Thai Silk

Yesterday, we started developing the products. The craft group already had an idea of what we wanted, because Anne had previously sent emails explaining what we hoped to accomplished. They had a jump start on the id card holders and robes, however both were in need of some tweaking.

The first step was to go to the fabric store in Tacua Pa to see what materials were available. We were looking for some thai silk for the robes and a thai patterned fabric for the id card holders. After searching through the bolts of fabric we managed to have some luck with the id card holders. The fabric is similar to the fabric we are using for the wine totes and makeup bags. We only bought enough for a sample. Once the sample is finished, I will inspect it to make sure it meets our standards and will then place the order.

Wen choosing the fabric for the robes, we didn't have as good of luck. All the "thai" silk was course and stiff, not the ideal fabric to use for a robe. The store did not have any other silk to choose from. The craft women had previously mentioned that to batik on silk would be more expensive and difficult. Since we could not find the fabric and will not be able to batik on actual silk, we had a meeting this morning to figure out what the next step.

We had the meeting around 11:ooam. We first topic of discussion was the id card holders. I showed the craft women pictures of the product and the exact size measurements. Yo, the designer, said we will have a sample tomorrow. Both Allison and Rotjana had to help translate to the women what I wanted. It's a lot more difficult than I thought it would be to relay what the product needs to look like. As of now, I think we are all on the same page as to what I am expecting!

We then moved on to the robes. The craft women informed me that there is a batik factory close by. Since we cannot batik in house, we are going to try and source it from the factory. If we cannot source the fabric from there, we will have to find another fabric store and see what they have to offer.

I then showed the craft women samples of the clutches. Kelly and I picked up two different clutches while in Thailand. Our hopes are that they can replicate the clutches, but use the beautiful thai silk we have seen all over. Once we see a sample, we will choose which is the best product for our store. At the fabric shop I bought some fabric for the clutches. They didn't have all the beautiful patterns we saw in the northeast. (We may be able to purchase the silk from the northeast, then have the women at the orphanage construct the actual product. That way we will be supporting to groups.) Instead, I bought the silk in a solid color. I chose the colors based on the forecasting we did during the summer.

After our fabric run, we came back and Yo and the craft women started on the products. Some were finishing up our makeup bags, and Yo began on the id card holders. I'm praying we find the fabric tomorrow for the robes. It will be much easier, then having to source it from Phuket or Bangkok.