Sustainable Fashion Company

Making trendy rain caps with surplus fabrics

When Tessa Jacobs stood in front of her wardrobe in early 2022, she wondered what she could do with the clothes she never wore. She started cutting and sewing and founded the Sustainable Fashion Company. A while later, the RainCap was born. A funky version of the rain caps of yesteryear. Ecologically made from leftover fabrics.

The idea of the RainCap is simple: a handmade, fancy rain cap that doesn't blow off, keeps your hair in the fold and you can easily tuck away in your coat or bag. To keep her carbon footprint as small as possible, Tessa uses only quality surplus fabrics to produce them. Occasionally, these even come from designers such as Walter Van Beirendonck, Dries Van Noten and Moncler.

She has the RainCaps made at local, social sewing workshops such as AMAi in Mechelen and NaaiPunt in Antwerp. To keep her stock as small as possible, she produces only what is ordered. She doesn't let anything go to waste. She processes each strip into smaller accessories. As the rain caps fit in the letterbox, she also opted for delivery by postman, avoiding the CO2 emissions of courier vans.

Besides the RainCaps, Tessa also started the Upcycle Academy. In it, she runs workshops for children and young people. She teaches them to be creative with old clothes and clothing accessories such as ties and scarves, to reuse them and turn them into something new, unique and fashionable. For example, into croptops, sun visors and funky accessories such as bracelets and brooches. This way, they refresh their wardrobes, don't always buy new clothes and help reduce waste.