Discovering Textiles from across the world

 One of the most widely accepted and strictly enforced is REACH. Regulating the use of chemicals in the process of manufacture, this certification from Europe has had far reaching ramification with manufacturers / importers & exporters to EU rushing to be REACH compliant. REACH is the regulation by the European Community on chemicals and their safe use. It looks at the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemical substances. REACH is made up of the first letters of each of the above in the definition. It came into existence as a law in June 2007. The reason for its enforcement was the wide prevalence of using chemicals in the growing / manufacturing processes which had harmful side effects. A large amount of chemicals was being used, with little or no information on its effects or what it was. This was a process of gathering the information to provide greater safety, responsibility in its handling. Another problem was that the policy on the use of chem...

World over, there are a number of certifications available. What is pertinent, is to choose that which fits the products of the business. To be precise, the certification which adds value to the products and is a step forward in the process of brand creation. Since the process of obtaining the certification is long drawn out requiring considerable paper work and internal controls, it is better to go in for that which suits the product. And at the same time is valued by the customer. Many of the certification are tilted towards the broad based concepts of eco-friendly, fair trade or ethical business practices. In this piece we look at another three such practices which are gaining in popularity. Many of these certificates are de rigor in the Western world and developed countries. With India aiming to reach the same levels and a section of the population slowly getting used to similar standards as abroad, it will not be long before these are accepted practices in India and customers actu...

The word Malai brings to mind, the creamy part of milk. It is eaten with gusto and is considered a delicacy in some parts of the country. So what does the same word Malai have to do with vegan leather, you wonder. Why is it called so? The reason becomes apparent when you discover that it is actually a kind of malai like formation which forms the base of the vegan leather…yes and it is edible though not tried!!! Innovations in textiles is the buzzword today. The thrust of all research to come out with eco friendly textiles which impact the environment little. The objective to recycle, reduce and reuse. There have been several interesting innovations, one that has garnered a lot of attention in the recent past is vegan leather made from coconut water with a very interesting brand name – Malai and the company called Malai Design and Material Pvt. Ltd. or Malai biomaterials.   The winner of the Lakme Circular Design Challenge award. The product and the journey of the founders is...

Working on restoring a carpet - rafoogar  from Najibabad  I met the craftsmen or rafoogars at an exhibition organised in Delhi to display the work of the craftsmen by Priya Ravish Mehra. She of course was not well and hospitalised and I was told supervised most of the work via skype or video calls from her hospital bed. She was suffering from cancer and breathed her last in May 2018. What remains there is her remarkable work with the rafoogars of Najibabad for whom she created a platform to meet artists, connoisseurs, art collectors, historians…to whom their work was remarkable and valuable. How else can one describe dexterous hands which can repair a 200 year old Pashmina shawl or an equally priceless carpet. Priya’s tryst with them began when she remembered how these darners would come to her grandfather’s house at Najibabad and work on old textiles to mend, a tear or a hole so well that one could rarely know where the tear was. Priya Ravish Mehra, a textile historian, reviv...

The Rafoogar or darner, darning the jute  cross stitch piece Rafoogars – the humble darners. Once a part of every market, their numbers are dwindling. They would sit and ply their trade, darning and mending a tear here or even garments which were literally in tatters. They would do it slowly, steadily and voila, when returned one would barely see the tear. Better still one would have to look for the tear. This was usually done to repair winter garments especially expensive shawls, sweaters, jackets. What stands out is the skill level of the rafoogars who simply pick up nuances of a new fabric and can work on it and repair it. It looks almost new. . So from silk, chiffon, georgettes, Dakha Muslin, fine cotton to even newer fabrics like lycra, tencel and more. There are rafoogars who have picked up their skill from nearly everywhere. Each locality has its own special rafoogars. The bylanes of Chandni Chowk have some very well known and famous ones. Rafoogars can be called a jack of...

  The Handloom Mark again was introduced by the Government of India to promote handwoven from India. The mark clearly reiterates that the product is Handwoven in India. The objective was to provide assurance that the product is genuinely handwoven and there is nothing fake about it. It helps market the product in India and abroad. It also ensures higher price realization. There are two marks one used in the domestic market and the other for international market. The quality assurance is maintained by periodic audits, random verification, self certification and strict penalties if the norms are not adhered to or are misused. The mark has been pretty successful in the Domestic and International markets. (For more information – www.hlm.gov.in)