Itajime Matka Peace Silk Box Shirt | latitude

• SM
  • Length 26”
  • Chest & hip 56” round
  • Sleeve length 10" 
  • Sleeve opening 17” round
• ML
  • Length 27”
  • Chest & hip 58” round
  • Sleeve length 10"
  • Sleeve opening 19” round

+/- a tolerance inherent to hand made clothing

• Fabric: 100% mulberry peace silk
• Handfeel: Mid weight, becoming deliciously soft with wear
• Care: Gentle & quick hand wash in mild detergent. Don't soak as some colours may run. Drip dry in the shade. Gentle steam iron.
• Origin: Gujarat, India

 

 

Textile Story

 

Conventional silk is produced through boiling silk worms in their cocoons, killing some 6,000 worms to produce 1 kg (2 pounds) of silk. Peace silk, also known as non-violent silk, is a sustainable and ethical approach to silk production which does not involve harming or killing the silk worm. Matka silk is a mulberry peace silk.

 

Our Itajime Collection has been hand-crafted in the workshop of two of India's foremost Master Craftsmen; Jabbar and Abdullah Khatri in Bhuj, Gujarat.

 

Shibori is a 1300 year old tie and dye technique developed in Japan involving the folding and clamping or otherwise securing of fabric prior to dyeing. Itajime is one technique of shibori which uses pieces of wood clamped together around sections of folded fabric to resist the dye in particular shapes.

 

Each three meter section of fabric is individually folded, clamped, tied and dyed; and this repeated several times to get layers of colours. It's a time consuming and exacting technique with bold geometric results. 

 

Any variations or irregularities are to be celebrated. They are part of the design & inherent to the handcrafted production process, making this item beautifully unique.