US clothing brand Pangaia has released a puffer coat, whose filling is made with flowers in a bid to offer a cruelty-free alternative to duck or goose down.
The stuffing, called Flower Down, was created over 10 years of research and development and combines wildflowers with an aerogel and a biopolymer to create a durable thermal insulation material.
This is contained in a quilted shell made from recycled polyester, which is rendered in classic black, white or navy.

Once shredded, the flowers are combined with the biopolymer, which is made from vegetable waste, as well as with a patented aerogel system ? a sort of porous solid foam.
"This helps the microstructure of the flower-down jacket to be water repellant and to increase thermal insulation. The aerogel we use is non-toxic and ultra-light," Parkes told Dezeen.
Pangaia is a direct-to-consumer material science company, which has previously created a collection of basics including T-shirts, sweatpants and hoodies made with seaweed fibre and botanical dyes derived from food waste.

"The future of creating a sustainable industry involves using existing natural materials, like agricultural waste, that are augmented by scientific and technology processes," said Parkes.
"We want to bring an entirely new material library into commercial reality."
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