IKAT – SILK MIRACLE
Handwoven manufacturing in Uzbekistan has existed since ancient times and, paying tribute to traditions, many techniques for handwoven manufacturing have been preserved to this day. The ikat technique is one of the ancient techniques for hand-dying fabrics. Given the laboriousness in making ikat, the fabric was only available to fairly wealthy people, because. As a result, the fabric turned out to be quite expensive. Using an ikat product was believed to bring prosperity and wealth to those who could afford an ikat product.
Literally, the word “ikat” means “connection or wrapping around oneself” in translation from Indonesian, because. The technique of dyeing fabrics in the form of ikat came from Indonesia. In addition, the manufacturing technique is quite complicated: initially, the threads are tied in a bundle and dyed in the desired colors, while the desired pattern is created.
Why we use only natural ingredients
IN UZBEKISTAN, THERE ARE THREE TYPES OF DYEING WITH THE IKAT TECHNIQUE: SILK, COTTON AND VISCOSE. SILK IKAT IS CALLED ADRAS, WHERE SILK AND COTTON THREADS ARE USED TO FORM AN IKAT PATTERN. BUT, IF THE FABRIC CONSISTS ENTIRELY OF SILK, THEN IT IS CALLED ADRAS SILK. A COTTON IKAT IS CALLED THICK CALICO OR COTTON IKAT. LOCAL ARTISANS ALSO MAKE THE SO-CALLED ALA-BAKHMAL SILK, A FABRIC WITH HAIR.
IKAT TECHNIQUE
The ikat creation technique begins, paradoxically as it sounds, with a silkworm caterpillar. The silkworm caterpillar forms cocoons, which are boiled; During the cooking process, the larva dies. And then silk threads are obtained from cocoons, which are subsequently dyed with the ikat technique. Any piece of fabric can be dyed up to three times to obtain the desired color and pattern. The ikat technique has survived to this day thanks to the craftsman Rasul Mirzaakhmedov, who restored the work of making silk fabrics by hand and now in Margilan, in the city of the Ferghana Valley, there is a silk factory “Yodgorlik”, where They make silk fabrics. It is produced by hand. Although the story goes that mass production of fabrics using the ikat technique began in Bukhara, then in Samarkand, and only after a while in the Ferghana valley. Experienced masters of the ikat technique say that previously a pattern was created on the fabric depending on the season, which conveyed a certain mood. In Soviet times, fabric dyeing using the ikat technique fell into decline, and only after gaining independence in Uzbekistan was this tradition revived again. Furthermore, outfits made of fabric with an ikat pattern are widely used by brides to prepare a dowry. And you never tire of being surprised by the shine and unique pattern of the fabric, which vividly reflects the inner world of a skilled craftsman. Apparently, therefore, ikat fabrics always remain relevant, despite the high competition in the textile industry.
