Weaving

 

 

Kutch is also well-known for its weaving technique. A cloth made from a mixture of cotton and silk is called ‘Mashru’ which is often used in a warp-faced weaving technique so that only the shiny silk shows on the outside. The Mashru weaver works on a crater loom and the cloth is often patterned with stripes using blocks of different colours twist clothes or by simple tie-dyeing of the warp threads. A variety of patterns are produced for the demands of different markets, both local and supplementary a field. For the local market, stripes are generally favored and Mashru cloth is often used to give an additional rich smooth surface to embroidered blouses among poorer communities in Kutch.

Weaving is only a part of a complex series of production associations and the Mashru weaver is supplied with threads and designed by a master weaver who also sells the cloth. The weaver is not rewarded for the cloth but for his industry like most crafts in India. Weaving is a traditional profession and skills are passed on from father to son. Because of the irregulations temperature, particularly in desert areas of Kutch, woolen shawls (Dhablo) are damaged by both men and women. The village of Bhujodi near Bhuj in Kutch is a centre for producing handloom blanket like shawls for men and women. These shawls are prepared using a woolen bend, sized with rice glue and woven with multi-coloured chemically-dyed worn woven threads. The cloth is woven on a narrow appear some 60 cms. Wide and being towed large extents of clothes are joined with decorative stitching to make shawl.