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How Art Therapy at a Yoga Retreat led to the Dunes

The concept for the Dunes print came about while I was at a yoga retreat last year. It was an art meditation technique that I practiced while I was there...

For every new collection that we launch, we want to give you the story behind it - what are it's origins; what was the inspiration for the designer; and it's journey from concept to final garment. 

So let's get straight to it and hear from our designer, Shweta, about Dunes - our latest collection. 

What's the origin of the theme of Dunes?

The concept for the Dunes print came about while I was at a yoga retreat last year. It was an art meditation technique that I practiced while I was there, which stayed with me much after the retreat. The technique was very simple, drawing lines across the page in *one breath*.

Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India   Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India   Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India

It took me a couple of days to fill up the entire page, and the result was beautiful! My breathing pattern were translated into rhythmic waves that imitated sand dunes.

That's an amazing story for the design! Did you have an inspiration for this particular pattern and technique?

I liked the idea of sand dunes (sand dunes translated well into the concept of space & time which in turn related to the concept of meditation) So I started researching patterns created in sand dunes and came across the work of American artist, Tracie Cheng. Her work was not only inspiring, but it also helped me integrate my drawings with my clothes.

Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India   Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India   Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India

The prints look great! Tell us more about the new silhouettes and the fabrics too - what's new this time?

Everything! This collection we have all new styles for women. No repeats!

The silhouettes are mostly one-size-fits-all, anti-fit shapes to allow for easy, casual wearing as well as accommodate more body shapes.

And we have a lot more variety in fabrics too - Single Jersey, Slub, Voile, Yarn dyed checks, Swiss Dot! 

Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India   Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India .  Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India

(Featured above are the Nyiri, Aliciella and the Mojave dresses from the collection, all featuring brand new fabrics - still 100% organic & fairtrade cotton, of course.). 

That's a whole lot of new! How did you choose the colour palette for this collection?

Since the silhouettes are mostly anti-fit, I went with clean, neutral colours that were easy to wear. Keep it simple, sistah!

(Read more about the overall design philosophy of making classic, timeless pieces here)

How was the production process in Kolkata this time? Did you have to change/evolve any of the designs during sampling?

The production process was particularly challenging this time for a couple of reasons. The print & the print placement were both unconventional and required a lot of iterations with the printing team at Rajlakshmi (our factory).

Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India   Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India   Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India

It took a lot of hours at the printing table to get the placements right and sustainable for production. Even after all that, we had to drop the printed shirt for men (sorry, guys!) as it was too tricky going into production.

Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India   Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India .  Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India

(ps: If you're new around here, No Nasties is a completely transparent brand and we share all our supply chain info - see it here.)

 

Thanks for sharing, Shweta!

Well, what are you waiting for - go take a look at the Dunes!

Dunes Collection - No Nasties - Organic Fairtrade Clothing, Made In India

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