The first of four KALA collaborations with local artisans in 2021.
I met Pan Xiaoxing (潘å°æ˜Ÿ) at the Ningbo Coffee Festival in December and she was one of the vendors. I don’t possess skills related to knitting needles (or crotchet hooks), it always piques my interest. This was not long after our KALA brand in Indonesia (run by my baby sister) did collaborations about personalised Christmas hampers with a crotchet maker, a macrame maker, and an artisanal baker. Suddenly it clicked. I showed Pan what we do in Indonesia, our special Christmas theme crotchet work, and we exchanged contacts.
The honour is KALA’s to be collaborating with her and we also want to learn from her. The intricacy of crotchet to create three dimensional objects amazes me. Selected products from Pan will be available on the KALA platform.
Cro-net on prototyping stage, we tested on fruits and vegs
We also want to practice good collaborative work and share the idea of co-creating. Together we create new products which reflect both design principles and directions, be they KALA’s and Pan’s. For instance, our first co-creation is the crotchet produce bags with bamboo handles and shoulder straps. We call them “Cro-net bagâ€. The produce bags are great substitutes for plastic bags for groceries. Cro-net is distinctive (made of crocheted natural materials which are worked by hand) and you can switch between the bamboo handles and shoulder straps easily according to your needs. And this bag, I am sure, is just the beginning of our collaboration.
Cro-net highlights KALA’s small steps to promote more sustainable living and at the same time it highlights Pan’s exquisite crotchet techniques. They are handcrafted, each one of them by Pan. Final products options are blue and green.
Pan hand crafting Cro-nets (the Crotchet Net produce bags)
ABOUT PAN XIAO XING
The brand was created in 2013 and it started with coffee and craft shops. As a hobby, Pan likes to make all kind of hand crafts including weaving, wood art, cloth art etc. She likes to hand create. In the last two years gradually the brand becomes a full-time artisanal studio in her hometown Taizhou, Tiantai County.
Pan is taking us to the journey on how to make Cro-net, from a simple sketch to finished products:
Step-by-step making processes
Due to the artisanal nature of the product, we are launching the first few through Mia (Wechat ID: miatedjosaputro), or scan her QR code as follow. Available in GREEN and BLUE. They are also available in Weidian.
You can also view this article in our official WeChat account:
For English : https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/y-oxoCoZ10oUQ7dthldmtA
For Chinese (ä¸æ–‡) : https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/IDZqyHlnVzy72PjmuMfm-A
ABOUT KALA
KALA was founded by Mia and Elza Tedjosaputro, in May 2020. KALA provides high quality stylish home decor and accessories that highlight a few simple attainable changes towards an eco-friendly lifestyle. There is always an Indonesian touch ensuring we empower our craftsmen and promote Indonesian culture and craftsmanship. KALA’s specific design language is the use of natural materials and artisanal, with a sense of play of texture and product functionality. We are based in Indonesia and China.
