#kashmirshawl

[iw-milano22]

Handcrafted Pashmina Shawl - Ivory with multicolored needle work - 200x100 CM - luxury Pashmina Shawl from Kashmir - Medium Weave @indusweavers . . . #kashmirpashmina #kashmirshawl #luxurylifestyle #luxury #lusso #handcraft #ladakhpashmina #shoppingonline #oneofakind #cashmere #superiorcollection #wedding (at Italy) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp22656sseo/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[kashmirsanfranciscousa-blog]

At Kashmir San Francisco we created a collection of exclusive Shawls Tapestries, Pashmina, Indian, Box Shawl,exquisite creations are sold at our boutique.

[crafted-in-kashmir-blog-blo-blog]

Paisleys and AK-47's

Crafted in Kashmir’s story is featured this week in the business line of the Hindu! We talk about the famed shawl business of Kashmir and the political, socio-economic realities that surround it. 

[crafted-in-kashmir-blog-blo-blog]

The Question of Accessibility

Hand-Embroidered Antique Kashmir Shawl

The question of accessibility sits uncomfortably in social entrepreneurship especially when the enterprise, like ours, is in the business of creating products for a niche audience. Post the economic recession in 2008, many entrepreneurs, especially in fashion, have sought to create diffusion lines for wider and younger audiences. However, the term ‘accessible’ acquires new meaning in the context of a craft-based economy where each craft object is handcrafted by artisans using centuries-old techniques. Often, the creation of a fine art-object requires a high-degree of specialization where each process is outsourced to an expert artisan. At Crafted in Kashmir, we use a measure called ‘Artisan Hour’ to convey the amount of skill that goes into making each of our scarves or sweaters. (Please go to the details section of each product to see the number of Artisan Hours it took to produce it.)

Ultimately, a wage for the artisans is linked to the standard of living of a particular place. Kashmir has, due to multiple reasons, one of the highest standards of living in the Indian-subcontinent despite an ongoing conflict for the past 20 years. We provide our all our artisans a fair wages. Additionally, we have worked to eliminate a systemic gender tax or ‘mool’ on women-spinners, perhaps the group most deprived of economic returns from craft.

While opening up unimagined markets, globalization has fueled systems of mass-production, which have taken a toll on craft communities all around the globe. Increasingly, labor-intensive craft techniques such as spinning are rendered close to extinction in a bid to compete with vastly more accessible machine-made products. A grassroots approach to building resilience in craft communities must look at the question of accessibility through the lens of craft preservation and an commitment towards ethical business practices.