Block Print Cotton Scarf, Pink

Block Print Cotton Scarf, Pink

A hand block printed cotton scarf in pink and marigold yellow, designed by Meera Mehta and printed in Rajasthan. Yellow marigolds sit on a soft pink "cutwork" chevron design. Wear it loose over a white shirt, knotted at the neck with denim, or open across the shoulders over grey.

Block Print Cotton Scarf Details

• Marigold motif in yellow, with grey-green stems, cut leaves and closed buds
• Soft pink ground with a cutwork chevron design beneath the floral blocks
• Taupe end bands finished with a narrow zigzag border
• Hand block printed, designed by Meera Mehta, printed in Rajasthan
• 100% cotton, one-of-a-kind
• Long and narrow: 88.5" x 21.5"
• Beautifully finished edges
• Stocked in the USA and ships free

How to Care for your Block Print Cotton Scarf 

Spot clean first if you can. Otherwise handwash very gently and separately in cold water with a mild detergent. Do not soak, wring or squeeze. Drip dry in the shade.

Textile and Artisan Story:  

Hand block printing 

Block printing on cloth is a heritage craft in India. For centuries craftspeople have made patterns by stamping the fabric with wooden blocks dipped in dye or in resist. On this scarf the chevron comes first: it is cutwork, so the pattern is cut out of the cloth rather than printed onto it. The marigolds are block printed over it by hand. Hold it up and the chevron lets the light through.

Hand-carved wooden blocks provide the basis of the block printing process. Block carving is a long and detail process, requiring a level of skill that can only be honed with practice and over generations. 

Meera Mehta, the designer

Meera Mehta is a textile designer based in Mumbai, trained at the National Institute of Design. Her work has been shown in museums in the United States, Switzerland and London, and she has judged at NID Ahmedabad and at NIFT Mumbai. She is best known for reviving the Paithani sari, a silk and gold brocade woven near the Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra for roughly two thousand years. A single Paithani takes between two months and a year to weave. While, that is her specialty, Meera has designed scarves using other heritage crafts. She works with weavers and craftspeople all over the country. 

The sari that became a British Airways tailfin

In 1997 British Airways took the pattern from one of her saris and painted it onto the tailfins of three Boeing 747s. The design was listed in the airline's tail art scheme under the name Paithani, and it carried her signature. The sari it came from had been woven by Shantilal Bhandge. Asked about it at the time, she said it was even better than having someone wear it.