When I asked Vivi Rufino about spandex, I expected the founder of a natural-fibre swimwear brand to be uncomfortable with the question. Instead, she explained why she used a little stretch in the Freedom Ecowear designs she was showing me.
Fit when a swimsuit gets wet
Vivi described how wet natural-fibre fabric can hold water, become heavier and change its fit. For her close-fitting swimwear, she said stretch helped the garment recover its shape. Her point was about making those designs work, rather than declaring that every possible swimsuit had to use spandex.
She did not treat a natural-fibre blend as if it were entirely natural. We discussed the synthetic component alongside the hemp and organic cotton, and she explained why she wanted to keep it low.
The blends she showed me
During the visit, Vivi described one fabric as 53% hemp, 44% organic cotton and 3% Lycra, and another as 60% organic cotton, 32% hemp and 8% Lycra. Those were the particular blends in our conversation, not a guarantee that every current Freedom product has the same composition.
She talked about staying below 20% synthetic content and later said they kept it below 8% where less stretch already worked. Because she also showed a fabric containing 8%, the useful takeaway is to read the exact product composition rather than turn her conversational figures into a promise that every piece contains strictly less than 8%.
A design limit is different from certification
Vivi connected the 20% figure with her understanding of organic textile standards. It should not be read as a universal rule for calling any garment natural or organic. GOTS Version 7 sets different organic-content grades: at least 95% for its organic grade and at least 70% for its made-with-organic-materials grade, alongside specific restrictions on additional fibres and the rest of the certification requirements. A fabric percentage by itself does not establish GOTS certification.
Alternatives were still being tested
We also discussed bio-based alternatives to conventional elastane. Vivi said they were still testing them and had questions about how they were made and whether they were better than the material already in use. She did not say they had already replaced the existing stretch fibre.
Ask what the garment is made of
What I appreciated was being able to ask about a component that did not fit neatly into a wholly natural story. Vivi answered with the practical choices behind the fabrics in front of us.
For a purchase, I would use that conversation as a reason to check the full label: the natural fibres, the stretch fibre and their percentages. Then I would check any certification claim separately. It is a clearer way to understand a swimsuit than assuming that natural-looking fabric tells the whole story.