SUSTAINABILITY AND FUN FACTS
Becoming more sustainable
One print at a time
Sustainability is important to us, and our team, and of course, the planet. We strive to be an environmentally conscious company and I am sure you, our customers would like to hear that we're taking an active role in sustainability, and we’re taking realistic steps to get there
We’re going greener! It’s an ongoing process, and we want to share what we’ve done so far. Sustainability is important to us at Virago DSigns, so this why we've partnered with a print-on-demand company that follows the same mission as us.
“eco-friendly” means “not environmentally harmful.” It’s a broad definition, especially when everything we do has an environmental footprint. When it comes to fashion, this term can be understood in numerous ways: the product is made of organic cotton, sustainably sourced or recycled materials, and so on.
First, our partners have to work with what our suppliers have. Most environmentally friendly apparel they offer comes within the 30% range. Some manufacturers market their products as eco-friendly even if they’re only made of 5% sustainable materials. This is up to each company to decide, but our partners felt 5% is too low to call our products eco-friendly. So they decided to aim for the largest, yet realistic number for our threshold, hence the 30%. As soon as products with more eco composition are available, our partners and I will revisit the definition, and hopefully one day we’ll be able to reach 100%.
Second, not all products can be made from environmentally friendly materials. For example, athleticwear is typically made from synthetic materials that offer unique characteristics like stretch, making it more comfortable for the wearer, and some athleisure fabrics are quick to dry. Polyester is often more durable than cotton, so our partners feel it shouldn’t be phased out completely. However, it’s our job to look for ways to make it less harmful to the environment, like finding recycled polyester.
Another example of sustainability can be seen with our poster frames which are made from recycled forest wood. Some other initiatives include us trying to reduce the use of plastics during the package processing process. If you've ordered a poster from us, you may have noticed that the posters are rolled up in paper instead of plastics. We believe that every opportunity shall be exercised when it comes to using recycled material in the life cycle process of the products. Our shipping and handling partners are always looking for way to innovate, they are exploring environmentally friendly void filler options for box shipments to boost our sustainability measures.
As we scale a grow our company we hope to offer some more products. And with the help of our partners we believe that we would be able to offer eco-friendly products that will help us maintain our sustainability mission.
Learning every step of the way
It’s a long road to becoming more environmentally friendly, yet we strongly believe that every move—no matter how big or small—is an important one. We’re putting realistic and tangible goals first, and looking ahead to find new ways to improve. If you have any ideas on how we can become better, please feel free to send us an email at info@viragodsigns.com.
There’s still a lot to do and a lot of mistakes to learn from, but we’re getting better every step of the way. We know sustainability is important, and it’s uplifting. Our sustainability journey is a long one, but we’re happy to be on it. And what’s more—we’re glad you’re joining us for the ride.
Paper Specifications and Characteristics
Glossy: Coated paper with a very smooth, shiny, reflective surface. Glossy finishes have a high-contrast appearance and look slick to the touch when not under glass. This finish has an excellent dynamic range and color—slightly more "pop" than the matte paper, though less noticeable once framed. Photos will have a shiny finish, colors will be vibrant, and images will be crisp and sharp.
Matte: Matte paper has a very smooth, non-glare surface. Matte finishes have a lower contrast when printed and are often used to enhance the texture of a print. Matte prints are fingerprint and smudge resistant, and they work very well with black-and-white photos. Much less glare than glossy.
Lustre: Lustre is our premier paper offering and is considered a professional-grade paper. Lustre has a slight gloss with a subtle, often pearl-like, texture. Lustre paper has deeper color saturation and higher contrast than matte and is materially "thicker," or heavier, than consumer paper. And none of the glare associated with glossy prints!
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