L O O M T O L U X U RY: VA R A N A S I T O PA R I S

A N e s t A r t i s a n J o u r n e y

Table of Contents:

ForwardThe Decline of a 500 year-old Tradition

The VisionariesJitendra Kumar and Megan Ryley

The Collection Comes to LifeThe Inspiration: Tradition Reimagined

The Process: Artisans at WorkThe Completion: A Masterpiece Emerges

The Paris DebutThe Collection is Launched: A Warm Reception

Afterword & CreditsThe Next Chapter

Part 1. Forward

Reviving a 500 year-old Tradition

This story follows the journey from The City of Temples to The City of Lights, from loom to luxury. The tale marks a new chapter for Nest’s Varanasi Project, an initiative aimed at rescuing

and reviving the 500 year-old silk-weaving tradition in Varanasi, India.

Only just one decade ago, as many as 100,000 handlooms were actively in use. Since the rise of the power loom and the outsourcing of cheap labor to China, this number has more than halved. The economic decline of Varanasi’s weavers has been linked to devastating social issues from starvation to suicide. Nest, in partnership with its artisan partner, Loom to Luxury, has set

out on a journey to address these issues.

In tandem with Paris’ premiere textile show, Premier Vision, Nest and Loom to Luxury traveled to fashion’s capitol to unveil the business’ first solo-collection of hand-loomed silks. Designed by a consultant with experience producing for Oscar de la Renta, Carolina Herrera, and Versace, the debut collection demonstrated with breathtaking nuance the vast array of opportunities for designers to work with ancient handloom techniques through a modern lens. Shared privately with luxury buyers like Lanvin, Phillip Lim and Jean Paul Gaultier, quoted by Women’s Wear Daily as “upping the artisanal factor”, the collection was received with praise - signifying a crit-

ical leap towards greater market access for Loom to Luxury.

What follows is the story of the Loom to Luxury Spring/Summer 2016 collection from start to finish, Varanasi to Paris. It is a fearless quest for market access aimed at reviving a beautiful craft tradition and a cultural way of life while bringing renewed hope to the weaving families

of rural Varanasi.

Part 2. The Visionaries

Jitendra Kumar, A Man with A Mission

Jitendar Kumar is the Founder of Loom to Luxury, one of the last remaining handloom silk weaving enterprises in Vara-nasi, India. At the heart of Jitendra’s mission is his belief that luxurious hand-made silk is only the final result of a pro-duction process that starts at the loom. It begins with the weaving families themselves: the women who cut and finish each and every silk with care, the men who tirelessly sit at the loom and the families whom they together support. Through his business, Jitendra is committed to building a community of happy and healthy artisans working in a safe, inspiring environment.

Looking towards the future, Jitendra believes that his artisans will set an example for future generations who will see weav-ing not only as a viable source of income for their families, but as a national tradition worthy of pride and preservation. Nest is proud to work alongside Jitendra to further these goals.

A Match is MadeNest and Jitendra were introduced to Megan in early 2014 at a time when on the lookout for a standout designer and production manager to lead the launch of Loom to Luxury’s first solo collection of silks. Jitendra and Nest knew that with Megan’s modern design sensitivity, intricate knowledge of wide-ranging production techniques, and personal connection to Indian cultural traditions, she would guide the weavers in turning out a of memorable collection of silks destined for the modern luxury market.

Megan Ryley, A Designer with a Dream

Throughout Megan’s impressive tenure in the fashion industry, she has cultivated a a deep understanding of the product development aspect of design. In the luxury market, Ms. Ryley has had the pleasure of working with inter-nationally acclaimed designers including Oscar de le Renta, Carolina Hererra, Jenny Packham, Versace, and more.

Her extensive experience handling all aspects of design, including surface design and garment design, contributes to her in-depth knowledge of a wide range of printing, washing, dying, embroidery and weaving techniques. Megan has traveled, worked and lived across Asia, Europe and North America – consulting with contemporary companies inter-

ested in Indian production.

The Collection Comes to Life

The Inspiration: Tradition Reimagined Take a look behind the scenes of the thought process and inspiration behind Megan Ryley’s collection development from start to finish. Here we explore the journey in her own words:

Knowing the long and rich history of Loom to Luxury, and melding that with the initial sense of the exotic, was an im-portant part of my creative inspiration for the collection. I began to develop groups based in a nomadic journey across the globe - a journey that would be realized in the colors and textures, as well as the evolving patterns that we used.

In our first group, “Caravan”, I started with two incredible images of an elderly Cuban woman and a traditional Rajasthani man. These spoke of hard-earned wisdom, time-loved color, and our home base in India. We used natural, weathered colors set against rich earth tones and played with the contrast of luxe shine and comfortable matte finishes.

We then progressed into a more nostalgic col-or palette and softer textures in “Palm Beach Vintage”, which evokes a feeling of faded memories and late afternoons spent basking in subtle sunlight. These two groups are won-derfully representative of the journey from East to West, and you can see this transition in both the pattern and colors.

With the “Attic Nomad” group, I wanted to combine the two sensibilities into a mash-up of pattern and deeper, more jewel-toned color. Feeling that cultural combinations make for incredible outcomes, this group is all about playing with unusual pairings of color and design.

Our final group “BollyPOP” brings us back to the riotous land of India - with intense, brash color and striking patterns borrowed from our journey. The finale is both simple and graph-ic, and leaves a strong lasting impression.

The Process: Artisans at Work

The artisans set to work on an eight-month long production process, boldly embracing departures from the traditional, with both hard work and hope. With each strand of silk, a piece of the weaver was woven along with it his emotions manifested into the fabric itself. These slight variations can be celebrated not only as a mark of a true handloom product, but as a symbol of the human spirit that has gone into its creation.

Editor’s Notes:“Tussar Silk” is a natural spun raw silk

produced in India, which is considered to be “non-violent” and non-harmful to the silk

worm, as the worm is left to its normal cycle and the cocoon is only harvested

after it has emerged.

The collection utilized very fine kadhi cotton yarn, which is hand spun, lending it its

naturally slubby appearance. This added to the subtle textures of some the

collection’s patterns.

“Jamdani” (right) is a technique that can only be achieved in a handloom fabric, as

the thread does not travel from selvedge to selvedge, but rather is localized to the motif area only. It is essentially a singular woven

motif in a larger woven fabric, almost like an embroidery that is made by the weaver.

The Completion: A Masterpiece Emerges

In an isolated corner of rural India, a small and passionate group of artisans pushed the petal on the final thread of a sixty-piece collection. Their first solo collection was complete.

Where to take the luxurious masterpiece? Where else than the chicest city on earth.

And so months of work were packed up into one single suitcase.

Part 4. The Paris Debut

The Collection is Launched to a Warm Reception

On February 9th, 2015, in tandem with Paris’ premiere textile show, Premiere Vision, Nest brought Loom to Luxury to Paris to unveil the business’ first solo-collection of hand-loomed silks. It was an opportune occasion to show the collection - a time when top luxury buyers were on the lookout for the most distinguished new textiles.

Out of a crowded sea of thousands of world’s most beautiful textiles,

WWD featured the collection as the leading face of its Premiere Vision top

selections, quoting Loom to Luxury as “upping the artisanal factor”

“The Loom to Luxury fabric collection is really very beautiful and refined, and quite

modern considering they are woven by hand in villages. Quite wearable as well.”

- Tina Robinson, Oscar de la Renta

Showing via privately booked appointments at Le Marais’ Hotel Bourg Tibourg, the

collection was shared with warm reception to luxury brands including Lanvin, Cedric

Chalier, Oscar de la Renta, Phillip Lim, Jean-Paul Gaultier and Maison Martin Margiela

Afterword & Credits

The story continues for Loom to Luxury as they look forward to showing the collection to the luxury design houses of New York City. With a goal of moving towards sustainability and

independence, Loom to Luxury anticipates the creation of next season’s collection—this time with Jitenda at the helm under Megan’s guidance.

To make this story possible, generous donations from Nest supporters funded a professional consultancy with Megan Ryley, airfare to Paris, sampling costs, and access to professional

services allowing the team to book brand meetings with the top luxury labels in Paris.

Thank you to Nest’s donors for your continued support.

This project still needs support. If you are new to this project and would like to donate or to learn more, please visit www.buildanest.org.

We also invite you to join our growing movement on both Facebook and Instagram @buildanest.

About Nest

Nest is partnering with the world’s most promising artisans to build sustainable businesses within the competitive landscape of today’s global economy. Simultaneously, Nest is transforming artisan communities through the alleviation of poverty, empowerment of women and promotion of peace. Taking a participatory approach to change, Nest projects are uniquely hands-on from inception through completion, beginning with a rigorous needs appraisal and closing with the

formation of enduring partnerships with leading brands in the fashion and design space.