IKAT TEXTILES

Ikat is a style of weaving that uses a tie-dye

process on either the warp or weft before the
threads are woven to create a pattern or design. A
Double Ikat is when both the warp and the weft
are tie-dyed before weaving.
Like any craft or art form, ikats vary widely from
country to country and region to region. Designs
may have symbolic of ritual meaning or have been
developed for export trade. Ikats are often
symbols of status, wealth, power and prestige.
Perhaps because of the difficulty and time required
to make ikats, some cultures believe the cloth is
imbued with magical powers.
There are known links between ikat production in India
and South-East Asia. Patola cloth, a double ikat from
Gujarat, western India, used to be exported to Indonesia
for the use of the royal families. The patterns in the
Patola Ikats are strikingly similar to the double ikats
produced in Bali, Indonesia
Dying the weft makes it much more difficult to
make ikats with precise patterns. The weft is one
continuous strand that is woven back and forth, so
any errors in how the string is tied and dyed are
cumulative. Because of this, weft ikats are usually
used when the precision of the pattern is not the
main concern. Some patterns become transformed
by the weaving process into irregular and erratic
designs.

Double ikats are the most difficult to produce. In

the finest examples from India and Indonesia, the
warp and the weft are precisely tied and dyed so
that the patterns interlock and reinforce each other
when the fabric is woven.

Courtesy:
Author: Choco Wang