Creating A Colourful Collaboration – The Cowdray and Shades Of Cool London Partnership

Here at Shades of Cool London, we’re always looking for exciting and authentic designs for our beautiful traditional Dohar blankets. So, when I was approached by Marina Cowdray with some stunning designs created by her grandfather, Alistair Maynard, I was thrilled to explore the opportunity to forge an even stronger connection between the Cowdray family and Jaipur – the city in India where our Dohar blankets are produced. 

The Cowdray Jaipur Connection

The Cowdray family and Jaipur have long been connected through the sport of polo and the Late Maharaj Prem Singh. The Late Maharaja Singh was one of the top polo players of the mid-20^th century, having reached the peak of his career in England in 1952-3. Having been invited to play for the Woolmers Park team by L. Arthur Lucas, he helped the team go on to win every English tournament in the 1953 season, including the Midhurst Cup, the Subsidiary Cup, the Senior Cup and, of course, the Cowdray Cup. Not only did the late Maharaja Singh and Jaipur’s polo team compete in the Gold Cup British Open Championship tournament at the Cowdray Polo grounds, but the late John Lakin and 3^rd Viscount John Cowdray played at the Jaipur polo grounds close to the Rambagh Palace, hence the strong connection was forged. 

Alistair Maynard’s Designs

The historical Jaipur/Cowdray connection came back to the fore when Marina Cowdray approached me with some stunning designs that were created by her grandfather, Alistair Maynard. You can find out more about this skilled designer here. (insert link)I was grateful and excited about the opportunity to use one of them for our latest Dohar range and emailed the original design to our Jaipur-based team of artisans. Despite the intricacy of the pattern, our block maker was willing to rise to the challenge and turned the design into a sketch ready to be carved into a number of wooden blocks. Our exciting collaboration had begun! 

An Intricate Challenge

The project presented some interesting challenges for our artisans. Not only was the pattern extremely intricate, but we also took the decision to use no less than seven colours – far more than the traditional three to four that would normally be used for block printing. Every colour in the design requires its own separate carved woodblock, so the colours can be printed one after another, it isn’t too surprising that the seven blocks that we needed for sampling took our experienced and talented wood block carvers in Jaipur so long to create. Once the blocks were complete, we moved onto sampling the colours at the block printers, experimenting with different colourways until, at last, we found the ideal colour combination. 

The next stage of our project commenced by printing the samples to find out whether any of the blocks required adjustments. Our team made several samples including an organic cotton kimono and two different Dohar styles – one in the traditional design with a central printed layer, and one with a plain central layer and double sided printed layers. Eventually, the samples arrived here in the UK and we couldn’t have been happier with the colours and the quality. The time had come to move onto production. 

Delays And Setbacks 

Although we were eager to get on with the process of production, the monsoon season was upon us which meant that we had to wait as humidity in the air affects the print quality. The blocks also needed repairs as the humidity had damaged them. Not only that, but Diwali caused yet more delays as the artisans return home to celebrate with their families for several days in their own villages. It wasn’t until January 2023 that the project finally got back on track and I was able to travel to Jaipur to finalise the process of blocking a kilometre of gorgeous mul mul fabric. 

The Printing Process

Before we could begin the direct pigment printing process, the gentle azo-free dyes had to be prepared. Our first attempt went quite well, however two of the green shades came out too dark and without the vibrancy of the original sample, so we went back to the drawing board. 

I couldn’t have been more impressed by the skill of our master block printer Thanks to the craftsmanship and knowledge that has been handed down for generations within their community, the adjustments they made for the second attempt ensured that the exact shades were matched perfectly and the 10-day printing period could get started. 

The Final Stage

Once the beautifully printed fabric had been dried, washed, and then dried again, it was transported to the atelier where the process of cutting the pattern and stitching could begin. Two weeks later, the final products were ready. After one last inspection, we shipped the items back to the UK ready for sale. 

We’re incredibly excited about this collaboration between Shades Of Cool London and the Cowdray family, not least because of the long-standing connection with Jaipur, the centre of our creative operations. We’re sure that you’ll love the new intricate designs just as much as we do.