Sun Safety Alliance

From Sun Safety Alliance Photos

1. Describe your where you grew up.
I grew up in Aarberg, Switzerland close to the Swiss French boarder in a small historic town. My parents owned a business. The house we grew up in had a big backyard with a vegetable garden. I am the oldest of three, most close to my sister. My mother began making clothing for us children and grew to be professional tailor, creating custom clothing for her clients. Our family speaks Swiss then learned German and French in the first and second grade. English is my fourth language!


2. Where did you meet your husband?
We grew up in the same town, followed each other around since Kindergarten. My husband’s parents owned a local fashion retail store. We both eventually graduated from our own colleges and met again per coincidence in London, where we studied. We hosted a couple of parties together. No dating yet… no interest… yet! A few years later, a trade show in Zurich Switzerland united us once again. It was there, that we fell in love and have been together, (twenty years), ever since.


3. Why the name AYANA?
The name AYANA was inspired by the "Amaranth" flower, a bloom in Greek mythology that never fades. Reflecting this longevity, AYANA's high quality fashionable UV-Protective apparel personifies the everlasting femininity, beauty and style of today's modern woman. I wanted a short, skin related name, (longevity or never fading), that was easy to pronounce in any language… we also have the advantage of always being listed first since it starts with an “A”!


4. Why sun safe clothing?
When we moved to California six years ago, Frank and I loved the sunny climate. But soon I discovered that my skin was changing. It developed age spots, wrinkles, and a loss of firmness. I have always lived a healthy lifestyle, and since my skin is the most important organ, I like to treat it as my most expensive garment. I learned that it is from permanent exposure to the UV-Rays, even on a simple drive out to Los Angeles. My first reaction was to increase the amount of sunscreen I applied daily. Then I began my search for a simpler alternative. I discovered UV-protective clothing, yet was disappointed in its lack of style. So while visiting Australia, I began business research on UV protective clothing because of the country’s fantastic conceptual vision of sun safety… It was after that trip that I was ready to start my venture!

From Sun Safety Alliance Photos

5. How did AYANA team up with the Sun Safety Alliance?
I was looking to team up with a skin cancer awareness organization and contacted the Sun Safety Alliance. After a few great brainstorming sessions, we decided to begin our collaboration.


6. What’s your inspiration for the SSA line’s logo?
We wanted to create a logo that works for men and women; that’s fun and encourages becoming aware of the sun without being afraid of it. I worked with our graphic designer and created a combination of the sun and a cancer cell, that’s right a cancer cell! We all have them in our “system”.

7. What is your vision for AYANA Apparel in the near future
To offer sustainable, fashionable clothing for everyday wear with sun protection for women and children

In an effort to involve fans in the Andrea's involvement with the Sun Safety Alliance's new fashion forward UV protective clothing line by AYANA apparel, the entire photo shoot will be tweeted.

Fans can follow @Sun_Safety on twitter to receive updates regarding the photo shoots, editorials, press releases, and Sun Safety news.

Fans are also encouraged to search #SSA2009 to become actively involved in the launch and development of the new clothing line.



Andrea Bowen herself also tweets @AndieBo. She recently tweeted about her adventures on Capitol Hill while working to gain support for improved school lunches through the Child Nutrition Act.

@Andiebo: Just met with Aaron Rosenthal and Joel Reithmiller at Rep Hill's office to
co-sponsor HR. 1324. #foodinc #onthehill

Join the conversation, we look forward to meeting you on twitter!

“Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the U.S. More than one million cases of skin cancers are diagnosed each year, and one person dies from it every hour. As someone with fair skin, how could I not get involved in trying to prevent something so preventable?”

Kathryn Morris is the spokesperson for the new SSA line by Ayana apparel. She will be photographed by Larsen and Talbert Wednesday, June 8th, 2009. Larsen and Talbert have photographed stars for nationally known clients such as ABC Disney, InStyle, Self, Good Housekeeping, Time, Readers Digest, Esquire, Marie Claire, and many others.

About Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) Testing

Over-exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation (UV radiation) can cause sunburn, skin damage and an increased risk of developing skin cancer. Clothing provides one of the most convenient forms of protection against UVR but not all garments offer sufficient sun protection. All fabrics have some ability to block UVR and laboratory testing is performed to determine how effective different fabrics are. The ARPANSA UV laboratory performs Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) testing on fabrics and other materials.

The UPF rating indicates how effective a fabric is at blocking out solar ultraviolet radiation. This testing is performed according to Australian/New Zealand standard AS/NZS4399. UPF ratings range from 15 to 50 with higher ratings indicating more effective blocking and therefore better protection for the wearer of a garment made from the fabric. Fabrics that test higher than UPF 50 are rated as UPF 50+.

ARPANSA (formerly the Australian Radiation Laboratory) has performed these measurements on fabrics since the early 1990's. Testing methods developed here were adopted by the Australian Standard; Sun protective clothing - Evaluation and classification AS/NZS4399: 1996. This standard was released in July 1996 to introduce a standardised UPF testing method and it also specifies appropriate wording to be placed on labels of clothing claiming to offer sun protection. Copies of this standard are available from
Standards Australia.

UPF testing involves exposing a fabric to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) and measuring how much is transmitted through the sample. Different wavelengths of radiation in the UVR spectrum have different effects on human skin and this is taken into consideration when calculating the UPF rating.

Factors that contribute to the UPF rating of a fabric are:

• Composition of the yarns (cotton, polyester, etc)
• Tightness of the weave or knit (tighter improves the rating)
• Colour (darker colours are generally better)
• Stretch (more stretch lowers the rating)
• Moisture (many fabrics have lower ratings when wet)
• Condition (worn and faded garments may have reduced ratings)
• Finishing (some fabrics are treated with UV absorbing chemicals)

NATA Accredited Laboratory

Visit AyanaApparel.com to view the new clothing line.

Use promo code SSA2009.

Follow @Sun_Safety #SSA2009 for up-to-the minute updates!