7 Eco-Friendly Umbrellas To Weather The Sustainable Storm
‘When the sun shines, we’ll shine together’—and when it doesn’t, you can stand under our eco-friendly umbrella (ella ella).
The Ancient Egyptians made history’s first umbrellas to shield against the sun with simple materials like paper or palm fronds. But today’s options are a little more complicated.
Modern umbrellas often use nylon or polyester, synthetic fabrics that provide the perfect waterproofing.
The bad news?
They’re derived from plastic, meaning all the wind-swept disposable umbrellas you’ve thrown away will take over a century to break down.
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The Top Sustainable & Ethical Umbrella Brands For Rain Or Shine
Available in a range of vibrant colors and shades, Haasch creates plastic-free umbrellas from cotton, hemp, bamboo, and wood materials.
For a 100% handcrafted and natural eco-friendly umbrella, MiaSombrilla ensures a rainy day doesn’t rain on our planet’s parade.
To read more about how we threw shade to uncover these brands, make them like Mary Poppins and float to the end of the article.
The Full List Of Sustainable Umbrella Brands
- Haasch | Visit Store
- MiaSombrilla | Visit Store
- Princezices | Visit Store
- Jollybrolly | Visit Store
- London Undercover | Visit Store
- Dri Umbrellas | Visit Store
- Second Hand Recycled Umbrellas | Visit Store
1. Haasch
About Haasch
Price Range: $98–$120
Based in Brisbane, Australia, Haasch designs with the environment in mind, opting for sustainable materials and fair trade practices.
Their Supabrella is a meeting of form and function. Imagine a classic umbrella silhouette paired with practicality and natural materials.
Customization is what makes this sustainable umbrella brand unique.
Depending on your preference, you can choose one of three sizes and a rainbow of colors—from classic black to sunny yellow.
Haasch’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
The plastic-free umbrella range features cotton, hemp, bamboo, and wood.
Supply chain & labor practices:
Haasch’s umbrellas are handmade, with each component carefully constructed by a different team of skilled artisans in Thailand.
The cotton fabric comes from a Bangkok factory before being treated for waterproofing.
Haasch works with suppliers that practice Fair Trade principles, ensuring fair wages, safe working conditions, gender equality, and environmental awareness.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Because everything is handcrafted in Thailand, HaashDesign has a small supply chain and limits its carbon footprint.
As an Etsy seller, shipping is automatically carbon offset.
Community & charitable giving:
Haasch donates 10% of profits from pink Supabrellas to the National Breast Care Foundation to support breast cancer patients, survivors, and research.
2. MiaSombrilla
About MiaSombrilla
Price Range: $30–$114
A MiaSombrilla umbrella is more than a simple accessory. It’s a handcrafted labor of love.
These sustainable, ethical umbrellas will undoubtedly turn heads at any outdoor wedding party, festival, or vacation.
The Waterproof Cotton Canvas Parasols was founded to fight Arizona’s intense climate. They’re lightweight, easy to carry, and provide a shaded escape from surprise showers and sunshine.
MiaSombrilla’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
Each MiaSombrilla parasol is made with biodegradable materials: cotton canvas, hemp, and bamboo.
Supply chain & labor practices:
After being crafted by artisans in Thailand, the parasols are hand-painted in Tubac, Arizona, in an array of charming colors and patterns.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Etsy provides carbon neutral shipping and a renewable energy powered website.
3. Princezices
About Princezices
Price Range: $113
Princezices is a purveyor of one-of-a-kind Portuguese gifts—think: handbags, scarves, small ceramics, and cork umbrellas.
Each product is carefully handmade by Taina, the shop’s owner.
The Cork Made Umbrella offers an eco-friendly alternative to plastic umbrellas, featuring a chic and timeless profile that will keep you feeling cool and dry come rain or shine.
Princezices’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
Primarily made with cork fabric, Princezices’s umbrellas also feature a wooden handle and metal frame.
In addition to being renewable and biodegradable, cork is water-resistant.
Supply chain & labor practices:
The materials are locally sourced in Viana do Castelo, a historic city in northern Portugal.
Each eco-friendly umbrella is also crafted in Portugal by local artisans.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Harvested cork trees consume three to five times more carbon dioxide than their unharvested counterparts.
Cork forests are also some of the most biodiverse ecosystems in the world, housing hundreds of plant and animal species, including endangered ones.
Princezices offers free international shipping from Portugal–carbon offset through Etsy, of course.
4. Jollybrolly
About Jollybrolly
Price Range: £16–£131
Among those with a need for a sustainable umbrella, UK residents top the list, living in one of the wettest areas in the world.
With a reputation for high-quality yet eco-friendly dome umbrellas, UK-based Jollybrolly is a one-stop shop for fashion, function, and fair prices.
Their signature ECO Umbrella is sleek and minimal, omitting logos and loud patterns so as not to steal attention from the main event: you.
Jollybrolly’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
The pole, handle, and tips are made from bamboo, and the umbrella exterior is made from 100% recycled PET plastic.
Complete with a fiberglass frame, Jollybrolly’s “windproof” recycled umbrellas are made to withstand all the elements nature might throw your way.
They’re also almost entirely recyclable.
Supply chain & labor practices:
Jollybrolly’s offices are based out of Bournemouth, but their warehouse is located just a few miles east in Christchurch.
We’ll be checking in on where the products are actually manufactured.
5. London Undercover
About London Undercover
Price Range: £32–£283
Another brand designed to keep gray England skies from putting a damper on your day, London Undercover handcrafts designer umbrellas, maintaining an eye for detail and exceptional materials.
London Undercover’s range of Foldable Telescopic Umbrellas features recycled PET fabric canopies.
Plus, you can purchase eco-friendly umbrella bags, like the City Tote, made from bluesign® materials.
London Undercover’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
London Undercover utilizes a diverse range of eco-friendly umbrella materials, including 100% recycled PET, polyester, cotton, recycled plastic, steel, and hardwoods.
Supply chain & labor practices:
London Undercover handcrafts each umbrella in the United Kingdom.
They don’t give much information about their supply chain or labor practices, so we’ll be checking in.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
London Undercover has incorporated sustainable and recycled umbrella material for over a decade, like biodegradable whangee handles and recycled plastic canopies.
6. Dri Umbrellas
About Dri Umbrellas
Price Range: $60
Need an eco-friendly beach umbrella?
How about one made from 100% recycled ocean-bound plastic?
Dri Umbrellas has you and marine life covered.
Their Eco-Friendly Dri Umbrella doesn’t just keep you dry; it prevents plastic waste from polluting our oceans.
Dri Umbrellas’ Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
Dri crafts recycled plastic umbrellas from 100% OceanCycle-certified ocean and ocean-bound plastic. Each unit uses around eight plastic bottles, with a stainless steel shaft and aluminum top.
The handles are crafted from solid, regenerative bamboo.
Supply chain & labor practices:
Dri collects its sustainable umbrella alternatives from coastlines in Thailand, between Bangkok and Rayong.
Each one is manufactured in China, where Dri ensures a fair wage and safe working environments.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Dri Umbrella ships each sustainable beach umbrella in recyclable packaging made from recycled materials.
They also recognize their supply chain needs improvement and are actively looking for solutions to reduce their carbon footprint.
7. Second Hand Recycled Umbrellas
Besides fixing your current one, buying a used umbrella when possible is always more sustainable than buying a new one.
Start by checking your local thrift store or charity shop first.
Otherwise, online second hand stores are right as rain when it comes to finding brand names or designer brollies at a steal.
Don’t underestimate eBay or Facebook Marketplace, either.
At any time, these platforms provide access to rare umbrellas and vintage parasols that will help you stand out from the crowd.
Who else do you know that’s sporting an authentic Fendi umbrella circa 1970s? Or is an original Victorian-era parasol still in excellent condition?
For one-of-a-kind finds, we recommend browsing eBay’s listings for vintage umbrellas and parasols.
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How We Found The Most Eco-Friendly Umbrellas
How did we decide which eco-friendly parasols and umbrellas to cover in this article?
We applied our sustainable fashion to find the most environmentally friendly shade.
Materials:
First, what are umbrellas made out of?
Most options are made out of harmful plastic. That’s why we prioritized materials with a minimal environmental impact, both during production and at the product’s end of life.
If we’re talking natural materials, bamboo, organic cotton, hemp, cork and wood made for some of the best eco-friendly alternatives to plastic umbrellas.
A little plastic is okay in your parasol, as long as it’s a recycled type of plastic. You’ll typically find recycled polyester (or rPET) used.
- Certifications: bluesign®, OceanCycle
Supply chain & labor practices:
Companies should show consideration for human rights at all stages of production.
In particular, workers should be treated well and paid fair wages.
For larger companies especially, we look for third-party certifications to provide reassurance that companies are walking the talk and not just greenwashing.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Companies should actively make choices that reduce their carbon footprint, offer recycling programs for non-compostable products, support carbon offset programs, and use low-waste packaging.
Community & charitable giving:
Brands and companies that are involved in a charitable endeavor or actively cultivating a thoughtful and eco-conscious community of consumers always provide the greatest shade.
Final Thoughts On Natural Or Recycled Umbrellas
Let’s be honest: umbrellas are an afterthought. They only really shine when it rains. Even then, we tend to view them as lackluster necessities.
But if you think of your sustainable umbrella as an essential accessory in your eco-conscious collection, you can look good and feel good, stay cool, or stay dry.
Just a reminder: using what you have, borrowing, thrifting, or buying secondhand is the most sustainable shade.
Have a friend who always forgets their umbrella?
Share this list with them to weather the elements more responsibly.