As we are about to launch a wide selection of new yarns I thought it would be interesting for you to see a few projects which have been knitted with our yarn. In our collection we have two different type of yarns, one is Nomadic Fibers and the other is Journey. Let me first introduce you these two very different yarns. 1. Nomadic Fibers Our yarn Nomadic Fibers is a one ply handspun sheep wool yarn. It is spun on "phang" spindles by our Ladakhi team and has a lovely, rustic feel. The wool comes from the sheep of the Kharnak nomads which are shorn once in a year in the summer month July. We have now 5 undyed shades of this...
For all of us, life has changed drastically in the last few weeks. We are thinking of you all and hope you and your dear ones are well despite these extraordinary times.Since March 25 India is under a 3 week lockdown with all non-essential businesses closed completely, public transport suspended and strong limitations in movement. Luckily, we are all working from home and are not too affected. There are only a handful of cases in the three states we work – Assam, Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh. Everyone is very careful and we have enough work for the next few weeks. We are committed to continue the making of our textiles in order to keep up a routine that assures everyone the usual income. An Update from Assam: Unfortunately, our production for summer is currently on...
Today I’d like to tell you more about the carpets from the region of Changthang. Since last year we are working on these carpets and are including them in our home textiles. In the local language they are called “Tsug Den”. Its name is made of the words Tsug (from tsug-ches: putting something on the ground) and den (mattress). A Tsug Den on the ground in the tent of nomad of Kharnak. At the back, hanging down is a Tsug Dul, a blanket. The classic size is 90cm x 175cm, however this can vary and one can find Tsug Dens in many sizes depending on the use. The remarkable thing about these carpets is that they consist of panels which...
What does a working experience at We Are KAL look like? We would like to introduce our intern Jimmy to you, the first one who accompanied us during our wool harvest and processing. He was a great part of our team and we are very, very grateful for his commitment. In this post Jimmy will share his background, the experience with the KAL team in Ladakh in July and August 2018 and his ideas for the future. Enjoy! Jimmy and Angtak collecting the sheep wool in Kharnak. "But who am I? I am from the French countryside, not far from Lyon. I grew up surrounded by fields and since a very young age nature attracts me. I first studied anthropology...
Whenever I connect my hard disk to my computer and spend some time looking through old material, I always come across the videos I made during the first year of KAL's existence. Everything was new, breathtaking and important to document. These times are magical when one discovers a place for the first time, especially such a precious place like Changthang. This is a video documenting this place and what I've seen, with the story told with a voice over - even my first efforts at Hindi are there :) I hope this video will bring you closer to the people of Kharnak and how we first made the connection with our team. Enjoy! "This is the story of our first...
