I Love Bad: California Cool Hemp Apparel and Home Goods

 I sweat a lot in my sleep. In fact, one time my sheets were so wet from a night sweat episode, I let them dry out all day and they were still wet when I got home that evening.

In hindsight, yeah, I should’ve just washed my sheets but, hashtag college. By now, you’re probably wondering why I’m starting out with a disgusting personal anecdote, so let me get to the point.

My favorite hemp line started under extremely similar circumstances… Eight years ago, Daniel, co-founder of I Love Bad, was experiencing severe night sweats, and after some research realized he was reacting to his polyester blanket. When he and his girlfriend (and other half of I Love Bad) Brittany couldn’t find a reasonably priced organic alternative, they took things into their own hands and had a hemp blanket made. Daniel’s night sweats disappeared overnight thanks to their new blanket; and what started as a DIY solution, was on its way to becoming a complete hemp line.

Brittany and Daniel both possess an easy, chic style — and I Love Bad reflects that. Their line is a curated breath of fresh air, streamlined to just six products featuring men’s and women’s tees, socks, underwear; plus, blankets, a dog bed, and face oil. And it’s all made of hemp. The name I Love Bad comes from Daniel’s “Spiritual Awakening” days back in 2007, and is an acronym for Beyond All Differences, which embodies the essence of unconditional love. As Brittany put it, “It embodies love for not only the good, which is obvious, but as well as love for the ‘bad,’ which we believe exists in all things good as a yin and yang balancing act of nature. Being that hemp has been synonymous with weed, which was considered ‘bad’ for so many years, I thought it was a perfect fit when we started making and selling our Hemp Fleece Blankets.”

THE BAD BLANKIE: THE BLANKET THAT STARTED IT ALL

It’s hard for me to put into words just how much I love the Bad Blankie, but I am a writer after all, so I’ll give it a whirl. First of all, it’s soft as sh—t. It has a silky movement to it; it drapes and embraces and hugs you with a perfect amount of weight. To be honest, it reminds me of butter. And not to sound too “woo woo”, but I’m pretty sure the Bad Blankie possesses magical qualities. And I might be onto something because as Brittany explains, “Most things natural in nature (i.e. hemp, organic cotton, bamboo, silk) harmonize with our natural energy field — and most things unnatural in nature (i.e. acrylic, nylon, polyester, Styrofoam) do the exact opposite.” Basically, hemp’s vibration is completely natural to our own energy flow — so when you curl up in the Bad Blankie, you’re not curling up with any ol’ blanket. Soft and breathable, the Bad Blankie can keep you warmer in winter and cooler in summer — all without the night sweats!

ALL HEMP ERRYTHANG

If you really want to experience the difference between a synthetic fabric and an organic, natural one like hemp, wear some “innovative” Nike socks all day, then switch into the I Love Bad hemp socks. That’s what I did and it was like an embrace from an old friend — but on my foot. It just feels better. As far as looks go, they’re more utilitarian than fashion-forward (although I have no doubt that if Brittany rocked them with cute sandals, we would all soon be copying her).

And if there were ever a piece of clothing that should be breathable and natural, it’s probably underwear. I Love Bad makes men’s boxer briefs and women’s cheeky briefs and they’re just as delightfully comfortable as their socks. In fact, my boyfriend, who has owned the same Hanes briefs for longer than I’m going to share publicly, is absolutely in love with his hemp boxer briefs.

I Love Bad also makes hemp oil, which Brittany uses on her face (read the product description to see how it totally transformed her skin). Each geometric glass jar of 100% organic, cold-pressed hemp oil comes infused with hand-picked crystals like amethyst, citrine, green garnet, orange tourmaline, green apatite, tangerine quartz, and blue apatite. The tiny crystals rattle delicately along the bottom of the jar looking all cool, but they’re also at work bringing about benefits like prosperity and inner calm; stimulating joy, activating passion, and offering harmony, balance, mental clarity. BRB, gonna go bathe in this oil.

But seriously, the attention to detail that Brittany and Daniel put into everything they do does not go unnoticed; their products don’t feel like things, they feel like experiences. It took them two years to create hemp socks — which are woven in North Carolina — up to their standards; they source hemp oil from hemp grown in Canada, but bottle it and infuse it with crystals themselves; their hemp underwear is sewn in Santa Ana, California by a husband and wife duo; and everything is ethically sourced and made in the USA — and mostly by people they know in Southern California.

WHAT’S NEXT

It might sound like it, but it hasn’t been all hemp, all the time for these two love birds. For the last eight years, Daniel and Brittany ran I Love Bad as a side gig; making good money in their respective careers, Brittany as a stylist and Daniel in corporate accounting. But after years of being happily unmarried, saving up for a house, enjoying time with their family, friends and their pug Max, it all started to feel too... comfortable. They came to the conclusion that they were too young to have so many attachments. So, they detached from it all, sold all their belongings and set out for Mexico (with Max), with no return date in mind. Their soul-searching sabbatical lasted six months when Brittany and Daniel decided to move back to California and go all in on I Love Bad.

So, what does being able to devote their full attention to I Love Bad mean? “We’re having the most fun creating right now, so what’s next is to get to a complete line of 12 products that will fit a well-rounded foundation for an organic home and body. Think daily living essentials that are difficult to find made in an organic, sustainable and ethical way.” I Love Bad’s expansion will include more underwear, towels, and sheets and as Brittany put it, “the goal is to be a home and body organic version of Fruit of the Loom.”

Rejoice hemp lovers, there’s more to come from these two. And I can’t wait.

*Written while wrapped up in the Bad Blankie.