Colors
Our silks are stuffed with a range of natural materials such as fruits, vegetables, plants, flowers, spices and more. Our Cochineal, which is tiny bugs that grow on prickly pear cacti, comes from a 5 family co-op in Peru and they're harvested with zero chemicals! Silk Diaries has also partnered with Gypsy Floral to recycle local event blooms after the event has passed and avocado skins after they have been used from The Front Page.
Palette Prints
Each silk is laid flat, packed with an array natural goodies, rolled tightly with a mordant and steamed for 2-3 hours to set the dye. We normally use alum as our mordant, as it is the safest and least toxic option. After steaming, I then unravel the silk, run it under cold water and wash it by hand with a mild detergent or baby soap.
Dip Dye
Natural dye powders, fruits and vegetables can be steamed similarly to create a liquid dye vat. The silks are emerged in the dye bath for 24-48 hours (depending on desired color density) and then hung to dry.
Silk Diaries & Electric Honey
Silk Diaries is extremely proud and happy to announce that the production of our wares are now being crafted locally! Jimmy is the designer behind Electric Honey and has already perfected 3 sizes of our silk scrunchies as well as two styles of non-medical grade silk masks. He is extremely trustworthy, thoughtful, and talented as hell. His spirit welcomes any soul in the room and his eye for design details inspires me daily. We are both excited to continue growing and expanding the product possibilities. In the mean time, do yourself a favor and give Electric Honey a follow on Instagram (!)
Habotai silk scarves + charmeuse silk pillowcases
As a company, we have put a large emphasis on creating work that is sustainable, so that we can leave the world in a better place than we found it in. When searching for a place to source our silk, we wanted to make sure that those humans were always treated fairly. Alas, we came across Dharma Trading Company, a 60 year old business that has always put it's people and customers first.
'The owners and employees of Dharma are absolutely against the idea of unfair treatment of workers, forced labor, child labor, and anything that deprives a person of human dignity. If we should become aware that anything we sell is produced under any of those conditions we would refuse to continue selling it. Moreover, we are actively involved in promoting fair trade clothing sewing in Bolivia and Indonesia. In Bolivia, the money goes straight to the workers, with no "middle man". In Indonesia, the workers have fair pay and quite good benefits. You can find the products from the cooperatives we support in those countries on our website....'
'Even the BRAND name manufacturers whose apparel we carry, specifically Hanes, Fruit of the Loom, LAT Sportswear, Gildan and Bella/Canvas brands, are now only getting garments from W.R.A.P. Certified Factories. WRAP (Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production) is the world's largest facility certification program and while supported by the global apparel industry, it is totally independent. WRAP is dedicated to ensuring lawful, humane and ethical manufacturing throughout the world. In order to receive certification for facilities, they are regularly audited and must comply with the 12 WRAP principles. These relate to areas such as workplace regulations, child labour, hours of work, health and safety, discrimination and security. '
