Are Pashminas out of style?
"A thing of beauty is a joy forever."
Never has this statement been more relevant than in the case of Pashmina shawls. The thing about true beauty is that it transcends the threshold of time. What was once fashionable to likes of Empress Joséphine of France in the 1700s is still sought after by nobility and echelons of the modern day. The designs, patterns have taken shape and forms to be palatable to hundreds and thousands of patrons throughout history.
Empress Josephine in Her Pashmina Shawl and Paisley Embroidered Dress
"Fashion Fades, Style is Eternal."
The modern day fast fashion has induced a huge appetite for wasteful consumption. Use and throw materials has been the mantra for cheap, inferior quality garments that dont last a single wash. This earth polluting spiral of rampant consumption has left our oceans full of waste. And now more than ever we're looking for alternatives to suffice our inherent need for quality.
Hence the emphasis on slow fashion has never been stronger. Pashminas are handmade, in a process that can take upto 2-3 months to create a single piece of shawl. It is the classic art of handcrafting the finest of pashmina wool and then weaving them into ultra luxurious wraps, shawls, scarves and lohis ( mens shawls ). These are then ostentatiously decorated with hand embroidery by the most talented craftswomen and craftsmen over weeks and months together. Often families have been engaged in this craft for hundreds of years as the art is passed down from one generation to another.
Pashtush Handloom Handwoven Pure Pashmina Shawl
The colour matchings, design pallets have evolved over the period of time, yet always gaining respect in the eyes of the fashionable, stylish and ever so elegant.
Also Read - "How to Wash Shawls?"
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