Nisha Arora, a textile revivalist and designer, in her quest to conserve the tradition of handwoven textiles, works towards keeping various motifs alive by constantly learning about and documenting new patterns. In her latest collection, she has documented the ‘Bamboo’ motif, because she recognises it as another undocumented pattern in the history of Indian textiles.
She should know, for she’s been doing this for 21 years now. At her brand, Ishaavi, she sources organic materials from different weaving communities to produce responsible fashion. These include 100 counts cotton, muslin and handspun yarn and khadi from parts of Hyderabad and Maheshwar. These are mixed with old techniques of smocking, azo-vat free (natural) dyeing and jaamdaani weavers from Kolkata.
Upcycling is another focus area for Ishaavi where it uses dead stock or gently-used fabric to create new garments and products, resulting in reduced textile waste. This way, it ends up recycling as much as 85 percent textile waste that would have ended up in landfills.
To carry the sustainability focus further, the brand packs and ships all its handcrafted garments in plastic-free packaging. It processes fabric scraps, cuttings, headers, mock-ups, overstock bolts, production remnants and any other unwanted excess fabric for re-use and to create bags, which it uses to pack and shop its products.
Available at www.instagram.com/ishaaviofficial.