Jiberish X Smartwool Team Up For A Sustainable Snowsports Collaboration – Fashion – 303 Magazine

Two winter sports apparel brands, Jiberish and Smartwool have teamed up to create a remarkable collaboration. Both local companies wanted to stay true to their brands while coming together to create more sustainable pieces that feature plant-based dyes for tie-dye streetwear style clothing.

Smartwool’s brand is known for its influence through nature, hence the very intricate designs and color palette. Smartwool was created in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, in 1994. Now the company is currently based in Denver. Founders Peter and Patty Duke are passionate skiers. They wanted to ski for longer periods of time without their toes freezing.

This is where the idea emerged to create socks where the main fabric source is Merino Wool. “It’s incredibly soft, moisture-wicking, thermoregulating, sustainable and odor-neutralizing. Excellent for enjoying the outdoors for as long and as comfortably as possible,” Kris Fry, Creative Director at Smartwool said. Smartwool creates mainly Merino Wool products, from socks to base layers.

Smartwool has recently introduced the use of “plant-based dyes” in a few styles of Merino wool apparel. “[It is] an environmentally conscious and responsible process that utilizes dyes derived from plants instead of artificial substances, using less water and energy in the process,” Fry said.

The core mission of Smartwool is, “performance innovation.” What truly sets the brand apart from others is that they are inspired by nature in all of their prints while using many colors and patterns to create their vision of nature.

“Fundamental to our brand purpose is our belief that the outdoors belongs to no one — and to everyone. Smartwool exists to bring comfort, confidence, and community to a life lived outside. Whether you are an adventurer, an athlete, or commuting to work, our brand is for making the most of your outdoor experiences,” Fry said.

Within the Smartwool community, a core belief is that time spent outdoors is, “valuable, restorative, and essential for everyone,” Fry said. The brand is always keeping its customers and friends in the loop about the direction they are heading. They prioritize the relationships and trust they have with their customers.

Smartwool believes in doing everything it can to help the environment. This is why they use natural materials in their products while partnering with organizations that protect nature.

Smartwool holds a very bright future ahead of them. By 2030, their goal is to become 100% circular and climate positive and the brand is constantly finding ways to prioritize innovation and create more sustainable garments.

Recently, Smartwool launched a product called the Second Cut K9 Camp Cushion, launched through their Second Cut Project. The product is a dog bed made entirely of recycled socks, “which reduces the impact textile waste has on the environment and reflects the values of our fun-loving brand. We partnered with circularity platform Material Return to create the Second Cut K9 Camp Cushion — demonstrating our commitment to local, innovative solutions to industry waste,” Fry said.

Jiberish was founded in 2005 and is based in Denver, Colorado. Jiberish apparel is heavily influenced by the outdoors and nature. They are known for their streetwear style that reflects high-quality apparel. The brand prioritizes three aspects of life: city living, mountain life and snow sports.

The Jiberish designs are eccentric, colorful, and bold, but they never shy away from quality. The Jiberish apparel pieces are made of custom milled organic cotton, which is a heavy-weight, high-quality fabric. In some individual pieces, Jiberish also uses extra-long-staple cotton that gives their garments a softer, silkier feel.

Jiberish prides itself on its social media page, which not only showcases its apparel but also professional-level reels and videos of snowsports.

Jiberish and Smartwool are two very well-known winter sports brands. They each bring something different to the table but with one goal in mind: “we hope this collaboration shows the next generation of skiers that you don’t have to sacrifice style for environmentally conscious and technical ski wear,” Fry said.

For the Jiberish and Smartwool collaboration, 100% Merino Wool is used to create the product line. “The tie-dye items are colored using Smartwool’s eco-conscious plant-based-dye process, which creates a unique design for each piece while bringing nature even closer to your body,” he said.

This collaboration features six pieces:

Smartwool X Jiberish Beanie ($35), Merino 250 Plant-Based Dye Jiberish Jogger Bottom ($140.00), Merino 250 Colorblock Jiberish Jogger Bottom ($140.00), Merino 250 Baselayer Colorblock Jiberish Hoodie ($140.00), Merino 250 Baselayer Plant-Based Dye Jiberish Hoodie ($140.00), and Ski Targeted Cushion Jiberish Print Over the Calf Socks ($26.00).

During this collaboration, Jiberish and Smartwool made it a priority to stay true to using Smartwool’s more sustainable fabrics and dyes in all the products, while also prioritizing Jiberish’s streetwear style.

“As two Denver-based companies with roots in ski culture, there were natural synergies between the two brands from their roots that made the partnership inevitable. During early conversations of this collaboration, both brands talked a lot about the next-gen of skiers in the area and how they could use the strengths of both (Smartwool’s quality materials such as Merino Wool and Jiberish’s CO inspired streetwear style) to this group of consumers. What resulted is this bespoke collection!” Fry said.

This Jiberish X Smartwool Collection is available on Smartwool. Products are on a first-come, first-serve basis. There are plans for future collaborations with both brands throughout 2022. 

Photo Courtesy of Matt Lorenz.