The Silk Production Process

The Lao Sericulture Company, was established in order to enable Lao villagers to have cash income to provide for their families through planting mulberry trees and using their leaves to feed silkworms which they raise to produce silk. One of the end products is silk scarves. Below are 17 steps in the process of making a silk scarf and dyeing it naturally. Generally different villagers provide different types of labour.

		1.	Farmers who raise cattle collect manure which is used for natural fertilizer for the mulberry trees.
		2.	Others take cuttings from mulberry trees and transplant them. They also prepare the fields for planting and look after the new cuttings. They water them every morning and evening for three to six months.
3.	Another step is to prepare the fields for planting which includes digging ditches in which to put the mulch and natural fertilizer. Villagers plant and care for the mulberry cuttings through watering and weeding over the eight to twelve month period until the leaves can be collected for feeding the silkworms.
4.	Other villagers raise silkworms in order to select some for breeding or improving the silkworm varieties. Certain breeds of silkworm produce both more silk thread, and thread that is thicker and stronger.
		5.	Those who raise the silkworms must gather the mulberry leaves and feed the silkworms three times per day. They care for the silkworms and preserve sanitary conditions in the rearing house for the 28-30 days of the silkworm cycle until the time when they began to spin cocoons.
6.	Other producers then collect the cocoons and separate them according to quality.
7.	Women who reel the silk and combine the strands. They also look to quality control as they spin the thread into skeins.
8.	Those who spin the silk thread clean it and try to ensure that the threads are of even quality. They stretch out the thread and combine the strands into threads of various thicknesses.
9.	Some producers soak the thread in a natural solution in order to remove the outer cuticle so that the natural dyes will be absorbed and in order to clean and soften it.
10.	Others, plant various plants for natural dyes, which also draw certain types of insects. The nests and by-products of these insects are later gathered and used in the dyeing process. For some plants it takes from three to twelve months before you can gather materials for dyeing, while other plants can take from one to five years before they can be used.
11.	Some villagers dye the silk with natural dyes from things in nature including leaves, bark, stems, seeds, roots, fruit and even nests.
12.	Others soak the silk in order to make it strong, tight and durable and are involved in setting up the loom.
13.	Others are involved in reeling the silk from the skeins onto large spools.
14.	Some villagers, usually women, set up and prepare the loom according to the size and type of scarf needed.
15.	The weavers weave the cloth with skill in order to make the cloth even. They also weave according to the patterns and the styles needed.
16	Some stretch out and fold the cloth.
17.	Other people wash the cloth to help make it color-fast, soft and clean. The cloth is then ironed until it is smooth and even. They also check for quality including the size that is needed. Then the cloth is divided into various styles and types. Next they add the labels and store the cloth.
	Read more on the natural dyeing process and weaving techniques.

In summary, the production of silk scarves is a very complicated process requiring the skills, knowledge and labour of many people. You can be assured that if you purchase one of these naturally dyed scarves you will be helping the producers to provide for their families while preserving the environment. The scarves may be worn by both men and women of all ages and can also be used as table runners, wall hangings or other decorative purposes. Our hope is that you will enjoy both the beauty and the uniqueness of these creations from nature!