Icicle 10 Years Of Canton Gauze: A Treasure Of Lingnan Silk

Gambiered Canton Gauze is a handcrafted, millennium-old eco-friendly textile born from the perfect convergence of climate, geography, and human artistry. A specialty of Shunde District in Foshan, Guangdong Province, and a protected Chinese Geographical origin product, it is among the most storied fabrics in the Chinese tradition.

Known also as “Singing Cloud Silk,” Canton Gauze traces its origins to the Song Dynasty. Silk is imbued with the juice of the Dioscorea cirrhosa (a kind of yam) root, then catalysed by immersion in regional river mud and transformed through an exacting sequence of triple washing, nine steamings, and eighteen sun-dryings. This singular alchemy yields a fabric with a matt russet-brown face and a glistening obsidian reverse – a hallmark of its exceptional value. Produced only during specific months of the year, it is known within the textile industry as “soft gold.” Retaining the suppleness of traditional silk while acquiring a distinctively crisp hand, Canton Gauze deepens and evolves organically with wear, taking on new textures over time.

Since 2016, following many years of research, ICICLE has collaborated directly with the artisans of Shunde to bring this extraordinary fabric into a contemporary context. Debuting in ICICLE’s Natural Way collection, Canton Gauze has since become a seasonal fixture in the ICICLE wardrobe. Focusing on its inherent qualities of dryness, breathability, and crispness, ICICLE’s design teams have introduced it across a range of wardrobe essentials whose practical simplicity is rendered ethereal by the properties and tones of this silk – either with its beetle carapace deep black gleam or the mattest of chestnut accents. These pieces highlight the fabric’s nuanced textures and refined craftsmanship while affirming an unmistakable Asian sensibility which is equally suited to contemporary urban life anywhere. Each garment ages as a living object, its poetry deepening over time – a testament to the enduring wisdom of eco-conscious creation and the assured dialogue between Eastern craftsmanship and the modern wardrobe.

ICICLE founded in Shanghai in 1997, ICICLE creates high-quality clothing and accessories from the finest natural materials, with respect for people and the environment. Since then, ICICLE has gained international renown as a manufacturer of clothing that combines quality and comfort. A modernity signed “MADE IN EARTH”. ICICLE’s success is built on the vision of its founding partners, YE Shouzeng and TAO Xiaoma.

The company’s philosophy is based on a trinity of Chinese values: 敬天 (Jing Tian): A sincere respect for the world around us. 爱人 (Ai Ren): A benevolence towards other. 惜物 (Xi Wu): An appreciation of what is given to us.

ICICLE’s mission is to connect people and nature by offering clothing for living and working while respecting the environment and always paying homage to the natural. Fully vertically integrated, the company adopts a rigorous approach to sourcing premium materials while pioneering intentional design and advanced manufacturing techniques in its own factories. The products are designed to last as long as possible, with a refined aesthetic where rigour meets casual elegance, following a responsible design process to avoid resource waste. This gentle minimalism ensures garments of intrinsic natural beauty that become companions for life. Today, ICICLE has developed a network of 235 boutiques worldwide, including 230 in over 100 cities across China. In 2013, a Design Centre opened in Paris, with the appointment of Bénédicte Laloux as Artistic Director. ICICLE inaugurated its first international address at 35 Avenue George V in Paris in 2019.

ICICLE is part of the ICCF Group (Icicle Carven China France), a Franco-Chinese fashion group, which has brought together since 2021 ICICLE in China and the Parisian fashion house CARVEN in France. This unique alliance found its concrete embodiment in 2024 with the inauguration of the ICCF Garden: an architectural space housing stand-alone stores for ICICLE men’s and women’s collections and CARVEN, alongside the refined culinary experiences of ICCF’s restaurant and gourmet café SILEX, centred around a beautifully landscaped garden on Shanghai’s prestigious Hengshan Road.