Our ship has sailed

The Pukka PJs' ship has sailed! Before you get too excited, I should say that I’m talking metaphorically. Pukka PJs’ first collection of pyjamas isn’t due to set sail just yet. However, my adventure of exploration, dreams and discovery, on the way to becoming an apparel retailer, is well underway.

So, what is a former investment banker doing starting a fashion business? A few years ago, a dear sister-in-law bought me a set of beautiful, loose fitting, soft, pure cotton pyjamas: they were pukka - the real deal. I wore them until they were threadbare and have never been able to replace them. Comfy, cotton pyjamas have become extremely hard to find. I then had the canny idea of creating a set for 'all-seasons' by adding a sleeveless top for layering under a long-sleeved tunic top.

While pyjamas are hardly the bricks and mortar of our clothing wardrobe, they nurture relaxation and they breathe a calm glow into our downtime. They are our soft place to fall when we come home and they embody a warm familiarity which harks back to the nostalgia of childhood. Regardless of where we are, they are a hug from home. Why then has it become so difficult to find pukka pyjamas?

When embarking on this adventure, I realised that I want to offer pyjamas which are not only fabulous but also reflect my heritage and have a story to tell, which have been created by human hands, are unique - yet affordable - and reflect generations of skill, culture and tradition. They have a provenance which values human creativity and imagination over mechanised mass production and is committed to safeguarding traditional craftsmanship.

India was my father’s boyhood home and I first visited India when I was only six months old. My English mother has had a love affair with Indian textiles all her married life and this has greatly influenced my own sense of style. It’s only proper then that my pyjamas are being made in India, in the desert state of Rajasthan where -  for hundreds of years - entire villages have derived their livelihood from turning the beautiful patterns and colours of hand block printing into exquisite textiles. While designing and choosing my own prints, I have endeavoured to marry tradition with modern aesthetics. I hope you will love them!