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Bhujodi: Part 4: All in the family

Bhujodi: Part 3: From cotton to weave

Ajrakh: Part 5: Web of connections

Ajrakh: Part 6: Motifs and meanings

Ajrakh: Part 3: History across Asia

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Editions
Welcome
Process
- Bhujodi: Part 3: From cotton to weave
  February 21, 2020
  Bandhini: Part 2: tiny dots, blooming flowers
  February 14, 2020
  Ajrakh: Part 1: Multilayered and amazing
  February 13, 2020
  Ajrakh: Part 2: Hidden complex layers
  February 13, 2020
  Patola: Part 1: Making the magnificent Patola
  February 11, 2020
  Tangaliya: beaded wonder
  February 7, 2020
People
- Bhujodi: Part 4: All in the family
  February 21, 2020
  Bhujodi: Part 2: The Vankar community
  February 14, 2020
  Bandhini: Part 4: Magical fingers
  February 14, 2020
  Ajrakh: Part 4: Khatri family history
  February 14, 2020
  Ajrakh: Part 7: Future forms
  February 14, 2020
  Patola: Part 3: Imagining the whole saree
  February 7, 2020
Places
- Ajrakh: Part 5: Web of connections
  February 17, 2020
  Bhujodi: Part 1: Between nature and tradition
  February 14, 2020
  Bandhini: Part 1: History and geography
  February 14, 2020
  Patola: Part 2: Patan the place
  February 11, 2020
  Gujarat’s culture of ornamentation
  February 5, 2020
  Gujarat: a land of astonishing diversity
  February 5, 2020
Particulars
- Ajrakh: Part 6: Motifs and meanings
  February 17, 2020
  Ajrakh: Part 3: History across Asia
  February 17, 2020
  Patola: Part 5: Caring for your saree
  February 15, 2020
  Elegant Bhujodi: Part 5
  February 14, 2020
  Bandhini: Part 3: How to judge
  February 14, 2020
  Patola: Part 4: Weaving history and ecosystem
  February 12, 2020
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Author Shoba Narayan

Shoba Narayan

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Recent Posts

Bhujodi: Part 4: All in the family

Shoba NarayanFebruary 21, 2020February 1, 2021

Bhujodi: Part 3: From cotton to weave

Shoba NarayanFebruary 21, 2020January 31, 2021

Ajrakh: Part 5: Web of connections

Shoba NarayanFebruary 17, 2020February 1, 2021

Ajrakh: Part 6: Motifs and meanings

Shoba NarayanFebruary 17, 2020February 24, 2020

Ajrakh: Part 3: History across Asia

Shoba NarayanFebruary 17, 2020February 24, 2020

Learn More...

About Project LooM

Shoba NarayanOctober 2, 2018March 3, 2020

Saree Evolution

Shoba NarayanOctober 19, 2018November 17, 2018

Why Buy Sarees

Shoba NarayanOctober 2, 2018November 17, 2018

projectloomindia

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projectloomindia

Oct 30

The women with magic in their fingers. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. We begin with breakfast in Bengal at the home of a weaver. Preparing the food is his mother. It was delicious.Peeling potatoes for the classic Bengali breakfast. She called it a boti. To me it was a single tool that cut, peeled and prepared without even a cutting board. A magical one tool fighting machine.It is 7 AM in the morning and I have yarn of many colors waiting to be pulled from my spinning wheel. I am the first of many steps before a saree even gets on the loom. I wear the softest muslin blouse. I sit on a mud floor. I have just finished lunch and was about to take a siesta but I decided that I would pull some yarn from my spinning wheel. I am a freelance worker. I keep my hours but what I do is a gift for you. Look at her soft, simple, and dare I say, sexy blouse. I have seen many moons, young lady. I have led a good life. I have children and grandchildren. And here on this warm afternoon, I am fixing gold sequins on the thread that will make its way into your saree. Oh these hands! A photographer would have delighted in photographing them. Alfred Steiglitz would have sought out my hands for his portrait photographs. There she sits with sunshine on her lips. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. Love her loose simple blouse. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. I just made fish curry for my famil, said one. Now I turn to your saree. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. How I admire them. Do you see the thread hanging around a bamboo? The colors of the saree that I am weaving for you matches mine. The women with magic in their fingers. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. On a cold winter morning, she wore a red sweater and pulled out a garden of flowers from within the folds of a pink saree. The women with magic in their fingers. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees.
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#jamdani #projectloom #india #weaving #westbengal #Kolkata #Muslin #Handcrafted #Handmade #Artisans #weavers #taneira #tata #cottonsaree #sarees #sari #bengal #handloomsaree #woven #saris #indianfashion #clothes #workingwomen #womenswork

The women with magic in their fingers. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. We begin with breakfast in Bengal at the home of a weaver. Preparing the food is his mother. It was delicious.Peeling potatoes for the classic Bengali breakfast. She called it a boti. To me it was a single tool that cut, peeled and prepared without even a cutting board. A magical one tool fighting machine.

It is 7 AM in the morning and I have yarn of many colors waiting to be pulled from my spinning wheel. I am the first of many steps before a saree even gets on the loom. I wear the softest muslin blouse. I sit on a mud floor. I have just finished lunch and was about to take a siesta but I decided that I would pull some yarn from my spinning wheel. I am a freelance worker. I keep my hours but what I do is a gift for you. Look at her soft, simple, and dare I say, sexy blouse. I have seen many moons, young lady. I have led a good life. I have children and grandchildren. And here on this warm afternoon, I am fixing gold sequins on the thread that will make its way into your saree. Oh these hands! A photographer would have delighted in photographing them. Alfred Steiglitz would have sought out my hands for his portrait photographs. There she sits with sunshine on her lips. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. Love her loose simple blouse. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. I just made fish curry for my famil, said one. Now I turn to your saree. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. How I admire them. Do you see the thread hanging around a bamboo? The colors of the saree that I am weaving for you matches mine. The women with magic in their fingers. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees. On a cold winter morning, she wore a red sweater and pulled out a garden of flowers from within the folds of a pink saree. The women with magic in their fingers. The women weavers who make Jamdani sarees.
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#jamdani #projectloom #india #weaving #westbengal #Kolkata #Muslin #Handcrafted #Handmade #Artisans #weavers #taneira #tata #cottonsaree #sarees #sari #bengal #handloomsaree #woven #saris #indianfashion #clothes #workingwomen #womenswork ...

2 0

projectloomindia

Oct 29

I love these photos so much. Because they show the women behind weaves; women behind the threads and sadly, the women behind the veils. I met Kisbar Jahan, 32, at her home. She took me up to her terrace to pick fresh guavas from a tree. She gave me wonderful peppermint tea, spiked with tulsi, ginger, cardamom, cloves and jaggery. She had an unstudied, guileless honesty.⠀She is better known as master weaver, Abdul Mubeen's wife. She has a daughter and a son. She is both confident and vulnerable. She weaves the air-like Chanderi sarees that we all enjoy. So when you wear a Chanderi saree this festive season, think of women like Kisbar Jahan. And please don’t bargain with weavers.

I love these photos so much. Because they show the women behind weaves; women behind the threads and sadly, the women behind the veils. I met Kisbar Jahan, 32, at her home. She took me up to her terrace to pick fresh guavas from a tree. She gave me wonderful peppermint tea, spiked with tulsi, ginger, cardamom, cloves and jaggery. She had an unstudied, guileless honesty.⠀She is better known as master weaver, Abdul Mubeen's wife. She has a daughter and a son. She is both confident and vulnerable. She weaves the air-like Chanderi sarees that we all enjoy. So when you wear a Chanderi saree this festive season, think of women like Kisbar Jahan. And please don’t bargain with weavers. ...

4 1

projectloomindia

Sep 26

The beautiful Kshama Rau- daughter of the illustrious Kota Shivarama Karanth in a stunning vintage Kanchipuram sari. Ganga Jamuna border. The feel of the fabric was incredible- so soft.

The beautiful Kshama Rau- daughter of the illustrious Kota Shivarama Karanth in a stunning vintage Kanchipuram sari. Ganga Jamuna border. The feel of the fabric was incredible- so soft. ...

5 0

projectloomindia

Dec 10

I met Lakshmi Narayan Kadambi through my friend Chandra Jain. She was wearing a beautiful ilkal saree. I asked if she would talk about it. She has documented the weaves of Tamilnadu for the sarees of India project. How lovely she looks in the Sari and look at that amazing handbag.

I met Lakshmi Narayan Kadambi through my friend Chandra Jain. She was wearing a beautiful ilkal saree. I asked if she would talk about it. She has documented the weaves of Tamilnadu for the sarees of India project. How lovely she looks in the Sari and look at that amazing handbag. ...

15 0

projectloomindia

Nov 21

Mohammed Kaleem. Phone number: +91-9341002291. Please don’t bargain with him. After all, he is sitting on the street and repairing your lovely jewelry.
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#jewels #jewelry #jewellery #repair #yarn #thread #jewelleryrepairs

Mohammed Kaleem. Phone number: +91-9341002291. Please don’t bargain with him. After all, he is sitting on the street and repairing your lovely jewelry.
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#jewels #jewelry #jewellery #repair #yarn #thread #jewelleryrepairs ...

12 2

projectloomindia

Nov 21

The Raw Mango show in Bangalore. Sanjay Garg changed the paradigm for Chanderi sarees. In creating his signature look, he became a disruptor and innovator. I had interviewed him for my column for Mint Lounge years ago and this is what I wrote.Garg said that many of his impulses arose from “anger” at how Indians were mindlessly aping the West in their search for style. It is a familiar lament. Designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee said exactly this to me some years ago. Garg, like Mukherjee, admires people who have a strong sense of identity and embrace their Indian heritage and culture, without seeking validation from Western, or indeed, any brands. In his iconic essay, “Is there an Indian way of thinking?” poet and scholar A.K. Ramanujan characterized modernization as a movement from the context-sensitive to the context-free in all realms. It is a stunning and subtle observation about how each of us, in our attempt to be modern global citizens of the world are shearing off the roots that bind us to our very specific regional culture and accompanying traditions. If you haven’t read this essay, please do. It isn’t long and it will open your eyes.
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#rawmango #sanjaygarg #benaras #indiantextiles #handwoven #indianfashion #akramanujan #indianaesthetics #sabyasachi

The Raw Mango show in Bangalore. Sanjay Garg changed the paradigm for Chanderi sarees. In creating his signature look, he became a disruptor and innovator. I had interviewed him for my column for Mint Lounge years ago and this is what I wrote.

Garg said that many of his impulses arose from “anger” at how Indians were mindlessly aping the West in their search for style. It is a familiar lament. Designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee said exactly this to me some years ago. Garg, like Mukherjee, admires people who have a strong sense of identity and embrace their Indian heritage and culture, without seeking validation from Western, or indeed, any brands. In his iconic essay, “Is there an Indian way of thinking?” poet and scholar A.K. Ramanujan characterized modernization as a movement from the context-sensitive to the context-free in all realms. It is a stunning and subtle observation about how each of us, in our attempt to be modern global citizens of the world are shearing off the roots that bind us to our very specific regional culture and accompanying traditions. If you haven’t read this essay, please do. It isn’t long and it will open your eyes.
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#rawmango #sanjaygarg #benaras #indiantextiles #handwoven #indianfashion #akramanujan #indianaesthetics #sabyasachi ...

18 1

projectloomindia

Nov 14

Another wonderful artisan from Kutch.

Another wonderful artisan from Kutch. ...

36 1

projectloomindia

Nov 12

How cool to meet him again? I met Khalid Khatri for the first time when I visited his home in Bhuj, Gujarati. His Mom cooked me lunch and then settled down to do Bandhini. If you scroll down, you can see her and him in earlier posts here. @artmin_ajrakh
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#kutch #kutchweaving #ajrakh #ajrak #gujarat #textiles #kutch #blockprint #handwoven #handmade #artisan #crafts #mastercraft #indiancraft #india #tourism #projectloomindia #projectloom #cotton #silk #yarn #blockprinted #dresses #clothes #fabric #woven #art #handwoventextiles

How cool to meet him again? I met Khalid Khatri for the first time when I visited his home in Bhuj, Gujarati. His Mom cooked me lunch and then settled down to do Bandhini. If you scroll down, you can see her and him in earlier posts here. @artmin_ajrakh
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#kutch #kutchweaving #ajrakh #ajrak #gujarat #textiles #kutch #blockprint #handwoven #handmade #artisan #crafts #mastercraft #indiancraft #india #tourism #projectloomindia #projectloom #cotton #silk #yarn #blockprinted #dresses #clothes #fabric #woven #art #handwoventextiles ...

24 2

projectloomindia

Nov 6

About the beautiful art of Bandini
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#bandini
#shibori #womenempowerment #bandiniart #tieanddye #gujarat #textiles #kutch #womensfashion #handwork #handwoven #handmade #artisan #crafts #girls #indiancraft #india #tourism #projectloomindia #projectloom #cotton #silk #women #dresses #clothes #fabric #girl #womeninbusiness #
projectloombandini

About the beautiful art of Bandini
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#bandini
#shibori #womenempowerment #bandiniart #tieanddye #gujarat #textiles #kutch #womensfashion #handwork #handwoven #handmade #artisan #crafts #girls #indiancraft #india #tourism #projectloomindia #projectloom #cotton #silk #women #dresses #clothes #fabric #girl #womeninbusiness #
projectloombandini ...

40 2

projectloomindia

Nov 4

The beautiful hand notes of Bandini. Done typically by women in Bhuj. Scroll down to see other posts of this technique..
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#bandini
#shibori #womenempowerment #bandiniart #tieanddye #gujarat #textiles #kutch #womensfashion #handwork #handwoven #handmade #artisan #crafts #girls #indiancraft #india #tourism #projectloomindia #projectloom #cotton #silk #women #dresses #clothes #fabric #girl #womeninbusiness #projectloombandini

The beautiful hand notes of Bandini. Done typically by women in Bhuj. Scroll down to see other posts of this technique.

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#bandini
#shibori #womenempowerment #bandiniart #tieanddye #gujarat #textiles #kutch #womensfashion #handwork #handwoven #handmade #artisan #crafts #girls #indiancraft #india #tourism #projectloomindia #projectloom #cotton #silk #women #dresses #clothes #fabric #girl #womeninbusiness #projectloombandini ...

11 0

projectloomindia

Nov 4

I have not had the pleasure of visiting Bagalkote weaving cluster, but here is a glimpse of their work.1. Here artisan-weaver Dasharat R. Hoti (Mobile number 09900626021) talks about the sarees and dupattas he has woven. He said that his original markets was in Maharashtra. Through training in Somaiya Kala Vidya.
2. He says that the white saree with cotton body and silk border cannot be woven on the power loom no matter how advanced the technology. So if you care about handwoven as I do, buy these kinds of sarees.
3. Design innovations include using the khann blouse design for the saree. The motif is called gule-gudde (correct me if I am wrong). Lovely names of these sarees: Chikipara saree, Gayathri saree. He talks about the interlocking system and the things they do to ensure their signature handwoven look— not the power loom look.
4. He says that he has made a design adaptation inspired by the Taj Mahal. The orange lined saree takes 13 days.
5. 5. Kyarige motif. I think he means rose-stem. Please correct me if I am wrong..
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#karnatakaweaves #karnataka #bagalkote #khannblouses #artisan #textiles #handwoven #handmade #artisan #crafts #mastercraft #indiancraft #india #tourism #projectloomindia #projectloom #cotton #silk #yarn #powerloom #clothes #fabric #woven #art #handwoventextiles

I have not had the pleasure of visiting Bagalkote weaving cluster, but here is a glimpse of their work.

1. Here artisan-weaver Dasharat R. Hoti (Mobile number 09900626021) talks about the sarees and dupattas he has woven. He said that his original markets was in Maharashtra. Through training in Somaiya Kala Vidya.
2. He says that the white saree with cotton body and silk border cannot be woven on the power loom no matter how advanced the technology. So if you care about handwoven as I do, buy these kinds of sarees.
3. Design innovations include using the khann blouse design for the saree. The motif is called gule-gudde (correct me if I am wrong). Lovely names of these sarees: Chikipara saree, Gayathri saree. He talks about the interlocking system and the things they do to ensure their signature handwoven look— not the power loom look.
4. He says that he has made a design adaptation inspired by the Taj Mahal. The orange lined saree takes 13 days.
5. 5. Kyarige motif. I think he means rose-stem. Please correct me if I am wrong.

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#karnatakaweaves #karnataka #bagalkote #khannblouses #artisan #textiles #handwoven #handmade #artisan #crafts #mastercraft #indiancraft #india #tourism #projectloomindia #projectloom #cotton #silk #yarn #powerloom #clothes #fabric #woven #art #handwoventextiles ...

20 0

projectloomindia

Nov 2

When Mala Dhawan asks you to do something, you just do it. And so it was that I stood amidst a group of tall, lanky, professional models, along with some of us non-professional friends of Mala to walk the ramp, wearing clothes and jewelry from the Hundred Hands handmade collective. Was really fun. Prasad Bidappa, who is a strong supporter of handcrafted work, orchestrated the whole thing. My favorite is the last slide when the Weaver of the Sari that I am wearing, came up to me, caring her son in her hands and asked for a photo. I was honored to do this. Naturally, I bought the Sari. The handmade collective is on through November 5. Go visit.

When Mala Dhawan asks you to do something, you just do it. And so it was that I stood amidst a group of tall, lanky, professional models, along with some of us non-professional friends of Mala to walk the ramp, wearing clothes and jewelry from the Hundred Hands handmade collective. Was really fun. Prasad Bidappa, who is a strong supporter of handcrafted work, orchestrated the whole thing. My favorite is the last slide when the Weaver of the Sari that I am wearing, came up to me, caring her son in her hands and asked for a photo. I was honored to do this. Naturally, I bought the Sari. The handmade collective is on through November 5. Go visit. ...

24 5

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