a journey into

Handloom
weaving
•1•
 Contents
About the booklet............................ 6
Cotton.............................................. 8
Yarn................................................. 10
Hand spinning ................................ 12
Mill spinning.................................... 14
Dyeing............................................. 16
Natural dyeing & Chemical dyeing.. 18
Bobbin winding............................... 20
Warping........................................... 22
Street sizing.................................... 24
Attaching the warp onto the loom.. 26
Weft winding................................... 27
Weaving........................................... 28
Handloom industry......................... 30
Content & Publication: Dastkar Andhra, Secunderabad
Andhra Handlooms & Weaver
Printed at:
Co-operatives.................................. 31
Design & Illustrations: Charutha Reghunath
Special thanks to: Pankaj Sekhsaria
Dastkar Andhra............................... 32
DAMA............................................... 33
© Daskar Andhra 2010 Why do we need to distinguish
handlooms from imitations? ......... 34
Process chart................................... 35

•3•
About the booklet
This book is for handloom users
keen to understand more about
the process and those interested in
exploring handlooms for the first
time. We would like to acquaint
you with the different stages in the a journey into

Handloom
process, where individual fibres
come together to become beautiful

weaving
fabrics and how you can distinguish
pure handloom from imitations.
Knowing handlooms also allows
you to understand the challenges process and product
industry is facing in current times.

This journey into the handloom

world, we hope will enable you to
better enjoy and appreciate these
fabrics.

•5•
1. Cotton
Cotton was traditionally the single
largest natural fibre used in clothing.
Today India occupies the second
position in cotton production in the
world. Many varieties of cotton were
produced in our country, the majority
being the short staple variety which
is ideal for hand spinning. We have
moved away from growing short
staple varieties but still produce good
amounts of cotton both for domestic
use and for export. Heavy use of
pesticide has led to many problems
and now there is a shift to organic
farming.

Over 500 indigenous varieties of

cotton were grown in India in the
past. Today, we grow less than
20 varieties

•7•
2. Yarn
Yarn is a long continuous length of
interlocked fibers. Staple length of
cotton determines the thickness of
yarn spun and this is referred to as
“yarn count”. Standard measure for
a length of cotton yarn is termed
“hank”. A hank measures 840 yards.
Hank yarn is used typically in
handloom production as opposed
to cone yarn which is used in mill
production.

Yarn is available from a coarse 2’s

count to a fine 120’s count based
on the fiber length of cotton

•9•
3. Hand Spinning
The process of converting cotton
fibre to yarn is complex and the
strength and fineness of yarn is
dependent on the staple length
of the fibre and the skill of the
spinner. Yarn can be hand spun in
two ways – cotton fibre to yarn by
hand, cotton to sliver by mechanical
process which is then spun by hand
in various thicknesses. Srikakulam
in north coastal Andhra remains
the only hand spinning belt in the
country, where fine yarn upto 100s
counts is spun.

Yarn is less stressed in hand

spinning process. Hand spinning
wages increases the cost of Khadi

• 11 •
Mill Spinning
Mechanical spinning of yarn in
the West began with the Industrial
revolution in the 17th century.
During colonial rule, the British
introduced mill spinning in our
country. Large spinning mills were
initially located in Mumbai and
later most of the activity shifted
to Tamilnadu and a few pockets
in Andhra Pradesh. Today mill
spun yarn is used extensively
by handloom weavers across the
country.

The Bombay Spinning & Weaving Mill

at Tardeo, Mumbai, was one of the first
mills set up in India in 1854 to supply
yarn to local handloom weavers

• 13 •
4. Dyeing
Textiles can be dyed in the yarn form
or at the fabric and garment stages.
Hank yarn dyeing is a predominant
practice in South India unlike in
the North where fabric is dyed
for developing prints in the craft
sector. The dyeing process involves
“scouring” to remove natural oils and
dirt present in cotton after which
natural or chemical dyes are used for
colouring. Dyeing for handloom is
done in and around weaving villages
by local experts.

In the past, sarees had very little

colour in them. Colour was used
mainly in the borders and pallu.

• 15 •
Natural Dyeing
Dyes extracted from natural materials
such as the bark of trees, flowers, leaves
and minerals are known as natural dyes.
Vegetable dyes are a sub-category of
natural dyes, referring to colours that
come from plant matter only. Mordants,
which are usually minerals, are used
to fix dyes on cotton. All natural dyes
generally yield lasting colour though
some colors are sensitive to sunlight.

Chemical Dyeing
The discovery of the structure of benzene
in 1865 in Europe heralded the shift from
natural dyes to chemical dyes. Chemical
dyes - direct dyes, sulphur dyes, napthol
dyes, vat dyes and reactive dyes - that are
used today were developed during the
period 1878 - 1956. They offered a wide
range of colors with an ease of application
along with the properties of fastness that
suited modern-day usage.

• 17 •
5. Bobbin Winding
Yarn in the hank form is wound on
to bobbins in this process. This is
the first step in transforming the
yarn from the hank form to a linear
form. Dyed hank yarn is wound on to
bobbins with the help of charkhas.
This process enables the laying out
of yarn lengths for weaving. Bobbin
winding is done by women in the
weaver households.

Typically 19 to 20 bobbins are required

for a five saree “warp” length of 34 meters

• 19 •
4. Warping
The warp is a set of threads attached
to the loom lengthwise before
weaving begins. Warping is the
process of creating the base yarn
that runs along the length of fabric
through which the “weft” yarns
are filled in to make the fabric.
For a 46-inch wide fabric, over
3,200 individual yarns run along
the warp of the fabric. Typically,
1,96,550 yards of yarn are aligned by
wrapping them around the circular
warping drum.

Traditionally warp lengths and widths

varied according to the draping styles
of the sarees of a particular region.

• 21 •
7. Street Sizing
The warps are stretched out onto
two beams and natural adhesives
are applied to add strength to the
yarn and lubricate it to withstand the
rigors of weaving. In most handloom
centers, rice starch / gruel is mixed
with coconut / groundnut oil and
applied as “size” material. Sizing is
carried out by weavers or specialists
in the village. Since this activity is
done on the street, it is called
“street sizing”.

The brush that is used in the sizing

process is made locally using available
natural material like palmyra fibre.

• 23 •
8. Attaching the Warp
onto the Loom

Individual warp threads are drawn

through heddles taken through a
set of reeds and tied onto beams
located on both ends of the loom.
The heddles separate the warp into
two sections which allows the weft
threads to pass between them easily.
Checks and stripes are created by
segmenting the warp and weft yarn.
For motifs, looms are equipped with
“dobbies” or “jacquard” cards which
help in lifting segments of warp yarn
into the weft.

Heddles are made out of rods or

cords, each with an eye through
which the warp thread is drawn.
Reed is a comb like frame that
pushes the weft yarn firmly against
the finished cloth after each insertion.

• 25 •
9. Weft Winding
Hank yarn for weft is wound onto a
pirn. The weft yarn is then inserted
into a shuttle. Weft preparation is
done on the charka, using the finger
tips to give the correct tension to
the yarn. This operation is normally
done by women.

Pirn is a small bobbin.

Shuttle is a device used in weaving
to carry the weft thread back and
forth between the warp threads.

Changing colors in the weft allows

for the creation of “shot” colors which
make the fabric lustrous and vibrant

• 27 •
10. Weaving
The process of weaving is the
interlacing of two sets of yarn – the
warp and the weft. The equipment
that facilitates this interlacement
is the loom. A “handloom” is a
loom that is used to weave fabrics
without the use of electricity. The
manipulation of the foot pedals to
lift the warp has to be in sync with
the throwing of the shuttle which
carries the weft yarn. A perfect
weave demands coordination
between mind and body. The weaver
achieves a harmony of motion and
rhythm to create a unique product.

Depending on the complexity of design,

a weaver weaves between half a meter
and five meters of fabric a day

• 29 •
 The handloom sector is The handloom sector in

Andhra Handlooms &

Weaver co-operatives
The Handloom Industry
known for its tradition of Andhra Pradesh employs
excellent craftsmanship. more than 2,00,000 weavers.
It is the second largest More than half of the weavers
employer in the country after work under master weavers
agriculture and is estimated (traders) and the rest are
to employ 43.31 lakh people organized through the primary
mainly based in rural areas. weaving co-operatives. There
Today more than half of the is also a small percentage of
total handloom production independent weavers. There
comes from the southern are 1066 registered handloom
part of India. De-centralised weaving co-operatives in
production organised from Andhra Pradesh. co-operatives
the homes of individual are quasi government bodies
weavers is characteristic of registered under the 1964
this sector. co-operatives and Co-operative Act. The oldest
master weavers constitute co-operatives in the State
the dominant forms of can be dated back to the
organization in this sector. pre independence period.
Handloom weaving adopts co-operatives carry out the
environment friendly twin agendas of welfare and
processes where energy business in order to create
consumption, capital stable livelihoods for the
investment and infrastructure weavers.
requirements are minimal.

• 31 •
 Dastkar Andhra initiated its In 2001 DAMA (Dastkar Andhra

DAMA
Dastkar Andhra
activities in 1989, as an Marketing Association) was
off shoot of Dastkar, Delhi. incorporated as a sister
In December 1995 trust of Dastkar Andhra with
Dastkar Andhra was the objective of providing
incorporated as a public marketing services to the
charitable trust, with the weavers' groups. DAMA works
objectives of promoting the with co-operatives based in
handloom industry in Andhra 30 villages across different
Pradesh suited to ownership districts of Andhra Pradesh.
by the primary producers. DAMA markets product off the
Dastkar Andhra plays a loom - yardage, dupatta and
supportive role, investing in saree. It reaches customers
research and development for though retailers, exhibitions
the handloom industry and organized across the country
imparting technical inputs and direct sales. DAMA has
and design expertise to the sought to create a business
weavers and handloom revenue model that attempts
co-operatives. It provides to break the different negative
policy and advocacy support perceptions of the handloom
to the handloom industry to industry.
promote it as a viable rural
livelihood.

• 33 •
 Craft organizations and

Why do we need to
distinguish handloom
from imitations?
State bodies are issuing
certifications to identify
pure hand processes. Today
Handloom mark and Craft mark
represent two such labels for
guaranteeing pure processes
and product in the domestic
market. However, trust in the
organizations and institutions
that carry out hand processes
plays an important part in
issuing the certification. The
reason for this is the absence
of fool proof scientific methods
to distinguish handlooms from
powerloom / mill imitations.
We need certification as the The cost in making a metre of handloom fabric
imitation of the handloom is divided across yarn 31% , pre loom wages
aesthetic and form is the 19% , weaving wages 27% and aggregation and
biggest challenge for handloom distribution costs 23%. Since pre loom and
markets today. In the absence weaving activities are carried out in the village,
of scientific testing, ironically 55% of the cost paid for the fabric contributes
variations and imperfections to the village economy. One loom provides
in the fabric and high price employment for three more people in addition
become the indicators to to the weaver, through pre loom activity.
identify pure handlooms.
• 35 •
 95 A Parklane,
Behind Siddham Shetty Complex
Secunderabad 500 003, Ph: 040-27721735
email: [email protected]
www.dastkarandhra.org