Khadi and Co: Cloth with a Conscience
To discover true craftsmanship, one must sometimes journey far. For Danish designer Bess Nielsen, that journey began in 1976, when a trip to India first introduced her to khadi, a cloth that is as humble as it is powerful. Hand-spun and handwoven, this revered fabric carries with it centuries of tradition and the revolutionary spirit of India’s Freedom Movement. For Mahatma Gandhi, khadi was as a statement of self-reliance, dignity, and independence.
Khadi and Co. Dress. Image courtesy of Khadi and Co.
For Bess Nielsen, it became a lifelong calling.
Through Khadi and Co, founded in Paris in 2003, Nielsen has created a brand that is both international and deeply rooted. Collaborating for more than 25 years with master artisans across India - from the silk weavers of Bengal to the cotton spinners of Punjab - she bridges the elegance of Danish design with the integrity of Indian handloom. Every thread is hand-loomed, touched kindly by human hands.
Khadi and Co. Shawl. Image courtesy of Khadi and Co.
“There is a luxury in softness, in breathability, in the feel of something made slowly,” Nielsen says. “True luxury is that which gives just as much to one’s spirit as it does to one’s material needs.” Far from the noise of fashion trends, Khadi and Co speaks a more considered language of grace, durability, and care.
Her palette is quiet but expressive: deep indigo, cardinal red, soft chalky white. These are clothes that don’t shout for attention, but quietly draw you in with a purposeful story.
Khadi and Co. artisan maker and master weaver. Image courtesy of Khadi and Co.
Khadi is a textile that resists mass production. Its rarity is its strength. To work with it is to embrace slowness, imperfection, and above all, connection. For Nielsen, that connection is not only to the fabric itself, but to the people who make it, the land it grows from, and the values it sustains. Khadi and Co fosters thoughtful collaboration from India to Paris, built on mutual respect and shared purpose.
This is not fashion for fashion’s sake. It’s a philosophy stitched into every seam and a belief that what we wear can reflect how we choose to live. Non-violent by design, Khadi and Co is a circle: from the hands of the weaver, to the body of the wearer, and back again.
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Image Credits:
Lead Image: Versaille dress, crafted from handwoven Andhra cotton from India. Khadi and Co. Photo credit: a unefille.