A Portfolio of cotton textiles designed and printed with a blend of traditional and contemporary styles.

Hyderabad: The store offer a unique collection of hand made Indian textiles; this includes household linen, suits, sarees and kaftans.All are hand made and hand printed using a range of cotton fabrics; khadi, kalamkari, Ikat - block and screen printed. There is a variety of designs; geometric and traditional, in vibrant earthy colours as well as pastels. There is a blend of tradition with the contemporary that is exclusively "shafali".

It all started with the idea of doing hand block printing on cotton sarees, as a hobby for a housewife with time on her hands. It was on August 13, 1977 in a cottage at the bottom of a vineyard with two block printers on a six metre table that the first saree was printed.

The initial learning experience continued for two years until 1979 when exports to Japan started; this gave an entirely different dimension to the activity - it became a 'business'. In 1980 the Secunderabad store was opened and in 1981 after the first exhibition at the Aakar Art Gallery, Bombay was held. Exhibitions became a regular feature in Bombay, Bangalore and Madras.

1981 also saw the beginning of the company's long and continuing association with Laxma Goud an eminent artist well known for his etchings. The first designer collection by Laxma was shown at Jehangir Art Gallery in Bombay followed by one at Lalit Kala Academy in Delhi and the company's store in Secunderabad as Print expression I, II and III in '82 '83 and '85.

The 80's also saw hectic activity in areas of quality improvement, growth of production capacity and increase in sales to Japan and France. The product range enlarged to include ready-to-wear clothing including kaftans and salwar-kameez suits. In '92 the company commenced exporting to Artipresent in Stuttgart, Bijenkorf in Amsterdam and Conran in Paris. To improve domestic market coverage more showrooms were opened in August '94 in Bangalore and in June '96 in Delhi.

Products

Bed linen
Bedcovers printed in traditional floral designs available in different colour combinations with matching curtains, cushion covers in the same designs (positive and negative), and small tablecloths. Bedcovers are in three sizes: single, medium and double. Fabrics used are handloom cotton and machine washable.
Gifts & Accessories
Quilted tote bags, shopping bags and designer bags in a large range of colours and sizes; small handbags to match casual black and white salwar kameez suits, wall hangings and posters designed by Laxma Goud. Kitchen co-ordinates, tea cosy/tray cloth sets and other small items.
Quilts & Duvets
A variety of patchwork and floral designs in 2 sizes: Single and Double. Fabrics and fillers are 100% cotton and machine washable. Duvet covers are also available.
Table Linen
Table cloths of various sizes and shapes, squares, rectangular, rounds. Placemats and Napkins are in sets of six or eight and match the tablecloths. Prints are traditional floral, black and white contemporary designs by Laxma Goud, geometric patterns in red and black.
Ready to Wear
Kaftans, Kimonos and Salwar suits. Kaftans are in 4 sizes ranging from small to extra large, floral designs embroidered, with mirror work and simple black and white prints. Suits range from informal printed to the heavy embroidered with zari dupattas. A range of cotton fabrics is used - Kota, Khadi, Kalamkari, Ikat, Mangalgiri handlooms and block prints on cotton.
Cushions
Besides the cushion covers matching the bed linen, there are numerous other designs in floral, geometric and designer collections by Laxma Goud. Sizes: 16", 18", 24" (Square) and round bolster covers.

As part of its Silver Jubilee year (August 1977 to August 2002) the store will be presenting a special collection which will be available at its showroom from From February 11 to February 15, 2002 at 72, Sarojini Devi Road, Secunderabad - 500 003.Tel : 7800908

February'2002

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