Linen napkins

We are proud! Commissioned by NRC, we have been able to develop an exclusive set of linen napkins and have them embroidered by hand in one of our workshops in Tunisia.

The napkins are made of supernumerary linen and silk yarn from the European high fashion industry and are temporarily available from NRC webshop in a numbered, limited edition.

The embroidery workshop where these napkins are made is located in eastern Tunisia, where embroidery has traditionally been very important. Najib learned the craft from his parents and started his own studio a few years ago. There are currently 5 women working in the studio, whom he has trained as a professional embroiderer. Najib would like to preserve the craft for the next generation and is therefore happy that younger women also work in his studio.

Fair Fabrics NRC cadeauspecial artisan workshop napkins

Najib, sister Zehra and the artisan embroiderers.

In the Netherlands, all napkins are sorted, provided with a wrapper and neatly packed by Monique and Lucy van Onze Zaak. Onze Zaak is a protected workplace for employees with a mental, psychological and physical disability.

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Monique and Lucy from Onze Zaak

For example, we are working on an increasingly accurate chain, in which we not only pay attention to working conditions, but also consider an inclusive field of work, recycling and upcyling of materials and sustainable logistics solutions.

But let’s not forget that, of course, the napkins turned out beautiful. They are made of supple and soft linen and each has a warm color as a base, on which a very subtle interplay of lines has been embroidered by hand. The yarns are made of silk, cotton and viscose and, like the linen, come from surplus stocks from the European high fashion industry. Top-quality materials that remained in the warehouses because the color just didn’t match, designs or entire collections were changed after ordering the fabric or have expired, but also simply because too much was ordered from the weaving mills.

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Image: Mathijs Labadie

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Image: Mathijs Labadie

Tunisia has gone through a turbulent time with, among other things, the highest Covid-19 infection rates of the entire African continent, but also national and international political unrest. The income of many trade studios has often been lost due to the recent economic downturn. With this special collaboration between NRC webshop and Fair Fabrics, Najib’s embroidery cooperative was provided with work for 1.5 months at a fair price, napkins with a beautiful impact.

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Image: Mathijs Labadie

This product is exclusively available at the NRC webshop

Each set consists of 6 napkins in 2 different colours. There are 2 different color sets available: black & olive yellow and black & warm anthracite.

Colours: black, olive yellow and warm anthracite

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Image: Mathijs Labadie

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Image: Mathijs Labadie

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Image: Najib