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Product designer Sam Whitten founded Hemp Eyewear in Scotland after discovering the incredible properties and potential of hemp. Sam saw an opportunity to take on a market that not only uses an unbelievable amount of plastic, but relies more heavily on logos and advertising than on craftsmanship and design. Their first prototype – a pair of sunglasses with the signature hemp frame – went viral in 2014, and with a wave of support from early adopters, they were off and running.

Since then, they’ve learned and grown, moving into their studio in Edinburgh where they’ve worked hard to get every detail right, from sourcing the perfect materials to fine-tuning their process to getting to know their audience better and better.

Their hemp comes from France. Raw fibre is transformed into a strong yet lightweight material using their eco-conscious technology and specialised machinery. It’s as clean as it gets: the only byproduct of their process is water vapour.

Because it’s a natural material, each of their frames are one-of-a-kind. Their craftsmen spend weeks transforming the processed material into eyewear frames, before adding a v-groove for the lenses, and using a special router to cut their two trademark grooves into each frame.

They complete the hemp element of the frames by sanding them for hours using wet and dry paper, achieving a smooth, comfortable and beautiful-looking finish.

Every single screw, rivet and hinge is marked, drilled and attached by hand. They only use precision-engineered components made from the best materials: if it’s not made from hemp then it’s made from the highest grade titanium to ensure long-lasting performance and quality.