distinctly himalayan imports

Distinctly Himalayan is an accessories company owned and operated by a husband-and-wife team: Jamyang Lodoe and Jennifer Neufeld. By partnering directly with socially conscious artisans, women’s collectives and family run businesses throughout Tibet, India and Nepal, the organization provides stable income for hundreds of families. With more than just an in-depth knowledge of local cultures and businesses, their goal is simple: to provide a growing volume of orders for artisans to flourish and bring more people into the fold, all while maintaining the highest standards of style and quality that buyers expect. 

Of equal importance to them, Distinctly Himalayan develops fibers and dying and printing techniques that are truly eco-friendly. For example, their current collection features a felted recycled sari silk shrug, scarves hand-loomed from banana plant (the most sustainable local fiber they've found), and accessories colored with all-natural vegetable dyes and mud-resist block prints on natural fibers. Distinctly Himalayan uses the minimum number of production steps, never softening their accessories with a chemical treatment: a common manufacturing practice even on handcrafted items.

One of the organization's mottos is “Imagination cures the chaos in the heart.” It is a Tibetan proverb Jamyang’s mother often repeated, perhaps in response to unvoiced questions about his refugee existence. For him, as for his parents, a homeland of Tibet now exists only in the imagination, but his heritage and enduring culture will always provide inspiration.