K'ai & Vrosi

“Peshtemal“ is a multicoloured striped pattern textile woven from cotton yarn. What makes it so unique is the way it is manufactured and the story behind it. It is even considered as a cultural heritage.

The women of the Black Sea region used their “peshtemal” as a scarf and as a garment, while they collected nuts and tea, while they worked on lands fertilized by the rain.

What did we do? We changed the utilization area of the “peshtemal” and we adapted it to everyday life. We brought the “peshtemal” that are weaved using wooden loom which has only a few craftsmen left and which is sunk into oblivion, with genuine leather and handwoven baskets. We designed unique products by combining each of the unique peshtemals that are 100% weaved by using hand looms, with leather in the hands of master craftsmen. We strongly believe that you will welcome these products with love.

We named this unparalleled initiative as K’ai & Vrosi

Why? Because these two words mean “GOOD” in the Laz language. Therefore it is a reduplication. But “K’ai” is predominantly used in Artvin, Arhavi region and “Vrosi” is mostly used by Laz people of Ardeşen. This reduplication is formed by words belonging to these two regions. Therefore, we reflected the diversity of the region into our brand name.

Craftsmen can earn almost five times more of the “peshtemal” price that they will weave on the loom in three days in today's conditions from a day's work in orchards, therefore they move away from traditional weaving as a profession and also they are having a hard time finding buyers because of the unfair competition caused by the mechanical fabrication. This causes the traditional fabrication of the red, yellow and black striped garment that symbolizes the region to be sunk into oblivion. We, as K’ai & Vrosi are a first in this field in Turkey and we set off a journey, for keeping our traditional value, the Black Sea “peshtemal” weaved on the wooden hand loom, alive and to support local production.

We reinterpreted this fabric which is the product of very rich culture and which utilization area had been diminished in the modern era. The ”peshtemal” that came to life by the use of leather in contemporary and useful pieces will hereupon be present on every person and in every street corner. The time has come for us to pay our debt to the Black Sea.