On The Glo: Reflective Knitwear for a Good Cause

Photo Courtesy of On The Glo

Winter is coming. While the cold and grey aren’t ideal for your biking commutes or Sunday leisure rides, one great thing to look forward to is bundling up in soft woolly scarves and hats. However, your knit beanie, while warm and cozy, generally won’t do much to keep you visible on dark winter nights. But that’s where On The Glo comes in.

On the Glo is a new project aimed at keeping cyclists, skaters, dog walkers, children, or any other road users  safe and visible under the night sky. Their knitwear is constructed with retro-reflective technology – yarn spun with a special thread that glows under the illumination of the headlights of a car. During daylight hours, it looks just like a regular piece of knitwear, but at night these cozy caps and scarves light up, ensuring the wearer’s visibility to other road users.

So why did we call it a project rather than a brand? On the Glo has an important social element behind its development. All of On The Glo’s products are hand made in the rural Philippines by women looking to support their families in a community threatened by economic displacement. The women employed by the company traditionally work as farmers, tilling rice paddies in the Ifugao area. Though their rice terraces have been recognized by Unesco as a world Heritage site, the organic black rice they produce using traditional methods can no longer compete with large rice producers. In order to remain on their land, they need to make an additional income.

The women have started knitting when they are not out in the rice paddies working. The income they generate through their knitting guarantees their families the necessities they need and enables their community to remain on their land. On the Glo has launched a Thunderclap campaign to support their work.

On The Glo was created by a female bike mechanic who understands the need to be safe on the roads, without sacrificing style. The wool caps and snoods are knitted with fashionable biking clothes in mind – cycling jeans and a woolly hat anyone? The company is based out of the UK, but their products will be available worldwide beginning on October 23rd.