Amazing Textures by Designer Samant Chauhan

Watch on YouTube - samant chauhan

The light fabric from a small village in India all set to dress up into a lovely evening gown for a runway show in Paris. The textures are to die for! Samant Chauhan proves it yet again, he has no parallel in India for chic Ethical Fashion.

Padmaja Krishnan, India's hidden secret now in Melbourne

Every material we see is usually what our memory recalls it as. However, when we add imagination to this memory there lies a possibility of a transformation, the possibility that the same materials be redefined and given an alternative life, form and meaning .

A piece of fabric lying on the floor..is it scrap to be discarded or could it be part of a beautiful textile yet to be created.

2 sleeves with cuffs, a collar and a placket..is that a skirt? a shirt? or could it be flipped over as a bag? Its all of that and more, depending on your imagination.

Born in Kolkata, India in 1976, Padmaja Krishnan studied commerce at Kolkata University and fashion design at India’s National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi. Today, she states three ambitions:

firstly, to observe and reflect in her designs the relationship between human behaviour and clothing;

secondly, to integrate the work of traditionally skilled artisans with modern design practice; thirdly, tocombine sustainability and social responsibility with humour and delight.

The first objective was clear from the outset: her graduating menswear collection from NIFT was a comment on how cultural and gender roles had changed since the industrial revolution. The second and third principles are widely evident in a portfolio of consultancy, research and training assignments to government and privately-funded conservation initiatives. These range from the promotion of the rare indigenous silk weaving and textile techniques of Meghalaya, Assam and Nepal, to workshops with traditional embroiderers and palm-leaf weavers.

Krishnan set up her company Transit Design, in 2005. Transit Studio is a small-scale fashion and textile “laboratory” developing a line of “non-conformative, quirky and peaceful” clothing for men and women, as well as a collection of curious and finely detailed handcrafted products in cotton, silk, leather and other

natural materials.

We particularly loved Padmaja's art- Handcrafted laptops- See it to believe it- http://transitdesign.in/blog/?p=210

Watch out for Krishnan's select quilts and garments at So Ethic, Melbourne- SOON!

mail@soethic.net

So Ethic signs an MoU with Ahimsa™ silk.

So Ethic is happy to announce it's Exclusive distribution right for the import and distribution of Ahimsa ™ Silks in the Australian Territory.

Patent

This silk is silk made by a PATENTED process without killing silk worms. In the year 2002, the Indian government granted this unique patent to Mr Kusuma Rajaiah. Do not be fooled into buying AHIMSA from anywhere else because this is a patented mulberry silk produced only in one place in the world. Patent for eco-friendly manufacturing of mulberry silkworm yarn has been granted to Kusuma Rajaiah by the controller of Patents, Designs, Trademarks and Geographical Indications for 20 Years.

• Do you know that silk yarn is produced from silk worms?
• Do you know that silk worms are being killed mercilessly to get the silk yarn/filament?
• Do you know that 15 silk worms are being killed to get 1 gram of silk, 1500 silk worms are being killed to get one meter of woven silk (cloth)?
• Do you know that a conventional silk consumer is indirectly causing cruel killing of Millions of innocent silk worms ?

Animal rights

As the process of harvesting the silk from the cocoon kills the larvae, sericulture has been criticized in the early 21st century by animal rights activists, especially since artificial silks are available.

Mohandas Gandhi was also critical of silk production based on the Ahimsa philosophy "not to hurt any living thing." This led to Gandhi's promotion of cotton spinning machines, an example of which can be seen at the Gandhi Institute. He also promoted Ahimsa silk, wild silk made from the cocoons of wild and semi-wild silk moths.

Ahimsa silk is promoted in parts of Southern India for those who prefer not to wear silk produced by killing silkworms.

The guy who did it all:

Kusuma Rajaiah from India conducted research in the field and invented the technique of getting silk yarn from cocoons without killing the silk worms, for the first time in the World in the year 1991. After prolonged research the Ahimsa silk is made marketable in the year 2001.
In our production process child and forced labor are not engaged and there is no discrimination on the basis of sex.

The Hindi word "ahimsa" means Non-violence. It is used to describe this innovation because the fabric is manufactured in a process where silkworms are not killed. For this reason, the product is also known as peace silk. Ahimsa silk is extracted after the silkworm has completed metamorphosis and emerged from the cocoon. Considering the increased awareness of animal protectionism around the world.

Kusuma Rajaiah, a senior technical assistant with a government organization in India, is tasked with the responsibility of developing ahimsa silk into a viable commercial product.
There are many types of silkworms, but Bombyx mori is mainly used for commercial cultivation. The silkworms are placed in bamboo baskets and fed mulberry leaves. As they consume the leaves, the insects exude viscous fluids through head glands. These substances are fibroin (raw silk) and sericin (bonding gum). The substances harden upon contact with air, forming the basic silk filament, which is a combination of two fibers held together by the gum. The silkworm oozes out the fibroin continuously for about 1,000 yards, forming an oval nest or cocoon. But as the worm is still alive inside the cocoon, this poses a problem for devotees who respect all living things big and small.

In the production of regular silk, the cocoons are immersed in boiling water to kill the worms and spool the silk yarn. With Ahimsa silk, however, cocoons are left alone for seven to 10 days. Once the worms mature, they are allowed to pierce the cocoons and fly away as moths. Only then does the manufacture of peace silk begin. Each cocoon is checked individually to ensure that the moth has escaped before the silk thread is spun.
Spinning takes around two months and weaving another month. In other words, shipments can be ready three months after the moths escape. We can produce up to 2,000 meters per month.

Ahimsa silk is promoted as having the popular properties of regular silk. Even though it is slightly less lustrous, it is even softer to the touch. Currently, it remains a niche product due to its higher price range.

"While normal silk fabric of the 80 gsm varies in price with that ahimsa of the same quality, people are becoming more environmentally aware and compassionate to animals.

Though Ahimsa silk may not replace regular silk, we are confident it will be adopted by those who are concerned about the flora and fauna" says the humble Mr Rajaiah.

We at So Ethic are pleased to be the exclusive importer-distributor for this finest-quality cruelty-free Mulberry silk fabric. For those of you who would like to source this beautiful and thoughtful fabric in any quantity, feel free to get in touch with us at SO Ethic.

mail@soethic.net