Nettle Cordage

A new product that we are delighted to add to our store is this 100% Giant Himalayan Nettle handspun cordage. It is produced in the remote villages of Nepal where the nettle grows in abundance. The villagers harvest, boil, clean and spin the fibres and sell the hanks to a supplier who will bring them into the capital city. The suppliers usually sell this type of cordage on to mat weavers.

We buy this strong nettle cordage by the KG, but intend to retail it in 25m lengths (pictured above). It is perfect for heavy duty use in the garden or for tent and yurt construction. A close up of the cordage shows the twisting of thousands of fibres (pictured below). Nettle is a much softer fibre than hemp making this cordage soft, flexible and very strong.

Bad news for our production period is the increase of load-shedding. Load shedding is the scheduled cutting off of electricity. It is a symptom of electricity production not meeting the demand and until recently the power was out for 12 hours a day.

From Monday 7th February, load shedding increased to 14 hours a day. This lack of a constant electrical supply is having a negative effect on many business, especially small business where the use of a generator is not possible due to either noise pollution or the increasing expense and sometimes shortage of fuel. The government made a promise to the people of Nepal at the beginning of the year that 2011's load shedding will not exceed 16 hours!

The police and army presence throughout the city is the same as usual, but the city atmosphere feels as though there is a slightly more stable and secure feeling than last year's political chaos. A new Prime Minister has been elected and appears to appreciate some support from the Moaists. Being Nepal, this is all open to change!! For most workers, life goes on amid the price increase of basic daily commodities and load shedding becomes just another routine.

Natural fibres, Natural dyes and Original designs http://www.sorazora.com/

DYEING WITH MAHARANGI

I want to use today's blog to introduce a dyestuff that we are including in this year's collection. Maharangi (Nepalese name) is mainly harvested from the wild for its use in herbal medicine, but we are more interested in the colour it yields. Maharanga Emodi (accepted name in international pharmacology) affords a dye from the root which has been used for centuries for colouring wool & silk. As a medicine, both the roots and flower are used.

The plants are distributed in the alpine Himalayas of Nepal from 3000m to 3900m, it is also found from Garhwal to Bhutan at altitudes of 3500m to 4000m.

Above is a photo of the raw material in root form and also in powder. It requires powdering before boiling and steeping as this helps extract the maximum of colour.

The photo below shows the colour on alum mordanted wool, silk and felt.

Although the colour is beautifully subtle, it was not as we had expected and can obtain very similar colours from other less expensive dyestuffs. It is a dye that we will include for wool and felt, but not silk, hemp or cotton.

Padamchal (Himalayan Rhubarb) is one of our favourite dyes for the strong mustard yellow it produces. The photo below shows an over-dye experiment on silk. The top shawl has been dyed with Padamchal. The middle shawl has been dyed with Maharangi and then over-dyed with Padamchal. The bottom shawl has been dyed with only Maharangi.

Natural fibres, Natural dyes and Original designs http://www.sorazora.com/

Yarn To Fabric

Probably the lengthiest part of production has to be the fabric. Our fabric is all handloomed using a hemp and cotton blend. The photo below shows one of the handlooms that we are using. Depending on the weave and thickness of yarn, a loom like this can produce around 12 metres of fabric a day.

This fabric has been yarn dyed prior to weaving. This will result in a more even colour over many metres of fabric. In some cases the yarn is too delicate to dye and better to loom and dye the fabric after, in this situation it is only possible to dye 10 metre segments at a time. (The risk with this approach is that each 10 metre strip could yield varying tones!) The photo below is a closer look at the hemp cotton fabric on the loom. It has been yarn dyed using pomegranate.

For some items, we have to "piece-dye" which means dyeing the product after completion. This is the case for naturally dyeing silk shawls, wool yarn and felt. The final photo below shows a sample of these undyed products.

Right : TT Wool (TT = Thick and Thin)

Top : Hemp/Cotton Fabric

Centre : Felt Balls

Background : Raw Silk Shawls

Natural fibres, Natural dyes and Original designs http://www.sorazora.com/

PRODUCTION PROGRESS

Two weeks into our three month production period and we are slowly starting to bring materials together. Good quality hempwool blends have been hard to find this year (mostly due to the sharp increase in wool prices), but we are now blending the yarn ourselves to make sure what we sell is pure Himalayan hemp and pure New Zealand wool. The picture below shows (from left to right) Wild Nepalese Hemp raw material, Pure New Zealand Wool and finally the blended hempwool yarn. Our blend is a straight 50/50 mix.

The supply of Himalayan hemp is quite regular and can easily be found since rug and carpet manufacturers have switched from using hemp to wild Himalayan Giant Nettle. The large quantities that these manufacturers require has reduced the levels of nettle fabric in the marketplace and also pushed up prices. (current prices around 25% higher than the same time last year!)

Below is a photo of Wild Himalayan Hemp that has been harvested, retted and handspun in the remote parts of Nepal and collected from the villages by our supplier.

During the week we plan to visit the carding facility and see our hemp and wool blend being created. Naturally we will report our findings in the very near future.

Natural fibres, Natural dyes and Original designs http://www.sorazora.com/

2011 COLLECTION & PRODUCTION PERIOD

We regret to announce that we will be unable to process any orders from 14th January until 14th April. We apologise for any inconvenience and appreciate your understanding.

It is that time of year again when we will be heading to the relative warmth of the Kathmandu valley to source all our materials and see through the production of our designs.

We are excited about our forthcoming collection and are sure that there is something for everyone. We never like to simply repeat our designs and have made some nice alterations to a few garments that were popular in 2010. On the whole, this will be a new collection with great use of naturally dyed natural fibres. You can be sure to see the use of Nettle, Hemp, Cotton, Wool, Silk and several blends.

We look forward to resuming business as usual from 15th April and also look forward to sending out our next newsletter from Nepal. Please do keep checking our blog as I will be uploading our progress on 2011's collection and any events in Nepal that relate to our work.

We would like to wish everyone a very happy and prosperous new year!

Natural fibres, Natural dyes and Original designs http://www.sorazora.com/

A Traditional English Woodturner

Today's blog entry is an opportunity for me to introduce you to some beautiful household items crafted in South Devon from British trees.

Mark Weston-Lewis took over Woodturners Cottage in 2006 and currently produces in excess of 1000 handcrafted woodturnings each year in addition to a number of commissioned sculptures in timber or stone for outdoor spaces. Woodturners Cottage and its workshop has been a woodturnery and fine furniture establishment since the 1930's. Mark's dedication and skill are keeping this tradition alive and very well with his blend of traditional and contemporary designs lovingly finished off to a very high standard. 

 He sells most of his work in galleries throughout Devon and Cornwall plus a number of craft fairs in South West England. It was through Greenwich Market that we had the pleasure of meeting Mark and seeing his work. He can be found at the market at least a couple of weekends a month and hopefully more often in the future. The logistics of being based in South Devon and exhibiting his work in person at Greenwich Market is a balancing act, especially when he has production to slot into his busy schedule.

All timbers used are from sustainable sources and 98% are native British trees felled in the Dartmoor and South Devon area. For every 20 pieces made, a young tree is planted.

Finishes applied are either beeswax and vegetable oil which can be wiped clean and occasionally revived with a fresh coating of vegetable oil or six coats of finishing oil which dries to a hard surface that can be wiped clean. Both are food safe. A few decorative pieces are just beeswaxed and polished.

Commissions for woodturning projects or garden sculptures in timber or stone are welcomed. If you wish to view a fine selection of Mark's work and meet the artist in person, then a trip to Greenwich Market should be on your list of things to do. Due to the amount of time required for production, Mark can't guarantee to be exhibiting in Greenwich every weekend. Please feel free to contact Mark about his work or dates exhibiting on the following phone number.

Tel : 01548 830405

Mobile : 0779 2803299

Natural fibres, Natural dyes and Original designs http://www.sorazora.com/

Xmas At Greenwich Craft Market

If you haven't been down to Greenwich Craft Market recently, It may be worth the effort to brave the cold weather and pop down. The Christmas lights are up and spiced mulled wine available.

Apart from Sorazora, you will find so many stalls selling handcrafted products ranging from woodcraft to candles and plant pot hangers. The Artists corner can be found each weekend and two artists deserving a special mention are Charles Borrell and John Lynch, who both provide all that one could want in a landscape.

It is getting cold out, but at least Greenwich market's roof offers protection from our typically British weather. I would recommend coming on an empty stomach as there is a wide selection of international cuisine waiting for you to discover. This coming weekend will be the last shopping weekend before Christmas and your last chance to pick up some truly individual gift items.

Sorazora will definitely be displaying our products over the weekend and hope to be present on Thursday and Friday also, weather permitting, of course! I would like to use this blog as an opportunity to say a big hello and thank you to a customer named Chiara, pictured below, and we wish her a safe trip back to Italy for Christmas. We look forward to meeting again in the new year.

Natural fibres, Natural dyes and Original designs http://www.sorazora.com/