Friday, 11 March 2011

Stumbled upon

We heard about  block dyeing in a village not too far away.  
Thanks to Samsu we found it with little difficulty.  Set in
delightful surrounding, we were shown around by the
very friendly and helpful workers.


the indigo vat


another view of the dye yard


too big for my suitcase


boys preparing cloth for printing

the cotton, known as grey cloth, has
many impurities.  Some occur naturally,
others are added during the weaving
process.   These must be removed before
dyeing or printing, which can involve
up to fourteen different stages



block printed cloth with a dabu (mud) resist, sprinkled
with sand,  drying out ready for the next process



a sari length with gold woven border
dabu resist.  This will be gorgeous eventually


madder printed cloth in the background, about 6metres in length,
laid out on the ground to dry in the sun.

For the record, I did managed to bring home some fabulous cloth.
When unpacked and ironed I'll take some photos.   Amazingly
my luggage allowance was spot on.  Hugh sigh of relief.







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