Somporn Intaraprayong, Wandee Jitnirat
Sewing Lives Together
Ivory hand-stitched designs, patchwork indigo textiles, and upcycled accessories are just a few of the iconic staples of Somporn Intaraprayong’s collection. A self-taught textile artist, Intaraprayong has taken her creativity, passion, and discipline across various regions in Thailand to teach women to sew clothing and accessories by hand using traditional techniques and stitches. Ever the innovator, Somporn began experimenting with banana sap as a dye in 2022. These fruitful experiments will result in Somporn bringing new textiles that are dyed with plants and leaves in resist-dye techniques.
One of four children in Takhli, Thailand, Somporn worked hard to help support her family, but always had an eye for fashion and design. She shares that it was during the Vietnam War that Somporn would find clothes from the American G.I.s to repurpose, “I wore trousers and jeans instead of skirts and my own style of haircut, nothing proper like that of other kids.” Recognizing her ambitions, her family sent her to live with relatives in a surrounding city, where Somporn could receive an education. Throughout college she worked and volunteered for every job she could find: she lived in a slum in Bangkok for two years collecting data for an NGO documentary; she went on tour upcountry with an educational puppet show and bought Hill Tribe handicrafts to sell in markets back in Bangkok; she searched out inexpensive fabrics and made clothes and accessories to sell. After graduating, she took every baht she had and bought a small stall in the Bangkok weekend market. Her reputation for finding and selling unique, funky, handmade items, including her own handmade clothes, grew. That was how she met Vichai Chinalai, a former architect and current antique dealer. They began to work together, through Chinalai Modern, to promote traditional weaving, dyeing, and sewing.
Now a textile artist for over 30 years, Somporn bases her clothing, bags, and woven designs on village Hill Tribe and other ethnic traditions using mostly handwoven and naturally dyed rare or unusual fabric. No bit of cloth is wasted: leftover scraps are transformed into patchwork clothing or accessories like adjustable cloth necklaces. Damaged vintage and antique traditional textiles are rescued and repurposed into new clothes, bags, and accessories. A portion of the income from sales goes to support school kids in Somporn’s hometown, Takhli. Together, Somporn and Chinalai Modern have built a new school building, supplied computers and educational materials and toys, and repaired and restored school grounds and play areas in two elementary schools.
In addition to stunning textiles, Somporn brings dazzling sterling silver jewelry courtesy of Wandee Jitnirat. By providing sterling silver with which to work, as well as design input, jeweler Wandee Jitnirat is helping to keep the silversmithing tradition alive, specifically among Yao and Hmong men and women, who are among the most recognized Hill Tribe craftspeople. Rather than produce copies of traditional Hill Tribe jewelry, under Wandee's auspices the designs are relatable but with a modern twist. Wandee and her husband have a history of working with NGOs throughout Thailand, helping families living in Sakon Nakhon Province.
