The Fabrics

Image of blue fabric on a handloom midway through weaving.

Like ripples in a pond, our purchasing choices have wide reaching impacts. As responsible consumers we can no longer ignore the fact that every item of clothing we buy affects the environment and the world we live in. As we become more and more conscious of this fact, making the right decisions become that much harder, often having to purchase products without knowing an items environmental or social footprint, or having to trade-off between the two. At RARE & FAIR we believe in making these choices easier for you, by having a clear and transparent supply chain and showing you where and how your fabrics are made.

We are dedicated to the promotion of slow handmade fashion that empowers traditional handloom artisanal weavers. We do this by selecting high quality, hand-spun, handwoven fabrics from communities in rural Thailand. The wooden looms used are mostly situated within family homes and powered only by the loom operators, reducing the carbon footprint of fabric production while keeping overhead costs down for village artisan co-operatives.

The majority of our cotton is grown naturally along the banks of the Mekong River, where no additional inputs of water, fertilizer or pesticide is required. Many of our silks are 100% handcrafted by rural villages, from the raising of the silkworms, the hand-reeling of the silk threads and finally to the hand weaving of the yarns on the loom. Through local knowledge and expertise, our natural dyes are created from regional plant species and added to the yarns by traditional hand-dying methods.

Each of our collections focus on different artisanal designs that incorporate local wisdom and heritage from various regions of Thailand. Every fabric tells its own story and corresponds to the communities’ unique local culture. By merging this unique local wisdom from the different regions of Thailand with modern fashion designs, we ensure every garment produced comes with its own authentic identity and unique quality.