Shipping Notice!
For the second half of October, I will be traveling to see family. I will be working and available (and foraging!). Items bought online during this time will NOT be shipped until the first couple days of November. However, throughout November I will be posting lots of new and exciting things, so check back in often!
Welcome All,
My shop is diverse and colorful- everything is hand dyed in small batches with botanical dyes and made from post-consumer cotton not only to minimize my footprint on this beautiful planet but to celebrate the fibers and hues it has to offer.
I do custom work, commissions, pop-ups, markets, maker trades, and collaborations.
Origin Story
Round Trip is the one woman design experiment of me, Artist and Designer Leah Rich. After graduating with a BS in Industrial Design from MSU Denver I worked for a handful of years in the product and event design industries. Seeing the waste and feeling the burnout, I took a left turn onto the quieter route of making things by hand and enjoying the process of the craft. I am fortunate enough to work from a small studio & garage at home in Denver, Colorado with help and support daily from my partner. There are many long days when being an artist, but they are happy ones.
Design Philosophy
The products I make are a celebration of the plant world and an experiment in creativity with a foundation in caring for others and the planet. With post-consumer materials as a constraint in the design process, I create for multi-functionality, enjoyment, and a low waste lifestyle. I prototype, research, and experiment daily as I look to continually improve my skills and knowledge base on ethical and earth conscious practices.
Post-Consumer Cotton
My products are made from 100% post-consumer cotton unless otherwise stated. Many of the fibers from around the world are farmed or made in unsafe factories by underpaid workers in colonial ravaged countries. Producing new cotton also takes an exorbitant amount of water to produce, according to the WWF, about 5,000 gallons of water to produce 2 lbs of cotton fabric. Bypassing the negative impacts of new fabric production, I search the Colorado area for second hand fabric in good condition. This also cuts out shipping and packaging.
Body Positive
Gender is such a drag.. .Round Trip Goods is about providing items for every body size and shape and all items are unisex.
I search our town’s thrift stores for gently used cotton clothes to give them a second life with plant dyes. Each piece of clothing is one of a kind and a labor of love without supporting the ethical inequalities of fast fashion.
Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose
Shopping second hand first for studio needs (pots and pans, tables, thread, paper) is an affordable way to help reduce environmental harm. Minimizing the consumption of new materials, shipping costs, packaging materials, and giving money to local organizations rather than big box stores are tangible actions that add up to make a difference. I buy local and bulk as often as possible, shipping envelopes are pre-used from packages we have received in the past. The dyes and binding string are made of biodegradable materials. I do my best to work towards sustainability while not using the word lightly and know that there's always room for improving our relationship to the earth.
Patreon Support
If you like what you see and have as little as $3 a month to spare, consider becoming a Patreon Member. Members get exclusive access to my Design + Dye Lab Blog where I post dye tests, videos, design processes, and prototypes, as well as other neat benefits. Members contribute monthly at a rate that's right for them to help me cover my overhead and keep me creating. As a small business with ethically and environmentally conscious practices, every little bit really helps me keep going! I'd love to create a community around my art and build the future of Round Trip Goods together. Learn more at my patreon page (link at very top of this page).
Product Care
Our products are embedded with living plant dyes and will change with you over time. Round Trip pieces are treated and dyed with great care to be lightfast and washfast. Even so, long exposure to sunlight, harsh soaps, and hot water will change your items' colors faster. The best way to keep your items from fading is to hand wash them in cold water, with a gentle soap. Pieces can also be machine washed in cold water on the delicate cycle. Acidic or citrus fruit soaps can change the pH of your pieces and shift colors towards warmer shades so using a pH neutral soap is best. Ironing items after they dry works great at getting the cotton back to a smooth finish. Store away from direct sunlight when not in use to preserve colors as well.
Make the Round Trip
Our items are designed to be unisex, user-friendly, and multi functional to encourage creative interactions and a long life for the product. Hopefully you use your Round Trip Goods until they are worn out from love and daily use. We encourage you to repurpose your products if you think it’s at the end of their life cycle. We would love to hear of ways you reuse old textiles of any kind. Post on social with #maketheroundtrip to share ideas.