When you think of air quality, it’s easy to picture numbers, charts, or abstract data. But what if those figures could become something tangible—something you could touch, wear, and carry with you? That’s the heart of Vaasla, a stole that weaves the story of air quality into Lambadi embroidery. In the Lambadi language, Vaasla means “breathe,” and this piece transforms invisible statistics into a visual connection you can feel. Crafted by the skilled women of Porgai Lambadi Artisans in Tamil Nadu, it marries tradition with a pressing call for cleaner air.
Air pollution is a quiet crisis—it chips away at our health, livelihoods, and even the global economy, costing trillions annually. If we don’t act, the losses could pile up. Through Vaasla we take this reality and threads it into something striking yet intimate, through the language of craft.
The journey started small, with experiments in translating data into textile. I found inspiration in Record, Map & Capture in Textile Art by Jordan Cunliffe—a brilliant guide that lit the way for blending data with design. Early on, I toyed with block printing paired with embroidery to keep costs down, though it stretched timelines across multiple artisans. Meanwhile, Porgai sampled embroidery patterns, testing colours and stitches to find the perfect ba. I also sketched layouts digitally to map out the vision.
Initial block printed sample:

Layout designed using the Lambadi embroidery stitches:


To plan the colour, I first leaned into familiar idioms: vibrant pink for “in the pink of health” to mark pristine air, a cautionary violet for a “violet hue” as quality dipped, and deep blue for “feeling blue” in hazardous zones. But the team at CEEW, our collaborators, pointed out that blue is central to their brand—and they didn’t want it cast in a negative light. So, we pivoted.

Some digital ideas on the layout:



After several iterations, we landed on a design that spoke clearly. Shades of grey told the stark truth: 54 out of 100 people breathe air seven times worse than WHO guidelines, marked in heavy grey; 44 out of 100 face poor air, in a lighter shade. Then, a single line of blue-yellow motifs—bright and delicate—stood for the rare 1 out of 100 who breathe air within safe limits. Through traditional embroidery, this stole turned cold data into a vivid, human story.
The final layout designed digitally:




Vaasla is more than fabric. It’s a quiet nudge to care about the air we share, a celebration of artisans preserving their craft, and a call to action stitched into every thread. It’s hope you can hold—a reminder to come together, breathe freely, and weave a healthier future.
