Handloom Cotton Ikat Fabrics

Handloom Cotton Ikat Fabrics

In warp ikat, it is only the warp yarns that are dyed using the ikat technique. The weft yarns are dyed a solid color. The ikat fabrics pattern is clearly visible in the warp yarns wound onto the loom even before the weft is woven in. Ikat Fabrics Warp ikat is, amongst others, produced in Indonesia; more specifically in Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and Sumatra by respectively the Dayaks, Torajans and Bataks.

In weft ikat, it is the weaving or weft yarn that carries the dyed patterns. Therefore, the pattern only appears as the weaving proceeds. Weft ikats are much slower to weave than warp ikat fabrics because the weft yarns must be carefully adjusted after each passing of the shuttle to maintain the clarity of the design.

Double Ikat is a technique in which both warp and the weft are resist-dyed prior to weaving. Obviously, it is the most difficult to make and the most expensive. Double ikat fabrics are only produced in three countries: ikat fabrics in India, Japan, and Indonesia.

The double ikat fabrics made in Patan, Gujarat in India is the most complicated. Called "patola," it is made using fine silk yarns and many colors. It may be patterned with a small motif that is repeated many times across the length of a six-meter sari. Sometimes the Patan double ikat is pictorial with no repeats across its length.