Kelzang Wangmo (Jambay)

Kelzang Wangmo, also known by many as Jambay, is the owner of Kelzang Textiles in Thimphu, the capital city of the Kingdom of Bhutan. She is from Khoma in Lhuentse district (Eastern Bhutan), a village famed for its exquisite Kishuthara textiles. These intricate silk-on-silk textiles are made into ‘kiras’, the women’s national dress, and are worn on special occasions and religious festivals.

Now a master Kishuthara weaver, Kelzang started weaving when she was only 8 years old. Education opportunities were rare at the time and even more unlikely for those with modest means. At 16, she moved to the capital with her family and years later in 1995 she opened her own shop in Thimphu. She natural dyes her yarn(silk) at home using age old techniques.

In recent years, Kelzang has won several awards for her designs from the Royal Textile Academy and she is often commissioned to weave for the elite in Bhutan. It was an honor for Kelzang when the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton chose one of her ‘kira’ pieces to wear during an audience with Their Majesties the King and Queen of Bhutan in April 2016. Kelzang’s weavers are all home based from different parts of Bhutan. Some are bread-winners of the family and others are housewives. The income from weavings are used to run the household.