Customer Care

Things to know about Kilomet109 products

Hand-woven fabrics

Kilomet109 collaborates with several artisan communities from the

remote northern region of Vietnam to grow, weave, and dye the natural

fabrics used in our clothing. Each group employs unique techniques

honed, cultivated, and passed down by the extraordinary women in

these communities from generation to generation.

The cotton, hemp, and silk fibers we use are all grown and woven by

hand. This can create some welcome irregularities in fabric thickness

which are hallmarks of hand made textiles and which ensure that each

piece has a distinct feel and look. The hand-woven raw cotton and

hemp pieces are designed to last and will become softer over time and

with each wash, much like your favorite denim jacket.

Botanical dyes

Kilomet109 uses traditional dyeing practices for many of our products.

This includes natural dyes made from indigo, yam root, coffee, green

tea, tree bark, ebony fruit and many other locally sourced botanicals.

We are constantly experimenting with new materials and techniques to

create our dyes and to bring our textiles the spectacular colors and

shades you have come to expect from Kilomet109 products.

During the dyeing process no chemicals are added. We use all natural

dye fixers to hold the colors and each batch of fabric is hand

dyed, thus ensuring the uniqueness of each piece. Wearing and

washing the clothes will cause some color fading over time, and each

product will transform and gain its own aesthetic quality.

Batik and Calendering techniques

Kilomet109 is using two distinctive techniques from the Blue H’mong

and Black H’mong artisan communities, batik hand drawing and hemp

stone calendaring. While these crafts have existed for centuries

Kilomet109 has collaborated with these artisans to employ a more

modern and improvisational approach. The results are an exciting mix

of contemporary abstract expression and traditional craftsmanship. We

aim to push the boundaries of these textile techniques and take the

aesthetic to new places in our designs.

Basic garment care for natural dyed products:

Kilomet 109 products should be either hand washed or machine

washed in cold water, using mild detergent containing no bleach.

Natural fabrics need to be washed separately as there may be some

dye bleeding the first few washes.

SPECIAL NOTE FOR INDIGO PRODUCTS

We highly recommend wearing dark co-pieces with indigo products for

the first few wears. There can be some initial dye bleeding and

therefore extra caution should be paid to prevent any unwanted stains

on light colored co-pieces.   

Garments should be hung out to air dry in the shade. Please use low

heat to iron the clothes. If you have any questions about garment care

please feel free to contact us directly at info@kilomet109.com