photo credit https://ruralindiaonline.org/

PASHMINA – The Soft Gold

“For the grass that you have just eaten, oh goat,
Give us some good pashm.
For the water that you have just drunk, oh goat,
Give us some good pashm.
Sit down on the grass and be still, oh goat,
So that we can take out your pashm.”

(A song the Changpa recite as they comb the pashm wool from their goats.)

 

Pashmina is considered the finest craftsmanship in the world which transforms the exceptionally warm and elegant Cashmere threads to opulent accessories. The fleece of Changthangi Goat is known as Pashm – The Soft Gold. This goat is exotic and is only found there, 15000 feet above sea level in Ladakh – Jammu and Kashmir, Tibet and some parts of China too, making the art of Pashmina even rarer all over the world.


Its all in the Process…

Pashmina is just a material, but what gives it the Royalty factor is Pashmina Shawl.

The Pashmina shawl must pass roughly 36 stages to reach the final shape where it becomes Useable.

The first step in the process consists in collecting the raw material from high altitude regions of Kashmir & Ladakh and as soon as summer sets in, the tribal people of Ladakh, Tibet and other parts of China go to the higher region to collect the same mostly on barter system. The raw wool thus collected is handed over to its collector-buyer in the hilly townships who pass it on to the traders in the Srinagar. The raw material is known as “Phumb-Wain”. While a big quantity of the raw material is collected in the Ladakh region, the bulk of it comes from Tibet and other parts of China via the mountain passes. The concerned traders in Srinagar sort it out according to grades and shades before fixing its price strand-wise.

Then comes the process of spinning Pashmina. The process begins with a sifting of rough hair from the soft material. The soft raw wool is stretched carefully, bit by bit, to complete the process known as “Puch Nawun”. The raw material is then rid of dirt and dust with the help of a 4 wide comb mounted on a foot wooden stand. This operation is known as “Absawun”. When the raw material is thoroughly combed and cleaned, it is then placed in an oval shaped engraved wooden trough (known as Tathal in the local language) roughly three feet long. Some quantity of broken rice is soaked in water for some time before it is coarsely powered with a stone pestle and sprinkled over the combed wool. The powder is known as “Khari Oat” and stone pestle as “Kajwath”. The wooden trough containing the combed wool mixed with rice powder is kept aside for three to four days. Though the wet rice powder emits a foul smell, it makes the raw wool whiter and softer. That is how the ancient treated the raw material and the practice is still in progress. Now it is time to comb the wool again more vigorously to ensure that it is perfectly clean, shedding every bit of the rice powder in the process. The raw material so cleaned is then made in the patty; like flakes locally known a “Thomb”. These oversized flakes are placed in an orderly manner in round tin boxes with lids. The material is now ready for spinning. The spinning wheel which is locally known as “Yander” is made of wood, it is three feet long with a wheel on its right side and a thin iron rod about a foot long called “Yander Tal” fixed in two grass spindles called “Kaun” in the local language on its left side. The iron rod (Yander Tal) is connected to the wheel with a piece of which serves as a beef. A piece of straw (known as “Sochne Tul” is mounted on the thin side of the iron rod and the yarn spun by is wound on it to facilitate its removal from the rod when each round of the spinning process is completed. Now, they hold a wool puff in their two left hand fingers supported by the thumb as the operation spinning begins with the turning of the wheel. While turning the wheel, the left arm goes up and down rhythmically without much effort to spin the delicate yarn. During spinning the delicate yarn gets cut a number of times but they restore it promptly. They repeat the exercise till they complete yielding a small quantity of the soft, delicate yarn.

The yarn mounted on a piece of straw is called a “Phamb Leeat”. Three or four such mounted straws are kept in a earthen bowl called “Kondul” marking the beginning of the second phase when it is turned and twisted on the wheel to make it foreplay and thus firm yet fine. So spun yarn is then mounted on a wooden spool known a “Prechh” wherefrom it is transferred on its edges. Locally it is known as “Yaeran Doul”. The yarn is called “Pun” (thread). A bunch of yarn is known as “Puyoe”. At this point, the buying pattern changes from weighing to counting.

Now begins the process of weaving. They sort out the spun stuff purchased by selling it to the weaver. The weaver in turn, sorts it out from the viewpoint of shade and fineness. Finally spun yarn is used as warp and the thick yarn as weft. The weaver then counts the stuff and weighs it too, before making entries in a register maintained for the purpose. The yarn is then put in a home-made starch which consists mainly boiled rice-water known as “Maya”. It stays like that for a couple of days in a copper bowl called “Dul” before it is spread out in sunshine to dry. The dried yarn is then untied and mounted on a wooden spoon known a “Preeh” and the process is known as “Tulun” which is generally completed in open spaces. Four to six iron rods about 4 feet in length are driven into the ground, at a shady spot by two persons working in opposite directions. This is the beginning of the process known as “Yerun” which is completed by “transferring the yarn from the “Preeh” with the help of smooth sticks. This is how the wrap is made ready for use. About 1200 threads arranged in the aforesaid manner is known as “Yaen” which suffices for making four to six shawls. The wrap is brushed and its broken threads rejoined (locally known as “Pen Kem”) before it is carefully mounted on the iron rods.

The last and the final process is Hand Embroidery. The hand embroidery/ sequin work is done by our skilled traditional artisans only.

After all this, the Pashmina Shawl is ready to be worn, cosily and beautifully!

 

 

 

kalamkari

The History and Techniques of Machilipatnam Pedana Kalamkari

KALAMKARI MACHILIPATNAM

The term kalamkari means ‘work done with a pen.’ It is now inseparably attached to the painted and block-printed cotton and silk textiles, produced in the Coromandel Coast (parts of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu) of India.

At present, two of the most prominent centers of kalamkari production are Srikala Hasti (Chittoor District) and Machilipatnam (Krishna District) in Andhra Pradesh. While in Srikala Hasti, the textiles are painted with pens made from bamboo and cotton, in Machilipatnam, the line drawing done with a pen is transferred onto wooden blocks which are carved and then used to print fabric. In Machilipatnam, the production is carried out in Karkhanas (commercial workshops), where the block makers, washers, and printers work under the same roof.

 

SO, WHAT KALAMKARI ACTUALLY MEANS?

 

As with most crafted works, the product (and on occasion the sticker price) regularly misrepresents the tremendous exertion that goes into making them. The fastidious specialty of Kalamkari includes a progression of difficult strides on the textures – to emphasize the magnificence of the fragile examples and the profundity of shadings from regular colors.

When we talk about a product’s worth the people behind the development holds an important role, and when we talk about kalamkari skilled craftsmen are appointed to deal with different undertakings like making the squares, getting ready colors, treating the fabric, washing, printing, and drying. The administrations of somewhere around 8 skilled workers are needed in making the Kalamkari texture of a solitary plan.

Earlier we have talked about the making of squares, so the wooden squares are specially made according to the plan gave. The plans are first drawn on paper and duplicated onto a wooden square. To accomplish a particular plan on the texture would require the formation of no less than 2-3 squares – one for the diagram, the other to fill the shades of the blossoms, as well as leaves and different subtleties. Cutting is an uncommon expertise created with a ton of training and tolerance.

After completing the wooden engraved design it’s time for the colors, the tones utilized for coloring are acquired from normal sources like vegetables, minerals and blossoms, leaves, and bark of various trees. The novel red tone is gotten from an answer of alum and tamarind seed powder. Tamarind seeds are powdered and bubbled until it blends in with water – and afterward, left to cool. This arrangement is separated utilizing a muslin fabric. Alum functions as astringent and helps fix the shading. Like-wise, iron metal is utilized to make dark colors where the mineral is powdered and bubbled to make an answer. The most common way of cooling and sifting is included while making every single vegetable color.

Once we are done with the color preparation, it is directly applied to a texture with the assistance of a wooden square. Contingent upon the plan, continued shading of the texture required. After each round of shading, the textures are spread in daylight for drying. If one somehow managed to watch the craftsmen at work, it is very noteworthy how they get the situation of the squares so exact (with no realistic guides) that the flat and vertical dividing are even.

Finally, when the printing is finished, colors are put cautiously. The texture is subsequently plunged in water to assist tones with getting retained in the texture equally.

 

WHY IT IS FAMOUS AS KALAMKARI MACHILIPATNAM?

Machilipatnam has demonstrated an optimal area for the art of Kalamkari to flourish because of helpful climate conditions, accessibility of regular assets for colors and mordants, running waters, and a lot of daylight. Since 2013, Machilipatnam Kalamkari has the Geographical Index tag and creation is geologically restricted to the town of Pedana, and adjoining towns of Machilipatnam, Pol­av­aram and Kappaladoddi in the Krishna locale of Andhra Pradesh.

The extraordinary allure of the Kalamkari textures lies in the lavishness of its tones – an aftereffect of fast assimilation of normal colors, and sensitive dreary themes that are a mixture of articulations from Persian and Indian societies.

handblockblog

Hand Block Printed Textiles: The Bagru Technique

Printing on fabrics is no new thing in our country rich of cultures and traditions. Printing on fabrics have been something recognized all over the globe and India has never lagged, untouched from this type of elegant craftsmanship.

In India, each design and pattern are a representation of local culture and tradition. While the rest of the world has shifted to modern ways, crafters in India still follow their traditional practices to add beauty to fabrics. There are a rich variety of printed fabrics in our country, just like our rich variety of cultures and traditions -: traditional block printing, shibori printing, bagh printing, bagru printing and ajrakh printing.

 Hand block printing has been a well recognized art since generations in different clusters in our country. Each cluster follows its own style and methods and uses the locally available materials which has their own set of specialities, and which never fails to give that touch of beauty and elegance to the fabrics.

 Bagru Printing is one of those old age traditional printing style which still prevails in the country, catches our attention, and never fail to leave us in awe.

Bagru printing is an amazing type of hand block printing. In this kind of printing, the desired pattern is engraved on the wooden block initially, and then the carved wooden block is used to replicate the design over the desired choice of fabric, and tada! Here we are with the most beautiful piece of art over fabric, and I personally like to wear the bagru print clothing, they look absolutely elegant, and I never regret walking out wearing those, ever!

 


 THE ORIGINATION OF BAGRU :

As far as I know, there lie no authentic records to justify the beginning of this unique style of art, but it is said to have begun 450 years back.

When a community of Chippas (literal meaning, those who stamp and print) visited Bagru from Sawai Madhopur, Alwar and various other locations and settled there, the bagru printing art form was introduced.

Chippas are known for their unique designs of luxuriant trellises in sophisticated natural colours. This community has never stopped till date and through consistent efforts and unity, they work in a place recognized as Chippa Maholla by Sanjaria riverside. I always walk in there only to find people engrossed in their work with dyes and blocks.

The bank of river provided them with the most essential ingredient – The clay, which is important in getting the base colour of the famed Bagru prints.

Having seen this beautiful fabric made before my eyes, I was intimidated. The artisans smear the cloth in fuller’s earth from by the river side, dip it in the turmeric water to get the cream shades for the background and then decorate them by stamping them with the desired styles and patterns using natural dyes of earthly shades. Isn’t it really amazing?

Even after all the modern dyes being available, the artisans use natural vegetable dyes for printing the cloth.

Indigo is for the making of colour blue.

Indigo mixed with pomegranate gives us the greens.

The royal red is obtained from madder root and the calming shade of yellow from turmeric.

I am absolutely amazed by this traditional practice, the simplicity and ethnicity of it all is remarkable.

 


TRANSITION OF BAGRU :

 

With time, everyone needs to advance their ways and find the one that suits the current market and scenarios and that is what happened with bagru fabrics and the artisans making them. Transition did occur.

In the earlier days, the artisans sat on floor and worked over low tables, while now, they stand and work on six feet fall tables. Earlier and followed the same routine of patterns, while now they are open to experimenting, they are now compatible doing layouts, using various textured fabrics to print on while simultaneously playing with new colours and different patterns.

Even the printing techniques have experienced aesthetic changes, Chippas incorporate spirals, circles diagonals in various patterns laid out on larger wider pieces of finer cotton.

Conventionally, bagru fabrics were only used in making of “ghaghras” , “odhnis” and even “pagris” (skirts, scarves, and turbans, respectively). Today, the bagru fabrics are are just limited to that, but has also entered into apparels, accessories and home furnishings.

 


THE CLOSURE :

 


The Bagru village hums with much activity today, it’s one of the most creative village I ever visited. It supplies this exquisite, printed material for trade, because everyone should indeed know of such creative piece of fabric. Buses and jeeps move in and out of the villages carrying bundles of bagru fabrics. As the world is waking up to environmental consciousness and eco-friendliness, this captivating and exotic art is getting recognized day by day.

textiles

Evolution of Indian Textiles

“the design of textiles, as that of architecture, has never been a static phenomenon. It is in a state of continuous transformation, changing and developing in response to user’s preferences and producer’s capabilities. The transformation of design is essential for the survival of any textile tradition”
– Martand Singh

Textile are not only aesthetically pleasing but also give us the glimpse of socio-economic, political, religious influence in the society.
The smallest unit of patter is motif which is repeated as desired. Often inspired by nature and also socioeconomic, cultural or religious factors, the motifs on traditional Indian apparel are all distinct and mostly
very colorfully represented. Part of the Indian fashion regime since ancient time when kings ruled the country, these motifs are often also a representation of the different styles from an era gone by. Also derived from architectures and religious philosophies, birds, flowers, fruits and even animals have stories to tell, beliefs to share .one of the famous Indian motifs Paisley or Monokalam in Sanskrit represents fertility and is extensively used in textile arts like Chikankari from Lucknow or Kantha from Bengal. Paisley motif was really popular among the British trader and even led to town being named after it.
Animal motifs like peacock are common in apparel for bride, and are known to represent fertility, courtship and immortality. In some beliefs it symbolizes the completeness of being a ‘woman’. Likewise parrots tell the tale of lord Krishna and his lover Radha. They are generally found in the states of Rajasthan , Bengal and Gujrat and are often used in couture for both bride and groom.
The motifs of ancient India are many each having its own unique meaning, which may believe to emanate a beauty of the person who adorns it. All this started to change when India was acquired by Babur the first Mughal emperor of India. There was a shift in the patterns and the way in which motifs were used. They used intricately done fabrics adorns by a variety of motifs . one of the most common thing we see in the patter whether textile or historical site was the use of geometrical shapes trying to accentuate the center. Mirroring was also commonly seen in mosque and the interior of court.
Trade flourished and attracted the attention of the European traders which lead to the set of the East Indian Company and the shift in the economic state of the country. Indian chintz was one of the fabric in high demand throughout the Europe , it almost destroyed the local wool industry of Britain and was ultimately banned from many parts in Europe .
The Sarasa of Japan or calico/chintz carried by Portuguese merchants traders was famous among the samurais and rich. Indian calicos presented themselves as unconventional designed cotton fabric containing vivid colours with striking abstract geometrical and
animal design. This stood out in stark contrast to the common blue indigo cotton.
The textile produced after acquisition of India by British was regulated. After the industrial revolution the local industries took a hit and the chief produce was cotton with simplistic design in both India and Britain.
In the pre independence phase people started to search of symbols and fabric to incite a feeling of nationalism and pride in one owns culture. The Tagore family was among the first to do so. There was a comeback for symbols like Lotus and Goose. The motif lotus was the most popular, it represents the power of life , symbol of eternal order and union of earth. It was really common in flags and the saris worn at that time. It is also the symbol of one of the largest party of India.
Nowadays Indian textiles can be seen all over the world from the madras plaid worn by a us banker to the delicately made gown of Victorian era or the intricate brocade gowns adorning a royal.
We have seen how Indian textile evolved through the ages and took the shape we see today carrying with it the shadows of the eras gone by. From the favorite calico of a samurai to the psychedelic hippies and the French provenacal block prints brought along the silk
road all carry a hint of Indian to taste. The story of merchant and economic success continuing forward pleasing the eyes of many , carrying the rich legacy with it .

ikat

Ikat Weaving: A Traditional Art Form

Ikat is a dyeing technique that originated in Indonesia . It came to India because of the trade ties with Indonesia . So basically what is Ikat ? Ikat is a fabric pattern that can be made by dyeing ( adding colour to solution by soaking it in solution mixed with dye ) method . Ikat dyeing is done before the yarn is woven into fabric due to which we obtain a very different pattern . The yarn is tied with ropes and dyed . After dyeing, the yarn is set for weaving process . After woven the pattern is visible . Following the process, we can dye it again to obtain different patterns or any other process . Ikat has a long history is India , we know it because of the cave painting in Ajanta which date back to 7th century CE . Ikat was once famous in Tamil Nadu but today it is mainly developed in Telangana , Odisha and Gujarat . Each state has their own style of Ikat .

Ikat emerging from different states of India :-
Ikat emerging from Telangana , this state is said to be the origin state of the Indian Ikat . Pochampally Ikat originated from a small town Bhoodan Pochampally and the weaving pattern was brought from Chirala . It is known as Pogudubandhu, Chitki and Buddabhashi in Telangana and Pochampally in the rest of India . Ikat here has a geometrical pattern . Ikat here is double ikat . Double ikat is considered as a higher form of Ikat as it requires more time and skills due to which it is gets expensive . It is prepared by tying the warp ( vertical threads ) and weft ( horizontal threads ) and then resist dyeing ( a type of dyeing in which some part of the cloth is dyed and the other is prevented from dyeing ) before weaving . The colour is obtained from natural sources . The material used is basically cotton or silk . The most unique form of Ikat from Telangana is Telia Rumal , in which the oil is used on the yarn to give the pattern . Pochampally Sarees can price between 8,000 ( plain ) – 1,00,000 ( designer ) INR . Districts actively making Pochampally Ikat are Nalgonda , Pochampally , Puttapaka and Choutuppal .
Ikat emerging from Gujarat , this state has both form of Ikat :- Single Ikat and Double Ikat . Gujarat is famous for its Double Ikat Patola . It comes from the city Patan . They are formed by dyeing each single thread and then weaving all these threads together . Double Ikat Patola takes much time ( 6 months – 12 months or more ) to make one saree which makes it quite expensive , reaching 2,00,000 INR per saree . These sarees were once only carried by the royal families . The technique of forming them is quite secret and only three families in Patan know how to work the way to make it . The technique for making it is only passed from the father to the son in a family . These sarees are very colourful and have geometrical design , and that is the reasons these sarees are preferred for occasions . Then there is Single Ikat Patola . These are affordable as they dont take much time to be made . City actively making Double Ikat Patola is Patan and Single Ikat Patola is Rajkot .

Ikat emerging from Odisha ( Orissa ) , are popularly known aa Bandha . Odisha Ikat dates back to 12th century . Ikat in Odisha originated when people from Patan arrived at Odisha . Ikat designs here are mainly inspired from Jagannath Temple . The difference between Ikat Patola and Odisha Ikat is that Patola Ikat has clear boundaries and geometrical design , on the other hand Odisha Ikat has blur boundary and arched design . It is made of tie and dye process in which yarn is made into a knot before dyeing and then weaved . Odisha Ikat takes upto 7 months per saree . Its price ranges between 2,000-20,000 INR . Cities actively making Odisha Ikat sarees are Bargarh , Sonepur and Sambalpur .