These shawls are made of pure 100% wool at the Pavlovo
Posad factory, in a small old Russian town not far from Moscow.
The factory works since 1812 and has long traditions and valueless
experience. Skillfully artists designed many patterns of shawls
and continue to develop new shawl designs. The shawls are soft as
were made of pure wool fabric, paints which are used for printing
of shawls are bright and very stable.
There are many different designs of such shawls, different background
color. The shawl can have woolen or silk fringe, some shawls do
not have fringe. As well these shawls differ by density of fabric
- regular dansity of so called double dencity
Below is a short dscription of history of
Pavlovo Posad factory
History of Pavlovo Posad shawls
Pavlovo Posad is an ancient Russian town about 60 kilometers from
Moscow. It is well known as the
home of hereditary textile workers. The Pavlovo Posad factory for
production of woolen shawls was founded in 1795 by Ivan Labsin.
His business was continued by his sons and grandsons. Thus in the
middle on 19-th century the first fast-printed shawls were produced
on result of business activity of Jakov Labsin - a great-grandson
of Ivan Labsin.
In the very beginning shawls were woven of yarns. It took much
time to produce a shawls and as a result those shawls were quite
expensive. A single shawl could take up to 18 months to complete.
During the 19th century different and more cost effective methods
were used in the manufacturer. Highly skilled weavers and designers
were sought after as the demand grew.
Gradually printed woolen shawls replaced costly color woven shawls.
Some of the elaborate color weaving was replaced by printed designs.
Until late in the 19th Century shawls were decorated by means of
hard wood block printing. A different wood block was used for each
color.
Metal plate printing replaced block printing in the late 19th century
and roller printing soon followed although fewer colors were used.
Designers and artists of Pavlovo Posad produced harmonious combinations
with rich color schemes usually leaving the center space blank.
Gradually the shawls took on a wider range of designs taking into
consideration the tastes of different people. The Pavlovo Posad
shawls were always in large demand. 
After revolution in 1917 the factory was nationalized. In that
time due to the lack of raw materials and fuel the factories were
closed but soon after that period passed Pavlovo Posad was again
producing the sought after shawl. In the 1937 Paris World Fair Pavlovo
Posad was awarded the Grand Prix of the whole exhibition. Pavlovo
Posad was internationally recognized as the masters of shawl design
and quality. After the Second World War a new generation of designers
won the Major award at the Brussels World Trade Fair in 1959.
Here are some most often asked questions. Spend a couple of minutes
to read them. They will be very useful to those who wear and use
Pavlovo Posad shawls.
1. Can shawls be washed?
Making such colorful shawls designers meet a dilemma: to make
a bright shawls and use for this purpose less fading proof dies
or to use more firm dies that better stand to washing but to receive
less bright and less colorful shawls. Pavlovo Posad shawls traditionally
are bright and colorful, they can not be made using only firm
dies. So this is not recommended to wash shawls, use only dry
cleaning. By the way for any woolen materials washing is not recommended..
Anyway at your own risk you can wash woolen shawls but use for
this not hot water with temperature less than 30 °C (86 °
F). Use for this special washing dusts for wool. After washing
rinse it in a warm water, then in cold. Washing in cold water
add into water some vinegar. Then squash and dry the shawl spreading
it on a horizontal surface.
2. What materials are used for production of shawls.
As it was told before only 100 % wool is used for production
of Pavlovo Posad shawls, it makes them so warm and comfortable.
3. What to do if a shawl get wet (for instance after raining
or snowing)?
You should dry a shawl as fast as possible. Do not dry it close
to open fire and do not place it on a heating devices. It will
make woolen fibers to be brittle and will cause shrinkage of a
shawl.
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