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WHAT WE DO

For Anwesha, The Paper Place is not merely a shop or a business. It is her haven. She chooses and surrounds herself with the most beautiful papers and paper products that it is inevitable for anyone coming in to her shop to say 'what a beautiful shop'. Another common reaction is 'this paper is too beautiful to use for wrapping'. But that is exactly her point...that beauty, at an affordable price, can surround you and uplift you. She advocates William Morris' maxim...Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.

Almost all the paper in her shop is made from cotton rags and wool waste. The cards are entirely handmade, as are the gift envelopes, ribbon boxes, florets, bags, tags and pouches. These are all made entirely from recycled cotton rags and wool waste. The writing papers are made from mill made paper. The gold embellished wrapping paper is made from 50% recycled newspapers. But these are all silkscreened by hand. The wrapping paper is calendared and cut and then the silk screening process begins. This is done meticulously by hand in Bombay (yes, she still calls it Bombay and always will) and takes as many days as the number of colours on a paper or card. The people who do this silk screening used to work in the fabric industry, but the digital printing process has made them redundant. Thankfully they have found an outlet for their skill and Anwesha supports this wholeheartedly.

In keeping with our philosophy of supporting global and local creative crafting we encourage both upcycling daily use items with our fine papers, and using them for wrapping for purely decorative purposes. These papers can be used as draw liners, shelf lining, and decoupage covers for fancying up trays, furniture tops, picture mounts for photographs or art. Local sculptors and artists have produced decorative clay animal heads, fine art water colours have been beautifully mounted on backings of our fine gold embellished paper.

Cashmiri Crewelcraft
Crewelwork as a crafting technique is an ancient tradition, often thought to originate in Jacobean times, it is possibly much older. Traced back to the mountain bound communities of Kashmir, this way of embroidery art is used to embellish rugs, fabrics for the home and personal wear. In modern times wool working is mainly used to reflect the beauty of the natural world around the artisan workers, as they inhabit a sadly war-torn land. Kashmir has been between two warring nations for so long that these communities must find beauty in adversity to create a means of livelihood. Wherever these folk relocate they carry and continue their crafting techniques. We source our beautifully crafted shawls, cushion covers and rugs and wall hangings from a small village on the outskirts of Srinagar, the capital city. The evocative embroidery is done mainly by the older menfolk in the community, as their way to contribute to their livelihood. The younger more able-bodied men do the dyeing and felting of the wool, sourced from the sheep farms they keep. The waste from this industry goes into making the Paper in a sort of cross-industry support. The small handicraft making resilient communities that continue to inhabit the difficult war-torn region of northern India, which lies between two warring nations, defy daily strife by producing stunning handcrafted, artisan items. Right from the handloomed cashmere shawls, lacquered papier-mâché baubles, Kashmiri willow heart baubles and eggs, and crewelwork rugs and cushion covers, this small community supports itself by creating beauty in adversity. The small community just outside Srinagar, which we support, has worked with their hands using what natural resources are available to them to produce unique beautifully crafted products.