Pink Brown Copper – the colours of life

Pink…Brown…Copper! Imagine what will happen when these gorgeous colours combine together! Their combination would create something very unique and refreshingly innovative. If you want to maintain the cool factor in your wardrobe or accessories, a few of these gorgeous items from Pink Brown Copper are a must have.

Meet 29-year-old Nitya Amarnath, the Founder of Pink Brown Copper that was launched in November 2011. A Graduate from the National Institute of Design (NID) and a passion for textiles, Nitya has worked with several textile based companies and studios that focused on recycled projects as well as prints for textile design labels. It’s this passion that has led her to develop the Pink Brown Copper (PBC) label.

Nitya mentions, “Pink, Brown and Copper are the colours that remind us of India. Each colour reminds us of the warmth, vibrancy and rich heritage of our culture, tradition and people. The products are rooted within the rural people and the bags are handmade by these rural people. The product being uniquely customised as they don’t tend to have a copy and each product has been well thought and executed. In the process of making the product, the person’s life and their stories get woven into it. The vibrancy in the product also reflects the vibrancy in their life and around them.”

How did it all begin?

After having worked in the textile industry for more than five years, Nitya earned a lot of goodwill from artisans, passion for textiles and design and a desire to create her own brand, which eventually led to the creation of Pink Brown Copper.

“Pink Brown Copper was started with the thought of focusing on a range of products ‘Handmade in India’. Most of our products are handmade and made from recycled material. With plastic, we tried to reinvent the technique of basketry. We work with around 12-15 artisans in Madurai, Mumbai and Bhagalpur, and will continue to do so in the future by hopefully creating sustainable employment,” adds Nitya.

Challenges faced

Nitya mentions, “The biggest challenge was to make sure that the final product developed is similar to what we had envisioned it to be. A lot of time and effort goes into creating every single bag. The coloured plastics take the longest, as we have to decide how we want the colours to interact with each other and most times the artisan will interchange some colour. So then fresh colours have to be introduced to balance the error and so on. It takes around 15-20 days to create these coloured plastic bags.

Products offered

A lot of the silk textile waste is taken from factories that are handspun and hand-woven into a new fabric. Every product is very unique and different and takes a fair amount of time and effort.  Since their ‘Plastic Bags’ are handmade each bag takes a minimum of 10 – 15 days. The Shirt Bags that is take anywhere between 3 – 5 days.

Pink Brown Copper creates these gorgeous accessories and home décor items that are a must have.

Cushion Covers

The cushions are 100% handmade. The fabric is hand-woven with handspun silk, in from Northern India.  It’s a product used best to lounge upon or for reading a good book.

The Plastic Bag

Nitya mentions, “The Plastics as we call them are bags made from an age old technique of basketry. Meter long strands of cane, grass or wire are taken and constructed into spectacular three-dimensional structures. “

She further adds, “The women in my mother’s hometown in Madurai are also among the few remaining ladies who keep these old construction methods alive. Entwined in meters of multi-coloured wire, each basket or bag takes about 12 to 15 days to construct into a stunning piece. The construction technique of the Plastics makes them strong and able to bear any weather. “

Its versatility lies in how it can be used, as a bag to take to college, on a sunny day to the beach, sailing with your family and friends or even vegetable shopping.

Shirt Bag

Pink Brown Copper also is high on upcycling, where they create new products through waste materials. Vintage and unused shirts and fabrics are brought together to create a sculpted up-cycled product. The story telling, at the core of PBC, continues adding more layers into the life of a product. Nitya adds, “I gather these raw materials when people inform me when they are throwing away their fabric ends or giving away their old clothes, or clothes that don’t fit or they didn’t wear much. If I see something I like, I tell the person to inform me before they plan to discard the fabric.”

The bag is almost 100% recycled and handmade in Mumbai and the product is also unique for no other replica exists of it, making it more special.

“We work with a lot of artisans from Mumbai. One such artisan was open to experimentation and recycling. The idea of it challenged him, as he had never done it before and I paid him well for his work. Currently we are also working on a new collection for Home Textiles and Home Accessories as well and will be launching it soon, “confirms Nitya.

Price range

Pink Brown Copper products and their pricing:

• The Plastics range from INR800 – INR2,200.
• The Shirt Bags made of textile cotton waste is priced at INR 1,400 and those made from handwoven silk is at INR 1,700.
• The Cushion Covers are a 36 “X 36” ranging from INR 1,300 – 1,500

We currently are promoting Pink Brown Copper through various social media platforms, e-stores, editorial coverage and through word of mouth. Though they don’t have a physical store presence as of now but are retailing through online stores and through Facebook.

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