The Community Development Department, Ministry of Interior, has recently released Donkoi Model, a Thai-English bilingual book that details the Donkoi Model project in Donkoi village of Phanna Nikhom district of Sakon Nakhon.
The project is inspired by the Donkoi's Indigo Weaving Group that has used their wisdom to produce fabrics from natural fibres and dyes, earning extra income apart from growing rice which is their main occupation.
Their ability caught the attention of HRH Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana Rajakanya, who is interested in Thai traditional weaving and has turned this community into a national model for fabric quality development. That's where the Donkoi Model project took form.
A record of knowledge model for complete product development to revive the indigenous wisdom and adapt it to the contemporary era, the book is created under the "Fun With Thai Fabrics" theme initiated by the princess, which employs branding and storytelling to add more value to the end products and bring sustainability to the community.
Inside the book is the story about the various cultures of indigo blue and how different civilisations used the colour, indigo-yielding plants worldwide, and how the indigo dyeing technique was brought into the Northeast of Thailand by ethnic immigrants during the early Rattanakosin era.
It recounts the founding and expansion of Donkoi village as well as the four community groups that have joined the Donkoi Model project.
Donkoi Model is available in a digital format. Community Development Department
Readers will learn about the natural dyes, various dyeing methods, indigo plants and their cultivation, how to prepare an indigo dye vat, step-by-step indigo dyeing method using 10 indigo hues, traditional fibre preparation process, weaving process, and traditional and new motifs.
Also presented is the fashion collection by Donkoi Sakon, a new brand by top designers who use fabrics from the Donkoi Model project. The book is also available in a digital format and can be downloaded free of charge.
Visit donkoimodel.com/flipbook.
