July 17, 2012
Organic Fabric, Hemp Fabric collection: Folksmarket.com
June 29, 2012
Huge collection of rich Indian Handloom Fabric: Folksmarket.com
Check our rich collection of Indian handloom fabric through this short video.
(Indian Handloom Fabric Collection by Folksmarket.com)
We are an R-Commerce (Responsible Commerce) Company with an objective of providing the market to the highly skilled and amazing weavers and artisans of India and worldwide.
Geographical Indication registration process in India: Folksmarket.com
India is a vast country with
immensely rich traditions. It is innate to the soul of India that its folks
have been utilizing the Earth to make life of fellow folks useful. In the
process, Indians have truly developed their skill so much that it had taken a
form of a full-fledged industry which was appreciated by the world over.
However with the modernization knocking the door and traditional way of
production start replacing by the machine, the life of millions of such folks
reached to a cross-road.
The human hands
can’t match the pace of the machine.
At
the same time, this tradition remained their identity for centuries, how can
they just let it go?
Then came the realization of the
limitation of the machine and its monotonous effect, not to talk of the
environmental deterioration. The people at different corner of the world once
again found themselves appreciating the folks skill and folks traditions. But
then the dark side of the human greediness came. People knowing well the appreciation
of the different crafts start selling their own lower grade products under the
disguise. This is the precise reason why many times the sale of Darjeeling Tea
registered more than its actual production.
This spoofing is a double-edged
sword. On the one hand, it snatched the ethical right of the people of
different geography from their right of livelihood and on the other hand, it
also brings a sense of the disappointment among its connoisseurs for their
inability to appreciate the original product as they have experienced the
spoofed product.
The Uruguay round of WTO was the
harbinger of bringing a mechanism world over to prevent such anomaly in the
market.
As per TRIPS Agreement 1994, “Geographical
indications are, for the purposes of this Agreement, indications which identify
a good as originating in the territory of a Member, or a region or locality in
that territory, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of
the good is essentially attributable to its geographical origin”
The GI Act contains a system of
registration. Registration is prima facie evidence of validity. While
the initial registration is for a period of ten years, it may subsequently be
renewed. A GI may be registered under more than one class of goods.
Commensurate
with the TRIPS Agreement, the Government of India has drafted their own GI Act:
The Geographical
Indications of Goods
(Registration and Protection) Act (GI Act), 2003
How Geographical Indications product are registered in India
(This section owe a lot to a paper published by Mr Kasturi, Fellow, Center for WTO titled 'Social Economic Impication of GI' )
Section 11(2) of the GI Act
specifies the documentation requirements for applying for a GI in India.
Section 32(1) of the GI Rules replicates these provisions and in addition stipulates
a few more documentation requirements that include, among other things, the
following:
• A statement as to how the GI
serves to designate the goods as originating from the concerned geographical
territory in respect of specific quality, reputation or other characteristics
that are due exclusively or essentially to the geographical environment, with
its inherent natural and human factors; and the production, processing or
preparation of which takes place in such geographical location;
• The geographical map of the
territory concerned;
• The particulars regarding the
appearance of the GI as to whether it is comprised of the words or figurative
elements or both;
• An affidavit as to how the
applicant claims to represent the interest of the association of persons or
producers or any organization or authority established by or under any law;
• The standards benchmark for the
use of the GI or the industry standard as regards the production, exploitation,
making or manufacture of the goods having specific quality, reputation, or
other characteristic of such goods that is essentially attributable to its
geographical origin with the detailed description of the human creativity
involved, if any, or other characteristic from the definite geographical
territory;
• The particulars of the
mechanism to ensure that the standards, quality, integrity and consistency or
other special characteristic in respect of the goods to which the GI relates,
which are maintained by the producers, makers or manufacturers of the goods, as
the case may be;
• The particulars of special
human skill involved or the uniqueness of the geographical environment or other
inherent characteristics associated with the GI to which the application
relates;
• The particulars of the
inspection structure, if any, to regulate the use of the GI in respect of the
goods for which application is made in the definite territory, region or
locality mentioned in the application.
Upon receipt of an application, it is
scrutinized by the examiners and in case any deficiencies are found, a notice
is sent to the applicant to rectify them. After rectification, the applicant is
required to send her reply within one month from the date of receipt of the
notice. The next stage is the constitution of a Consultative Group of technical experts, chaired by
the Registrar, to ascertain the correctness or otherwise of the particulars
furnished in the application. Subsequent to examination, the Registrar may
refuse the application altogether or may accept it either absolutely or subject
to certain conditions, modifications, etc. Accordingly, on the basis of the comments
provided by the Consultative Group, an Examination Report is issued by the
Registrar.
Compliance, if any, is to be done within two months from the date of
communication of the Examination Report to the applicant.
Once the objections raised
in the Examination Report are satisfactorily responded to by the applicant, and
the application is accordingly accepted by the GI Registry, it is advertized in
the GI Journal, which is a bi‐monthly, bi‐lingual
(English and Hindi33) statutory publication. Upon advertisement, any person
may, within a specified time period (generally 3 months, but if needed 4
months), oppose the application in writing. If the application passes through
the specified time period unopposed, or in the event of an opposition,if it is
decided in favour of the applicant, the Registrar is required to register the concerned
GI as well as the authorized users and include the particulars in the GI Register.34
Upon registration of a GI, the Registrar is required to issue each to the applicant
and the authorized users a certificate sealed with the seal of the GI Registry.
Notably, the date of filing of the application is
deemed to be the date of registration.
June 26, 2012
Rich Indian handloom Silk Fabric collection: Folksmarket.com
77S7WS93BDQM The fabric made from the Protein fibre can be classified
into two:
- Keratin (hair/fur) fibres and
- Secreted (insects) fibres
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It is the Secreted fibres that we are dealing with today.
The Keratin fibre is already posted with the title Amazing fibres from animals.
One single filament of the
silk is the outcome of several process and hardship. Various steps involved
right from harvesting the mulberry plants to domestication of the Bombyx Mori
to reeling.
During the caterpillar stage the silkworm secretes a liquid
protein from two large glands to wrap itself. This liquid protein hardens with
the exposure in air. This resulting filament is bonded by new excretion of the
liquid protein Sericin which forms a solid sheath or cocoon. Normally the moth
breaks this cocoon to come out. But in sericulture the cocoon are boiled much
before the moth can come out. The boiling loosen the Sericin and then the
resultant filament is reeled into a reeling machine or charka.
The silk
industry is very specialized one. The entire process of silk reeling (that
includes batching, cooking, drying, mounting, segregating etc) can not be done
by the machine alone as lot of discretionary human intervention is required at
all stages.
The different varieties of the silk can be obtained
depending upon its feeding, reeling process, cocoon variety and human
intervention. In general, the silk fibre/fabric can be categorized into
following types:
It is one of the most widely available commercial silk
produced from Bombyx Mori variety of the silk that is fed mulberry leaves and
only mulberry leaves.
Muga Silk worm Antheraea assamensis is native to Assam, India. The larvae of
this moth feed on Som and Sualu leaves. Owing to its low porosity it can not be
dyed or bleached easily and hence its golden color is retained. The silk has a
glossy texture and very durable to use. It is said that if cared properly the silk
can outlive its owner!
Eri cocoon are open mouthed with discontinuous filament that
makes them suitable only for spinning. The silk worm feed on Caster oil plant.
As the moth come out of the cocoon and then the baves of cocoon collected for
further processing, this silk is also known as Ahimsa Silk or Non-violent Silk.
Like Muga, they are also reared in Assam. 90% of the Eri comes from Assam,
India
When silk fabric woven with satin weave (where the warp
cross over 3 or more weft threads). The satin finish give it a floating
appearance. It drapes well and the silk gives it a luster and rich look. This
is also a lightweight fabric. It makes stunning outfit. These days the
synthetic fibres are also used for different purpose. However original French Charmeuse
can’t be thought of without SILK!
Tassar cocoons have a compact structure different from the
mulberry cocoon. They are single shelled and oval in shape. They are
non-mulberry silk and do not produced from Bombyx Mori and as such not fed by
mulberry leaves. They breed on local tress like Sal, Arjun, Saja . The Tassar
silk worm also feed on any tree they live on. A high quality of Tassar will
have a count of approximate 42-60 denier. They are also referred, sometimes, Wild Silk
as they are not domesticated with mulberry leaves.
There is a natural adhesive present in the silk filament
which is degummed. If the silk is not degummed, it is called as Raw Silk.
The silkworm Antheraea mulitt , live on oak leaves and fed on oak leaves.
The oak leaves produce an irregular and coarse filament that is hard to bleach
and dye. Wild silk is less lustrous than cultivated silk as about 11% sericin
is removed in the degumming process. Standard wild silk filament is made from 8
cocoon and the count is 32-34 denier.
Floss Silk
Floss silk is processed from pierced, end-missing, and
double cocoons. Floss silk is beneficial as paddy against cold weather and as a
basis for hand spun yarns. The procedure to create floss silk involves
degumming, opening-up and finishing
There are many waste materials eliminated during
manufacturing of good quality silk. These wastes have commercial value. During
rearing, pierced cocoon and double cocoon are created. Double cocoons are
processed to make Dupion silk.
Silk reeling generates brushing waste, end missing cocoons
and pupae. The rejected cocoons are re-processed to make Spun Silk. The count
system of Spun Silk is same as Cotton with the slight difference for plied
yarns. While 2/120’s cotton means effectively a cotton staple of count 60’s,
the Spun Silk are generally represented as 60’s/2 that means the resultant
count is now 60’s made from two ply filament of 120’s each.
Noil and Gheecha are silk waste while brushing during the
reeling process. They are re-processed and used for less expensive silk fabric.
They have lower luster but still they are at par with 80’s cotton.
Organza
An informative post was posted few days back about this. Follow the following link: http://folksmarket.blogspot.in/2012/06/types-of-indian-fabric-ii.html
Chiffon
An informative post was posted few days back about this. Follow the following link: http://folksmarket.blogspot.in/2012/06/types-of-indian-fabric-ii.html
Satin
An informative post was posted few days back about this. Follow the following link: http://folksmarket.blogspot.in/2012/06/types-of-indian-fabric-ii.html
Taffeta Silk
An informative post was posted few days back about this. Follow the following link: http://folksmarket.blogspot.in/2012/06/types-of-indian-fabric-ii.html
June 25, 2012
Handloom Silk Fabric Care by Folksmarket.com
Silk, not only, a smooth fabric but it also has inherent luster
in it. Washing a silk fabric therefore requires bit more care than for any
other fabric. But its not difficult as silk has in built tendency to repel the
dirt and not always require the dry cleaning.
The below checks and process, if followed, can help
sustaining the delicacy of the silk fabric and increase its life.
First of all make sure to read the instructions given in
each fabric by the manufacturing group. If it says Dry Clean Only, then do not
compromise or idle and get it dry clean only. If it says handwash, it must be
washed by hand only, no machine wash. If the instructions permits the machine
wash, even then, always prefer hand-wash.
Sometimes the instructions may not be there. At that time,
you must check it on your own to confirm if you need to dry wash it or will the
hand-wash do. So our step by step clothing will start from here only.
Step 1: Check color fastness of the silk fabric.
Rub the hidden part of the silk with each other and
ascertain whether the color is transferring or not. If the color is transferring,
make sure to dry clean it. If no transfer, you should go ahead and hand clean
it.
Step 2: Shaking off
Shake off the silk fabric lightly to remove any dirt and
crumbs of pollutants. The bigger and lighter dirt will be removed upto an
extent and now you can go ahead and wash away more stubborn dirt.
Step 3: Choose the detergent
Go for a mild detergent. In India, you may wish to go for
Baby Soap from Johnson and Johnson or Ariel Oxyblu . Abroad you may choose to Woolite
or Dr Bronner’s baby soap. If none of them is available, you may choose any
mild shampoo or baby soap.
Step 4: Soaking:
Soak the silk fabric in lukewarm water for 5-7 minutes.
Avoid using hot water as it will brittle the fabric and may fade the luster,
silk fabric is known for. Sometime the extreme temperature water may also
stretch or shrink the fabric if the fabric, while manufacturing, was not
shrunk.
Step 5: Rubbing stains
Gently rub the stains after soaking the fabric for 5-7
minutes. Do not rub it too hard to avoid damage. Also rub the stains in
circular motions going inside from the circumference. This will likely to bring
all the dirt together at one place which then can be washed off easily.
Step 6: Rinse and rinse again
Rinse the fabric till the time all the soap is not removed
from the fabric. Rinse well so that no soap scum remains in the fabric to
damage it. One smart idea is to take ¼ cup of vinegar mixed water and rinse the
fabric. Vinegar will remove any soap-scum. Finally rinse with cold water.
Step 7: Do not wring or twist the fabric
Remember not to shake off the fabric to remove water. Do not
twist the fabric to rid water off. Instead take a cotton towel, spread the
fabric over it, and roll the towel up. The cotton towel will absorb the excess
water from the fabric. There will be delicate wringing but that’s alright.
Leave the fabric for sometime wrapped in towel. This will absorb good amount of
water.
Step 8: Dry and iron it
The final step is to dry the fabric in a clothing line under
shade. Do not expose it in sunlight as the sunlight makes the fabric fragile.
Sometimes it is a nice idea to keep the towel wrapped fabric inside the
refrigerator for 40-45 minutes. This will prevent the drying of the natural oil
of the fabric.
Iron it using the silk indicator or very lightly warm iron.
Its better not to connect the silk fabric directly with the iron. Use press
cloth instead.
Follow the above instructions to care your silk fabric. Don’t
forget that the silk is a natural fibre that requires your tender attention.
Never use chlorine bleach as the protein fibre (silk fibre) will be damaged by
this.
June 23, 2012
Indian Handloom Silk Fabric: Folksmarket.com
Good Eve folks! Today we would like to touch the silk fabric briefly. Silk often rhyme with elegance, softness and handloom fabric. Lets see how it is evolved and a cursory look at its properties.
The Chinese legend says that silk was first reeled
by the Empress Hsi Ling She around 2700 BC. Archaeological evidence suggests
that silk is used since 5000 BC, that is more than 7000 years from now!
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Empress Hsi Ling She was sipping tea under the
mulberry tree when she discovered the silk filaments from the cocoon. So
fascinated was she that she started reeling silk all alone. She learnt to spin
the silk and made some luxurious fabric out of it.
Besides China, traces of silk has also been traced
in Indus Valley Civilization of India, Egyptian mummies, Middle East, Europe
and North Africa. The discovery at Harappa and Chanhu-daro suggest that ancient
people knew Sericulture (art of silk cultivation), employing wild silk threads from local silk worms. So
much was the popularity of the silk that major trade route from Europe to Asia
is known as Silk Route
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Silk is a natural protein fibre coming from the silk
worm (Bombyx Mori) who fed on
mulberry leaves. The silk fibre has a triangular prism like structure that
reflects light into various angles which results into the shimmering effect of
the silk fabric.
Though silk is produced by various insects, it is
only the silk worm that has been utilized so far by the textile industry.
Though research is on way for other insects.
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Silk are produced normally by two kind of worms. One
that feeds on mulberry silk and other that do not feeds on mulberry silk. The
first variety is known as Mulberry Silk and the other known as Wild Silk.
Before the domestication and cultivation of mulberry silk worms, the wild silk
was widely used. The silk produced from the wild silk is of lesser grade for
variety of reasons. Important among them are quality of the silk fibre and
other is the short filament as generally the worm tears the filament and comes
out.
The mulberry leaf is fed to the caterpillar and
after 35 days of continuing feeding, the silk worm spins a cocoon of silk. The length of the silk
filament from a single cocoon could be as long as a mile (1.6 kms)!
The cocoon are boiled and filament is identified
which then is reeled into silk threads.
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The length of the silk filament is very important in manufacturing
a high class fabric. Generally the more the length of the filament is, the
higher is the quality. Short fibres are also spun to create low quality
threads.
Silk is a strong fibre but it deteriorates with time
and become brittle. The number of process involved, high end skill required and
feeding expensive mulberry leaves make the silk fibre a costly but worthwhile
fabric.
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Today silk is used in virtually all the aspect of
the textile industry. Be it apparels, fashion, curtains, wedding gowns, other
home furnishing items, silk finds it use everywhere. The expensive fabric like
Georgette, Chiffon, Velvet, Satin, all use silk as their primary raw material.
The silk fabric is prized agricultural commodity, although its contribution in
global textile industry is around 1%.
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India is 2nd largest producer
of silk. In India, the best of the silk fibre are obtained from Bangalore,
Assam, Murshidabad, Varanasi, Bhagalpur etc. The Bhagalpur earlier was called
as Silk City but it is now replaced by Bhoodhan Pochampally (Andhra Pradesh). Assam produce
three varieties of the silk: Eri, Muga and Mulberry. Of these three, Eri and
Muga are native to Assam and North East of India. Muga is also known as Gold
Silk as the natural muga silk will be golden in color.
The southern India has the tradition of wearing
sarees made of silk and as such we see some heavily worked upon sarees like
Kanchipuram, Dharmavaram, Pochampally, Mysore silk sarees etc.
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Some
of the important characteristic of Silk Fibres and Fabric
·
- Silk filament is a continuous thread of 500-1500 mtrs in length
- It is stronger than cotton and linen
- Prolong exposure of sunlight can turn white silk into yellow and can also weaken the fibre
- It absorbs moisture easily making it valuable fabric for summer
- It retains heat during winter season, making it all weather fabric
- It is resilient and elastic
- Dries quickly
- Expensive due to process and raw material (mulberry leaves)
Types of Indian Fabric-II : Folksmarket.com
In our previous blog post we have discussed about the type of fabric with natural fibres. In continuation of that post here is the second part of types of fabric and discuss Man-made Fabric.
Types of Man-made fibre (in alphabetical order) by Folksmarket.com
(Please note that all the above images are taken from various sources. All credits to them)
Acetate Fibre
Acetate
fabrics are cellulose based fabric obtained clinically by wood or cotton pulp. It
is very valuable low cost fibre with good draping abilities. It was invented by
Swiss brothers, Camille and Henry in 1905. They have a good and luxurious luster
akin to the silk fabric. They are
resistant to the moth, mildew and shrinkage. Acetate
Fibres are used in brocades, satin etc but they are not suitable for the winter
season as they have poor heat retention property.
Acrylic Fibre
This synthetic fibre is made from polyacrylonitrile. It was Dupont
Corporation who created the first Acrylic fibre in 1941. The fibre is warm,
lightweight and popularly called as ‘imitation
of wool’. It is also a low cost alternative to Kashmiri fabric. It is resistant to the sun light, moth and
oils and can be used as apparels for the babies as it does not deteriorate
while machine washed. However it has also earned a bad reputation for being ‘cheap’ and squeaked while knitting.
Chiffon Fabric
Chiffon is a French word for cloth or rug. It’s a lightweight
plain woven sheer fabric with alternate S and Z twist. The twist puckers the
fabric in both directions giving it a slight stretch and rough feel. It is
manufactured by cotton, silk or synthetic fibres. Being a soft drape, Chiffon
finds it immense use in evening wear mostly as an overlay, bridal wardrobe and
blouse. It is soft so it must be washed gently with hand.
Denim Fabric
Denim fabric is a big hit in global world. Its vivid
texture and comfort makes it one of the must in everybody’s wardrobe across
North and South of the globe. Denim fabric is a rugged cotton plain twill woven
fabric. Like Chiffon it’s also borrowed from French word Nimes. While weaving
the weft passes from two or more warp threads giving it a diagonal ribbing. One
important weaving characteristic that is much evident in the Denim is the
selvedge. The selvedge forms a neat and natural edge that does not unravel.
Georgette Fabric
One of the most demanding fabric in the fashion
industry, the Georgette is made from the silk, rayon or synthetic filament yarns.
It is named after a French folk, Georgette
de la Plante. It’s a lightweight, dull finished crepe fabric which is highly twisted. Both
warp and weft are twisted in S and Z twist to give it a crinkly surface. Its
opaque and slightly heavy with Chiffon but it is liked for its uniqueness and
exquisiteness.
Nylon Fabric
The term Nylon is derived from New York and London.
This is a generic synthetic fibre manufactured from polyamides. It was the first synthetic commercially successful
fabric. It’s a silky material and became popular in 1940s with the increase
demand of Nylon stockings. Originally the Nylon was intended to replace silk
after silk become scarce in WW-2. It is used in fabrics, bridal veils, carpets,
musical instrument and rope for industry and household. It is preferred mostly
for its strength and strong flexibility. They are also wear and tear resistant
thus offer a low cost fabric for the general folks.
Rayon Fabric
Rayon fabric neither falls in Man Made fibres
altogether nor in Synthetic fibres. It lies somewhere in between. The reason
for that is it is produced from the naturally occurring polymers. It is a
versatile fabric that can be knitted or woven. Its soft texture makes it
loveable for apparels and furnishing use.
Spandex Fabric
Known for its exceptional elasticity this synthetic
fibre is also known as Elastane. Its
great shape retention quality makes it the darling of the fashion industry. The
spandex fibre can regain their shape even after stretched 500 times! Not only
it fits better but also feels better. It was invented by Sandquist and Shivers in
1959. It is also known as Lycra in
Britain. Today you will see a lot of sports-wear industry use Spandex as their
major fabric clothing. The quality of shape retention finds it use in female
undergarment as support hose.
Satin Fabric
Satin is a weaving technique. Normally silk, nylon
or polyester fabrics are satin woven to make it called as Satin Weave. The
satin weave has a glossy surface and dull back. With minimum number of
interlacing it is a warp-dominated weaving. The high number of floats on fabric
gives it a luster appearance. While “Satin”
is used for the filament yarns like silk and nylon but if short staple fibres
are used like cotton, it is known as “Sateen”.
Satin fabric are very lightweight owing to the weight of silk and nylon. The
glossiness of the fabric surely makes it a high class fibre and very popular in
fashion industry.
Taffeta Fabric
It is a crisp, plain woven fabric mostly made from
the silk or synthetic fibres. In Persian the word ‘Taffeta’ means ‘twisted woven’.
It is considered to be a high end fabric mostly designed for wedding and party
wears. Earlier it was produced by handlooms but now a days its production is
dominated by mills of Bangalore, India. There are two different types of Silk
Taffeta: Yarn-dyed and Piece-dyed. While Yarn-dyed Taffeta is stiffer and used
in dress materials, the Piece-dyed is very soft and used in linings. It has a
unique wavy or rippled pattern that looks like water stain and reflects like
differently. It is very popular for female apparels.
Velvet Fabric
The shear name sounds the smoothness and lustrous
quality in a fabric. Velvets are woven tufted fabric (tuft: fluffy threads that
are closed in bottom and spread out in top like a feather) with a short dense
pile. The velvets are woven in a special looms that weaves two thickness at the
same time. The two pieces are cut apart and to create the pile effect. The two
fabric are then wound on separate take-up rolls. Earlier it was difficult to
clean as it attracts dust very frequently but modern day drying machines have
made this job bit easier. Velvet can
be made from the silk (mostly for high end fabric) or cotton/lines or wool. It is one of the smoothest and softest amidst
all the fabric. It is used in curtains, beddings, covers and also the apparels.
For high class look and price viability, this fabric is very sought after
fabric.
Viscose Fabric
Viscose is a viscous organic liquid used to make
Rayon and Cellophane. It is increasingly become synonymous with rayon. It’s a soft
material that is widely used for women’s stocking and undergarments. These days
its also used for lining and furnishing.
These are some of the fabric type which informs our
consumers about man-made and natural fibres to a greater extent. The list can
not be claimed as complete as the textile industry is one of the oldest
industry of the civilization and folks have been celebrating the art of
clothing and furnishing since ages and are still doing. Still the list surely
brings out commonly used fabric.
Man-made fibres are being developed for the scarcity
of the natural fibres, experimenting to create something wow and more environment
resistant fabric. It however must kept in mind that many of these fabric are
being manufactured by polluting the environment to a greater extent. It is our responsibility
to balance this degradation. Many times these fabric are also not good for skin
and creates rashes and irritation while going in sunlight and exposed to UV
rays. For such persons specifically and every one in general, the natural fibreare great choice. And if it comes from the handloom of those bastions of
traditional folks then its just like icing in cake!!
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