Before leaving for the coast I went to a silk farm in Siem Reap called Artisans d'Angkor.
I was able to see the entire process--from the fields where they grow the plants/leaves (Mulberry) for the silk worms to eat, to the finished products. The workers experiment with different varieties of Mulberry to get the quickest/healthiest growing plants, with leaves that the silk worms like to eat.
Once the silk worms have eaten enough (a very short time period--days) they turn a yellow colour, and start to spin silk cocoons around themselves.
The silk worms from Cambodia produce a golden, rather than white thread. As a result, the silk from this area is called Khmer "golden"silk. Their business is conducted using natural colourings from dried grapes, bark, leaves, rust, chili powder, and other natural ingredients.
One thing I learned about the weaving process, is that while some of the pattern is derived from using different threads, part of the pattern is often from tie-dying threads using plastic ties, placed strategically to make a consistent pattern. This kind of seems obvious, but blew my mind :) On the very complex patterns, sometimes only a meter of cloth is produced in a day's work.
If you're looking for ultra cheap Cambodian silk, this isn't the place for you. This is the place you go for high quality, and peace of mind. It's fair trade, and from what I could see the people there were treated very well, and are paid a fair wage. Part of the business is a school, in which certification takes a year. Each worker starts by being taught each part of the process, and then after a time they specialize into the area of silk making that they are interested in. All in all, a very beautiful, interesting, and humbling experience. When I go to buy a piece of clothing, it's nice to have each part of this process in mind, so as to appreciate all the work and thought that has gone into it--whether or not it is factory or handmade.
Beautiful.
I was able to see the entire process--from the fields where they grow the plants/leaves (Mulberry) for the silk worms to eat, to the finished products. The workers experiment with different varieties of Mulberry to get the quickest/healthiest growing plants, with leaves that the silk worms like to eat.
Once the silk worms have eaten enough (a very short time period--days) they turn a yellow colour, and start to spin silk cocoons around themselves.
The silk worms from Cambodia produce a golden, rather than white thread. As a result, the silk from this area is called Khmer "golden"silk. Their business is conducted using natural colourings from dried grapes, bark, leaves, rust, chili powder, and other natural ingredients.
One thing I learned about the weaving process, is that while some of the pattern is derived from using different threads, part of the pattern is often from tie-dying threads using plastic ties, placed strategically to make a consistent pattern. This kind of seems obvious, but blew my mind :) On the very complex patterns, sometimes only a meter of cloth is produced in a day's work.
If you're looking for ultra cheap Cambodian silk, this isn't the place for you. This is the place you go for high quality, and peace of mind. It's fair trade, and from what I could see the people there were treated very well, and are paid a fair wage. Part of the business is a school, in which certification takes a year. Each worker starts by being taught each part of the process, and then after a time they specialize into the area of silk making that they are interested in. All in all, a very beautiful, interesting, and humbling experience. When I go to buy a piece of clothing, it's nice to have each part of this process in mind, so as to appreciate all the work and thought that has gone into it--whether or not it is factory or handmade.
Beautiful.
Hmm, I think you mean fair trade. :)
ReplyDeleteSo beautiful!
Yup. Whoops :) good catch. Quite different those things :)
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