Collaboration is the key to success, especially for small businesses. This one in particular touches me deeply because it takes place in the Calabrian territory, and since I created my atelier, I have nurtured the hope of establishing a textile supply chain in our region.
The broom plant is part of the memory of our territory, and the yarn obtained from the plant is an ancient resource to be rediscovered and enhanced. It is not uncommon, even today in Calabria, to have a grandmother or an elderly aunt who keeps the secrets of manual processing, a very labor-intensive process. The SMAFINEC project is part of this memory, recovering and revisiting it by applying modern techniques for fiber extraction and yarn transformation. For us at Malìa, being part of this project has been a great honor. It is a small step, but of great value, and demonstrates our commitment to rediscovering indigenous yarns and the traditions of our land.
For me, it was a great pride to create the first garments with the prototype fabric made by UNICAL, the University of Calabria, which for 20 years has been seeking solutions to create a supply chain derived from the transformation of BROOM, a spontaneous plant typical of the Mediterranean scrub and very present in the Calabrian territory. As a spontaneous plant, it does not require irrigation or treatments; the territory itself provides it with everything it needs, fully in line with sustainability principles. A plant that has always been worked in our territory and has provided raw materials for both fabrics and various other processes, due to its exceptional resistance and toughness.
A yarn that is part of our history, just like silk, whose production it would be wonderful to bring back into vogue, to produce sustainable textiles, at zero kilometers and with minimal impact on the environment. I hope the project continues and that we can create an artisanal supply chain linked to this wonderful indigenous fabric. We, in our small way, will carry on the process of rediscovering this indigenous yarn, also rediscovering the ancient processing techniques because they are part of our territorial heritage.
Here are some links to articles that also mention us:
https://www.tenonline.tv/unical-progetto-ginestra-depositati-brevetti-e-realizzato-impianto-pilota/
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