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the MAIWA JOURNAL


CARAVAN BLANKETS
FROM THE INDIAN DESERT


Nights in the desert can be cold. When the sun goes down and the heat of the day leaves the earth, everything goes quiet. The air can be chilly, but nomadic pastoralists keep themselves warm with these robust and dramatic wool blankets.

Caravan blankets are woven from the naturally coloured wools found in Western India's  Kachchh Desert. This local wool is known as "deshi" (country) wool. It is hand-spun by elders of the Rabari community. Rabari are themselves a fabled nomadic group with a formidable presence. Their caravans can still be found on highways of western India.

These blankets are new — made in the traditional way using traditional materials and techniques. Maiwa has commissioned them especially to keep the caravan blanket alive. The weaving is done by the Vankar community who also live in India's Kachchh desert 


SEE THE CARAVAN BLANKETS


A Rabari caravan on the road. Married women wear a black wool headscarf patterned with bandhani resist and embellished with embroidery. Rabari women are exceptional embroiderers with an innate sense of design. 



Rabari men on the road. The young children ride on top of the baggage with the newborn animals. Rabari men carry a traditional shawl woven from light coloured wool worked with black figures.



THE CARAVAN BLANKETS

The three-panel blanket. For when you need to cover your largest bed. This piece is  woven in three panels, stitched together using a decorative blanket stitch. This piece measures approximately 9 feet x 8 feet.  108" x 96" (275 x 244cm).

 

The two-panel blanket. This piece is  woven in two panels, stitched together using a decorative blanket stitch. This piece measures approximately 4.5 feet x 8 feet.  54" x 96" (137 x 244cm). We have two slightly different versions of the two-panel blanket. See both here.



A single panel, this piece is worked in the same deshi wool, in the same  pattern as the caravan blankets, however, it is too small to be considered a blanket. This piece works as a throw on the bed or the couch, or as a large shawl. This one measures approximately 3 feet x 8.5  feet.  36" x 90" (91 x 228 cm).



THE SPINNERS
 

Wool spinning is done by hand by the elders of the Rabari community. They often work in groups of two or three in an open courtyard protected from the sun. Here they can chat and work together. A lifetime spent working with fibres has given these women an incredible dexterity and skill.





THE WEAVERS
 


These caravan blankets are still woven by the Vankar community of Bhujodi. The Vankars are heredity weavers who have followed the same traditions for many generations. In modern times the family have taken their skill in new directions - expanding the range of natural dye use and the diversity  of fibre types.


THE CARAVAN BLANKET
FROM THE INDIAN DESERT


Maiwa's Blankets & Throws are available at Maiwa on Granville Island 
7 days a week between 10am and 7pm
And Online at maiwa.com





Wednesday, October 30, 2019 No comments
Shown:  Handwoven Kimono Coat - Cutch, Liberty Tank - Natural, Prana Skirt

OUR AUTUMN PALETTE



NATURALLY
Crisp air, the colour of leaf and tree
Autumn ocean, pensive pacific blue
Sand and slate, darkening greys


SHOP ONLINE

The excitement of dressing for the season ...

Shown: Studio Jacket - Natural, Shimoga Shirt - Taupe Stripe, Liberty Tank - Natural, Jai Pant - Grey


Shown: Studio Jacket - Grey, Liberty Tank - Black, Jai Pant - Charcoal


Shown: Studio Jacket - Natural, Liberty Tank - Natural, Jai Pant - Grey



There is nothing like layering natural fibres:
linen, silk, cotton, wool ...

Shown: Handwoven Kimono Coat - Indigo Blue, Jai Pant - Indigo



Shown: Handwoven Kimono Coat - Indigo Blue, Handwoven Kimono Coat - Cutch,  Liberty Tank - Natural, Jai pant - Grey

Shown: Handwoven Kimono Coat - Cutch, Handwoven Kimono Coat -  Ivory Tulips,  Handwoven Cotton Hand Stitched Shawl, Deshi Wool Shawl with Pom Poms



Our latest collection brings together hand woven ikat and handspun cotton; buttery linen twills and cloth naturally dyed with cutch and indigo — artisan made clothing.


Everyone wears it their own way ...



Shown: Gaadi Coat - Blockprint Leaf - Maroon, Liberty Tank - Black, Jai Pant - Charcoal


Shown: Gaadi Coat - Indigo, Liberty Tank - Natural, Jai Pant - Indigo


Shown: Gaadi Coat - Grey, Liberty Tank - Natural, Jai Pant - Grey


Shown: Gaadi Coat - Blockprint Leaf - Black, Liberty Tank - Black, Jai Pant - Charcoal




Maiwa clothing is also available at Maiwa on Granville Island 
7 days a week between 10am and 7pm.






Tuesday, October 29, 2019 No comments


MAIWA SCHOOL OF TEXTILES
2020 SPRING WORKSHOPS


ARE NOW ONLINE!


Mark your calendar  – registration opens Monday, December 9th at 10am.
Make sure to read our Tips for a Successful Registration.

We hope to see you there!


2020 SPRING WORKSHOP SCHEDULE




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2019 FALL
FEATURED WORKSHOPS


 MASTER THE SCREEN PRINT
OCTOBER 21-24, 2019

Learning to screen print on cloth is like being given a surface-design superpower. Suddenly the placement of imagery, colour, and pattern is completely within your control—as is the multiple, the working textile artist’s largest asset. This expanded four-day workshop is essential for anyone starting a silkscreen business or for those using the technique as a design element in textile projects. Participants will learn to print on a variety of cloth surfaces, from T-shirts to yardage. Participants will learn to master a range of single-pull printing methods (repeating patterns, rainbow prints, registration, thickened dyes, etc.). Read full description...


REGISTER HERE


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 SAPO TINCTORIA:
SOAPMAKING WITH BOTANICAL COLOURS
MAY 8-12, 2019

Herbalists and apothecaries have practised soapmaking for centuries. The use of natural dyes in the soapmaking process is a logical extension of traditional botanical knowledge. Many of the qualities of natural dyes that make cooking with colour so appealing (the scent of dyes like chamomile, marigold, madder, or indigo) find a new expression when used in soaps. Read full description...


REGISTER HERE


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PORTRAIT IN CLOTH
NOVEMBER 18-19, 2019

Representing the human figure in cloth is at the heart of many folk-art traditions. Evocative, whimsical, or profound, creating a likeness is a creative pathway for exploring ideas of character and self.

Students will form a human figure cut from cloth, lovingly stitched together by hand, stuffed, clothed, and embellished using a variety of materials such as fabric, threads, fabric paints, pens, beads, and buttons. Students will also be provided with a small journal to record thoughts, ideas, sketches, poetry, and prose that relates to the portrait.  Read full description...


REGISTER HERE
Wednesday, October 16, 2019 No comments

ALL THE SUPPLIES YOU NEVER KNEW WE HAD
TO COMPLETE YOUR PROJECTS


SEE OUR COMPLETE ONLINE LISTING (click on SUPPLY STORE)


A SAMPLING OF OUR PRODUCTS
WITH MUCH MORE IN-STORE AND ONLINE!



SEE ALL APRONS




SEE ALL BLOCK PRINT SUPPLIES




SEE ALL JAPANESE TECHNIQUE SUPPLIES




SEE ALL HANDMADE PAPER JOURNALS




SEE ALL OF OUR GENERAL SUPPLIES




SEE ALL MERCHANT & MILLS SUPPLIES




SEE ALL NATURAL DYES




SEE ALL UNDYED YARNS




SEE ALL BLANKS



AND SO MUCH MORE...!




Thursday, October 10, 2019 No comments

Saturday September 28th was the annual Threads Lecture. This year the title was "The Future of Making." Each year the threads lecture addresses the work of the Maiwa Foundation or issues of particular importance to artisans. This year Charllotte Kwon and Tim McLaughlin addressed the changing nature of artisan - designer relationships. The lecture began with an introduction to Anna Maria Garthwaite - a noted textile designer working in East London c. 1740. From here the lecture looked at the break between the fine arts and the decorative arts and the nature of industrial design. Examples of the tension between designer and artisan were discussed with the "Ajrakh Inspired Jacket" from the V&A Fabric of India exhibition providing a pivotal example.

The Evening was introduced by Liberty Erickson; Maiwa staff and host of the Maiwa Podcasts.

Good evening everyone and welcome to the Maiwa School of textiles lecture series.It is with great excitement that I introduce Charllotte Kwon and Tim McLaughlin for tonight’s lecture the Future of Making.

Charllotte is the owner and fearless captain of Maiwa Handprints.She is a writer, a teacher and a traveller, just to name a few things. Charllotte has won numerous awards for her extensive work in the textile arts and her drive to champion artisan communities. I've had the opportunity to be an assistant on the textile tours she leads in India, and to be honest, with this woman as navigator, I would follow her to the ends of the Earth.

Tim is an award winning photographer an author a teacher and so much more.Some of you here may have come to his lecture last week: "Artisan Ink and the New Calligraphers: Handmade Ink and the Return of Pen work" it was truly inspiring. A couple of years ago I took his ink making workshop and I am still inspired to write and create each day.

Independently both Charllotte and Tim are fiercely creative individuals.They represent the new renaissance with a foot (or in their case the flowing end of a shawl) in many different worlds. And when these two creative minds come together and collaborate they are a force to be reckoned with.

Tonight is our final lecture in our fall series. Thus far we have witnessed the traditions of the past and present come together; from the techniques that the 5 artisans visiting from India shared with us to the contemporary weaving of Anna Haywood-Jones.

For some of you, tonight maybe your first lecture, and to you, I say, welcome. For others (and you know who you are) these lectures have become a tradition in and of themselves and you attend the whole series.Either way, this is a moment in time where we gather and connect with this community of amazing people.

Year after year,
Under this very roof,
Worlds collide,
Ideas are shared,
And new inspirations are born.

In this rapidly changing world the cultures and traditions of craft and making are ever evolving.The question of what the future will look like is a topic to be revisited time and time again.Tonight I couldn’t think of two more inspiring people to help guide us into the future. Everyone please welcome Charllotte Kwon and Tim McLaughlin.

Silk design by Anna Maria Garthwaite dated October 23rd, 1747. Collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Weaver's Service Centre innovation for a supplemental weft. India 2018.


Wednesday, October 02, 2019 No comments



WE'VE GOT YOUR TABLE COVERED


CHOOSE YOUR BLOCK PRINT



Maiwa works with four great block printing traditions: Ajrakh, Dabu, Kalimkari and Bagh. All of these traditions use natural dyes on organic cotton to give robust long lasting colour. All of them print with hand-carved wooden blocks. All of them look great on your table.

Give your guests a visual feast before the food even arrives.



Maiwa clothing is available at Maiwa on Granville Island 
7 days a week between 10am and 7pm
And Online at maiwa.com



MEET THE ARTISANS
OUR TABLECLOTHS ARE PRINTED IN COLLABORATION WITH:

AJRAKH BLOCK PRINTERS
DABU BLOCK PRINTERS
KALAMKARI BLOCK PRINTERS
BAGH BLOCK PRINTERS




Wednesday, October 02, 2019 No comments
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      • The Caravan Blanket
      • How to Dress in an Autumn Way
      • The List is Out! – Maiwa School of Textiles Spring...
      • All the Supplies you Never Knew We Had
      • REVIEW: The Future of Making
      • A Visual Feast – Block Printed Table Cloths for Fall
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