Meghalaya’s Eri Silk Finds New Life Through EriWeave

It started with passion for Meghalaya’s traditional textiles but soon evolved into a mission to save an entire craft. The brand behind this vision, which has been able to successfully preserve an ancient art form by making its products accessible to modern-day consumers, is Iaishah Rymbai, the founder of EriWeave — a Meghalaya-based label that takes its name from the region's distinct kind of silk. But before we dive into how she did that let's take you on a journey through some lesser-known facts about her brand.

Iaishah faced a tough challenge when sourcing an Eri silk scarf this year (2018). She couldn't find anyone to help with spinning Eri yarn. She realized there's a lot more going on than she thought about the art of spinning Eri silk.

The young entrepreneur started searching for those who carry forward the tradition and found herself among several women artisans and Raid Lapngar Handloom Weaver Coopertive society in Ri-Bhoi, Meghalaya. This journey turned out to be quite fascinating.

What makes Eri Silk stand out? Well, we all know about the ‘Ahimsa’ version (it’s produced without killing the silkworm) but did you know there’s a story woven around this unique fabric? Also known as Ahimsa silk, soft and breathable yet extremely durable, Eri Silk holds immense environmental benefits too!

At Iaishah, our team at EriWeave believes in bringing forth such heritage practices through modern-day designs while simultaneously providing livelihoods for these incredible artisans.

I believe this is where Iaishah's story becomes most beautiful — instead of keeping your beloved state's rich weaving tradition behind glass, we’re actually providing them with somewhere new to grow!