Protection
UPF 80. The highest rating of UV Standard 801.
For a child spending summer outdoors, year after year, every percent of UV blocked counts. Our fabric was tested as it is worn: wet, stretched, worn and washed.
In numbers
Results from the IFTH laboratory
Tests carried out in 2018 by IFTH using the UV Standard 801 method, on 5 samples of our UPF 80 fabric: one white and four prints (black and white, blue, colourful flowers, colourful dots). Full technical report available for download below.
UPF measured new, flat and dry: 294 to 362 depending on the sample
lowest UPF measured across all conditions (washed and stretched) — above the 80 threshold
of UV blocked by UPF 80, vs 98% for UPF 50
samples, white and printed: all above UPF 80 in every condition
UPF 50+ or UPF 80? The difference matters.
The UPF (Ultraviolet Protection Factor) measures how much UV a fabric lets through. UPF 50 lets through 1/50th of UV, i.e. 2%. UPF 80 lets through 1/80th, i.e. 1.25%. In short: a UPF 80 garment lets through almost 40% less UV than a UPF 50 — and far less than a regular cotton t-shirt, which can let up to 20% of UV through, and more when wet.
For a child spending 8 hours at the beach, several days a week, several summers in a row, that difference changes everything. That's why we chose UPF 80 for our premium kids' range — not the standard 50+.
UV Standard 801: the fabric tested as it is worn
Most tests measure a fabric new, dry, flat. The UV Standard 801 method also tests the textile as it is worn: stretched, wet, worn and washed. The lowest value sets the rating.
Our UPF 80 fabric was tested in 2018 by the IFTH laboratory (Institut Français du Textile et de l'Habillement), report no. 18-00752. A new test is being prepared.
Transparency
The lab tests in detail
Each test condition reproduces a moment in the life of a garment: the first outing, a swim, a summer of wear, the washes. Here are the values measured on our 5 samples.
| Test condition | UPF measured (5 samples) | UPF 80 threshold |
|---|---|---|
| New — flat — dry | 294 to 362 | ✓ exceeded |
| New — stretched | 171 to 228 | ✓ exceeded |
| New — stretched — wet | 196 to 248 | ✓ exceeded |
| Worn — stretched | 181 to 226 | ✓ exceeded |
| Worn — stretched — wet | 204 to 250 | ✓ exceeded |
| Washed — stretched | 131 to 149 | ✓ exceeded |
| Washed — stretched — wet | 165 to 189 | ✓ exceeded |
| Lowest UPF measured | 130.6 | Rating: UPF 80 |
Medical partnerships
When UV protection becomes vital
UVEA is not a medical brand. But when families dealing with Xeroderma Pigmentosum, giant congenital nevus, vitiligo, post-dermatological treatment, or burn recovery look for a garment that truly protects and find nothing else, they turn to UVEA — without prescription, by their own choice. That demand has shaped our protection level. Visit the page dedicated to medically vulnerable skin.
For these children, the UV protection of the garment isn't a comfort — it's a vital necessity. The fabric forgives no approximation.