With social media being touted as vital for facilitating two-way conversations between brands and their customers, Patra, the silk mail-order retailer, has recently launched a new blog and Facebook page to better connect with its customer base.

“As so many of our customers shop online, we thought Facebook and the blog would be a great way of bonding with them,” says Rita Patra, Managing Director of the silk mail-order retailer. “Although we already send out emails, we felt they didn’t allow us to get to know our customers in the way that Facebook does. The blog will also be a great way of letting us showcase the benefits that Patra products and natural fabrics bring.”

These benefits range from the extra warmth that silk provides, which has been appreciated by customers with Raynaud’s Disease, to the soothing quality of silk, which is particularly beneficial to those who suffer from skin conditions such as eczema. The company’s best-selling products, Patra thermals, are also widely used in a number of sports, from skiing to horse-riding and even scuba diving, as silk is both fine and able to wick away moisture from the skin.

Patra’s blog and its Facebook page are also to provide information on sponsorship opportunities. In the past, Patra has sponsored and donated sets of its popular silk thermals to expeditions to Mount Everest, the Amazon and Mount Kilimanjaro. More recently, Patra has donated thermals to a fundraiser of a member organisation of the British Sub Aqua Club and the company is keen to be involved in other similar opportunities.

For further information on sponsorship by Patra, please contact ordersilk@patra.com.

Join the Patra Facebook page here.

In the coming months, Patra is to have a selection of its products available to purchase at the Macclesfield Silk Museums, the UK’s leading silk attraction.

“I am delighted that the Silk Museum chose us to offer our unique silk range in the Silk Museum shop,” says Rita Patra, Managing Director of the silk mail-order retailer. Patra specialises in providing high quality clothing made of silk and other natural fabrics, which makes this an ideal pairing. Patra will be offering some of its most popular products, those being the Noil Silk Button Through Top, the Noil Silk Roll Collar Top and its Pure Silk Shirts for men.

Macclesfield used to be as famous for its silk as Lyons was, with 120 mills and dye houses formerly located in the town and had Haute Couture design houses using its silk. At the Macclesfield Silk Museums, visitors can learn all about the development of the town’s silk industry through an award-winning audio visual programme and through exhibitions on silk costumes and textiles which take place at the Heritage Centre Galleries whilst there are exhibitions on the properties of silk and design education at the Park Lane Galleries. At Paradise Mill, a working Victorian Silk Mill, visitors can watch a demonstration of the weaving process and visitors can learn more about local history at West Park Museum, where decorative art material is kept.

Patra’s Noil silk tops are particularly suitable for the summer period, as being of a thicker type of silk, they are harder to crease, and so are perfect for travelling in. Patra’s pure silk shirts for men are loved for their comfort and style, and are ideal for summer as silk wicks moisture away from the skin.

With summer coming up, Patra has designed a range of new dresses, which build on customer favourites to ensure your summer is spent in clothing which is both stylish and comfortable. One such summer dress featured in the new catalogue is the Noil Silk Short Sleeve Knitted Dress (see image to the left), based on the popular Noil Silk Roll Collar Blouse and which is available in raspberry and champagne.

Rita Patra, Managing Director of the online and mail order silk clothing retailer, says of the new dress, “Our Noil Silk Roll Collar Blouse is really comfortable and good for the beach, as well as being smart. So we decided to turn it into a simple knitted dress, shaped so our customers could wear something easy-fitting and comfortable at the beach, or look utterly stylish by adding accessories.”

The Silk Short Sleeve Knitted Dress is made of Noil silk which hardly creases, which makes it perfect for travelling. Another new addition to the Summer collection is the elegant Silk Jersey Short Sleeve Dress, which comes with a charming sweetheart neckline and in a flattering cut. “Because it’s made of knitted silk,” Rita comments, “It’s also very comfortable. So not only is it ideal to wear on smarter occasions, but it’s also an item our customers will enjoy wearing for the sheer comfort it brings.”

Silk is an ideal fabric to wear in the summer, as it is fine and breathable, and adjusts to body temperature. Its ability to wick away moisture means wearers never feel too hot or uncomfortable in their clothing. The new Summer catalogue also features dresses made of cotton and linen mixes, as well as a range of tops, trousers and nightwear, amongst other items.

The Summer 2010 collection of silk clothing can be seen at www.patra.com.

Reynaud’s Phenomenon is a painful condition often triggered by the cold, which affects fingers, toes and other extremities, and is thought to affect around 10 million people in the UK.

In Reynaud’s Disease or Reynaud’s Phenomenon, the arteries in the extremities go into spasm, turning fingers and toes bluish white, making them stiff and painful. Secondary Reynaud’s is associated with an underlying disease.

Sufferers of Reynaud’s look to ways to improve circulation, and are recommended to eat regularly, especially hot drinks and meals, and take exercise, and should wear warm clothing to protect them from the cold.

International silk clothing retailer, Patra Silk, gets many requests from Reynaud’s sufferers for lightweight, but very warm, silk base layers, silk gloves and silk socks, as extra layers in the coldest weather, and as a good option for the transition to warmer months.

Silk is renowned for its temperature regularly properties. But Managing Director, Rita Patra, warns, “Silk glove liners and silk socks are excellent at keeping hands and feet warm, and we regularly supply skiers, mountaineers and trekkers, but because they are temperature-regulating, you must make sure to put them on when you’re warm, so you’ll stay warm. If you put your silk gloves on when you’re outside and starting to get cold fingers, they’ll stay cold!”

Unlike bulky woollen socks or gloves, silk socks and gloves are very thin and lightweight, and fit snugly against the skin, which makes them a popular choice for layering under mittens or thicker socks in very cold weather. For this same reason, they take the wearer through the spring, when other people no longer need to wrap up warm, those with Reynaud’s often need to continue to wear their gloves and warmer socks through the spring months, feeling the cold more acutely. Silk gloves and socks are thin and discreet, and so are very popular with Reynaud’s sufferers.