Large Hand-Dyed Batik Bandana | Fiery Flora

Seven hundred years is an unreasonable amount of time to spend perfecting a square of cotton. The results suggest it was time well spent.

Kasih Co-op’s oversized Fiery Flora Bandana is made in Java using traditional batik, a wax-resist dyeing technique that requires considerably more human involvement than the word “print” would suggest. Hot wax is applied to cotton to resist the dye, patterns and colors are built by hand, and the finished fabric reveals the design on both sides. The slight shifts in color and pattern are part of the process, evidence that somewhere along the way an actual person had to make a decision. And then, after all that history and craftsmanship, you get to tie it around your head. At 39 inches square, Fiery Flora is large enough to operate as a head wrap, neck scarf, shawl, sarong, or beach cover-up. The red-and-tan floral pattern is bold enough to change an outfit without requiring the rest of the outfit to become particularly ambitious.

The Details

• 100% soft cotton
• Hand-dyed + hand-stamped using traditional batik techniques
• Fiery Flora pattern in red + tan
• Pattern visible on both sides
• Approx. 39" × 39"
• Hand-stamped, sun-baked + pre-washed
• Each piece will vary slightly in color + shape
• Machine wash separately in cold water; air dry
• Handmade by artisans in Java, Indonesia
  

About the Brand:  Kasih Co-op

Kasih Co-op is keeping a 700-year-old textile tradition alive, which makes most fashion trend cycles seem appropriately ridiculous. Founder Ivana grew up in Indonesia surrounded by batik, the wax-resist dyeing tradition that has been practiced there for centuries. Her woman-owned company now works with skilled Indonesian artisans to turn that heritage into bandanas, scarves, robes, and other objects designed to be worn rather than preserved behind glass. Each batik textile passes through human hands, using wax, dye, stamps or hand-drawing tools, and time to create patterns whose slight differences are evidence of the process rather than something manufacturing managed to eliminate. Kasih is also a verified Fair Trade Federation member, helping ensure the people preserving all that knowledge are fairly paid for using it.