- Fabric: Silk
- Handfeel: Soft & lightweight; the natural crispness of the tussar has softened greatly with all the handling during embroidery.
- Care: Please care for this item by dry cleaning only
- Origin: West Bengal, India
Textile Story
Kantha is a tradition of hand embroidering patchwork cloth from rags. Over time it evolved from a simple running stitch into a rich & varied embroidery language, depicting motifs influenced by religion, culture & the rural lives of the women stitching them. Deeply rooted in Bengal & with a history of over 3,000 years, kantha is rich in story & meaning.
After working for over a decade with this artform, we wanted to elevate the craft through the use of highly engineered stitch placement, exploring the wide range of stitches existing within the kantha lexicon. In partnership with textile designer, Brinda Dudat, we took a year to design the patterns, and together with our artisan partners in Kolkata, experiment with cloth and colour.
Once the pattern is finalised, it is copied onto tracing paper. Next, the lines of the pattern are punctured by hand with a pin and the paper is then laid over the silk fabric. A paste of chalk and turpentine is rubbed over the paper, and seeps through the small pin-holes onto the fabric below.
Now the silk has the pattern lines traced onto it. It's ironed and distributed amongst the artisans - only the most experienced and skilled women can stitch these - who take it home and stitch the kantha, following a blueprint outlining which stitch and colour is to be used where. Once complete, the fabric is hand washed several times to remove any stains and the tracing lines.
Whether it be a plain stitch on patched rags, or highly illustrative embroidery on the finest silk, this humble art form is created today as it has been for centuries: in small, unassuming village homes by women who spend days, weeks & even months on one piece.
Any variations or irregularities are to be celebrated. They are part of the design & inherent to the handcrafted production process, making this item beautifully unique.
