A few kilometres from Bhubaneshwar, the capital of Orissa, is a village where all houses and shops along the roads have one thing in common: beautiful appliqué work, in the making or on display, all giving out a loud burst of colour. This famous appliqué work comes from Pipli village, which was established by the [...]
A precious piece of heirloom, passed down through generations and preserved to be brought out only for the most important occasions, the Patolu, or Patola is one of the most prized and valued textiles. (As described in the earlier post on “Patola” ) It is revered not just for its religious significance across many [...]
Like the patter of raindrops on the window, like the beat of gentle drums, a rhythmic, repetitive pattern spreading across fabric like a web of motifs… Such is the marvel of a fabric, hand printed by a block that creates identical patterns, seamlessly merging into each other so gently, one cannot follow where the pattern [...]
Large fields, small hills, going uphill in the summer and coming downhill in the winter, amidst the beautiful mountains… this is the life of the Bhotias of Uttarakhand.
The beautiful hills of Uttarakhand are the abode of the craft of weaving wool, initiated by the women of the villages. A craft, that has found its [...]
For generations, women residing in the villages of Punjab, India have woven the khes as a part of the trousseau that they take to their future home. With bold, harmonic and imaginative colour patterns, it is requisite as a coverlet while sleeping.
Khes is a floor spread and bed covering that is traditionally made of [...]
Patola is an exquisite and wonderfully intricate silk textile of India, believed to have originated in the 7th Century AD. Patola silk textiles are produced by resist dyeing of warp and weft threads before weaving, a complex process known as double ikat which is also practiced in other parts of India and abroad. However, Patola [...]
(Ajrak / Ajarak / Ajarakh / Ajrakh)
When the world is buzzing with “sustainability” and “environment-friendly” as the newest big trends of the future, for many centuries, innumerable crafts have existed in harmony with nature. Some things so subtle that they do not glare out, yet so vivid that one cannot help but appreciate the aesthetics [...]
