Handwoven Shawl from Lembata

These beautiful vintage shawls from Lembata island in Indonesia were dyed by hand using natural dyes in two shades of indigo using strobailanthes cusia, and a deep rust using ceriops tagal bark. The dyes are from sustainable sources. 

The plain weave textile is handwoven in the traditional way on a loom from locally grown hand-spun cotton. It's a single panel with a twisted fringe and can be used as a runner or worn as a shawl or scarf. It is initially rough to the skin but softens beautifully after a couple of wears.