A master weaver from Murshidabad, Kalicharan Sharma, had re-discovered the technique of spinning the fine yarn a few years ago, and Saha learnt it from him. Making the 500-count muslin sari— a 5.5 metre saree requires 60,000 metres of yarn to make—is a laborious process that takes more than two months for a team of three weavers. “Making muslin is a very sensitive and lengthy process that takes loads of patience. The yarn breaks frequently. Spinning is done only early mornings and after dusk. The heat during the day breaks the thread. Earlier, very young girls aged about ten years or so would spin the yarn with their nimble fingers. I’ve modified the charkha to replicate those nimble fingers. I’ve modified the apron, rubber rollers, gears and other parts of the machine. I’ve also re-invented the original technique of weaving muslin,” he says.
Sunday, 15 August 2010
500 count Khadi
500 count Khadi
Of the many stories about khadi, the one that’s most romantic is about Bengal muslin, a fabric coveted by sultans and nawabs for being so fine that it could pass through a ring. On the verge of dying out, a group of weavers in Nabadwip in Nadia district of West Bengal revived it sometime in the 1990s. In fact, Ritu Kumar sourced khadi with this fine count for her ensembles from an old weaver in Nabadwip, who has since died. Recently, Rabindranath Saha, a master weaver from Kalna in Bardhaman district, developed a technique to make the 500-count cloth using a faster, less laborious method with the help of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission. He was awarded the Sant Kabir national award this year for his innovation. Saha sells his 500-count cotton khadi for Rs 1,600 a metre. His next challenge is to weave a 1,000-count khadi. Numbering up Employment: 9.50 lakhs Total Production: Rs 585.25 crore Sales: Rs 799.60 crore Export: Rs 104.84 crore Number of government outlets around the country: 7,050 (Figures for 2008-09 from the Khadi and Village Industries Commission)
Would like to see a 500 count yarn and fabric thereof myself
Sunday, 8 August 2010
Direction of Curl of Single Jersey Fabric
When the fabric is cut, it curls towards the face at the top and bottom and towards the back at the sides.
http://mytextilenotes.blogspot.com
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