Peace silk scarf with weld and castor oil plant, cotinus, chocolate vine and acer leaves [SC287]

'Peace' silk scarf created sustainably at each stage of its process. Hand dyed with natural dyes cochineal, weld and logwood and hand printed, by steaming,  with walnut, chocolate vine, acer and cotinus leaves  [SC287].

A verstaile scarf to brighten any wardrobe, made with totally natural materials and processes. The peace scarf was hand dyed with weld, and after placing leaves on it,  a second layer of cloth, soaked in iron sulphate solution, was placed on top. The layers were then rolled and bundled tightly on a copper pipe and steamed for 70 minutes.

This Eri silk comes from Meghalaya, a state in NE India, and is also known as Ahimsa or Peace silk. The cocoons are reared in village houses and the silk moth is allowed to naturally emerge from the cocoon before the silk threads are harvested. No toxic chemicals are used in its production. The only ‘chemical’ that comes in touch with it is alkaline soap that is used during the degumming process. And the whole cycle, from silkworm stage to fibre, is very eco-friendly and sustainable too.

The Eri silkworms’ eggs hatch and become eri silkworms. After an about a month of feeding on castor leaves the eri silkworms start spinning their cocoons, and Ii is magical to see how they form. A fuzzy, wispy, continuous strand is thrown out of the silkworm’s mouth and the silkworm moves its head vigorously in the shape of 8 during this process. This results in an oval-shaped cocoon, with a hollow inside with just enough space for the silkworm to turn into a moth. In the photo you can see the moth pushing it's way through the cocoon leaving it’s home to lay eggs.

Local women spin the silk yarn from the cocoon. The empty cocoons are collected and boiled in soapy water to remove a gummy substance and are then flattened and dried. The fully dried flat ‘cocoon cake’ is ready for spinning into yarn. Eri silk yarn is either handspun, using a spindle, spinning wheel, or spun by machines in mills. The fabric for this  Eri silk scarf was woven on a hand-loom.

Approx 130cm x 35cm.

Packaged in an elegant, ecofriendly By Maggie Naturally presentation box made from recyled materials.

Price includes UK post and packing