European Union, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, the United States, and Canada. Shipping is calculated automatically once you enter your address.

Orders ship within 2 to 3 business days. From there, Portugal and the rest of the EU typically arrive within 3 to 5 business days, the UK and Switzerland within 4 to 7, and the US and Canada within 7 to 12. You'll see the estimate for your address at checkout, and we email tracking the moment your order ships.

Strand accepts returns within 30 days of delivery on pieces that are unworn, unwashed, and still tagged. Email hello@strandorganic.com with your order number and we'll send instructions. Exchanges are free, and refunds go back to your original payment method once the piece reaches us. If something arrives faulty, we cover return shipping and replace it.

Pieces sell out because we produce in small batches, limited to what our atelier can hand-finish properly. When a size sells out, use the notify button on that product page and we'll email you when it returns or when the next drop lands.

Plastic-free activewear costs more because the fibre costs more and the production is slower. Organic cotton and hemp cost several times what polyester does per kilo, natural fibre knits move during cutting and need experienced hands, and hand-sewing in Portugal costs more per garment than volume manufacturing. A Strand piece is priced for material and labour rather than for margin on cheap fabric.

Strand is for people who train, move, and want natural fibre against their skin while doing it. We design for a healthy, active life rather than one sport, so our pieces get worn for training, for travel, and for ordinary days. If you're replacing synthetic gear one piece at a time, the layers closest to your skin are the ones worth changing first.