FURNISHINGS

An important Gujarati art is hand painted cloth fashioned to make bedspreads, wall hangings, table cloths etc. in vibrant shades of red, black, maroon and ochre. The motifs used are mostly mythological. The 'namdas' or the floor spreads woven skillfully by the weavers are worth buying. 

Pleasant embroidery consists of motifs in bright silk threads interspersed with micro mirrors. These 'aribharat' embroideries with geometrical or animal motifs make very good wall hangings, cushion covers, skirts, borders and belts. 

TABLE CLOTHS, CUSHION COVERS: 
Gujarat offers a wide range of furnishings from simple and elegant cushion covers to quilts and bedcovers in a wide range of styles. Quilts are another popular handicraft item. They come in a variety of styles from simple geometric designs to more complex patterns. Other utility items like woven and Kalamkari table covers, tablemats and block printed bed land table linen.

DURRIES & NAMDAS: 
Totally felted, inlaid 'namdas' and woven 'durries' from Kachchh Kharal, a traditional floorspread from Kachchh, is woven entirely with camel and goat hair. The Sodha community makes 'Ari', embroidered wall hanging and decorative pieces of embroidery. 

Dhurries, carpets, blankets and rugs are woven on primitive pitlooms in the villages of Kachchh. Weavers dexterously weave designs with their hands while the machine is worked by foot pedals. The result is gorgeous patterns and remarkable colours combinations. Durries can be made from wool, goat hair and cotton. Colourful quilts and camel comparison are also woven traditionally on pitlooms, shuttle looms and other handlooms. Handloom weaving is an important occupation in villages on the Ahmedabad - Bhavnagar Highway. 

WHERE TO BUY: 
A typical market selling these things has come up at Law Garden in Ahmedabad. It is held in the evening and goes on till late night. Visitors throng this market in search of best buy.

Bead Work

Beadwork is another Gujarati specialty. Motifs and patterns are dictated by the technique of putting two and three beads together. Beadwork objects are used in wall decorations, potholders, etc. The best beadwork is produced by the 'kathis' (tribals). Worked mostly on a white background they use colours that are vibrant with very distinct patterns. Beadwork 'torans' (welcoming friezes) are usually suspended over doorways. 

KHAMBAT: THE CENTRE FOR BEAD MAKING 
Just an hour's drive from Ahmedabad, the artisans of Khambat (Cambay) continue the craft of stone cutting and bead making, which began in ancient times. Agate is mined in the hills along the Gulf of Khambat. 

THE PROCESS OF BEAD-MAKING: 
Here, they are dried and heated till they fracture regularly, and then cut and reheated with iron oxide. The stone is then chipped and flaked into beads, before grinding, drilling and polishing. 

The final product is set into ornaments or utensils. Other precious and semi precious stones are also cut and polished in Khambhat. Products range in price from Rs. 15/- for an earring to Rs. 3000/- or more for an entire set. Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Junagadh and other places are also known for beadwork.

Kachchhi Bandhani

'Bandhani' (tie and dye fabric) of Jamnagar, Mandvi and Bhuj are famous for their intricate designs and patterns, which are used, in wedding outfits called as 'gharchola odhni' and sarees. The tie-dyed fabrics of Gujarat are perhaps the best produced in India. Also known as 'Bandhej', it is produced on superfine cotton 'mulmul', muslin sometimes combined with gold checks and motifs worked in the 'jamdani' technique.

Dyeing is a hereditary art. In the past cloth was dyed in colours extracted from trees and flowers. The Sarkhei suburb of Ahmedabad was one of the indigo manufacturing and exporting centres. 

TIE N' DYE: THE PROCESS
The highest intensity of Bandhini dyeing is in Kachchh, but some of the best works are from Jamnagar and Saurashtra, on the Southern coast of Gulf of Kachchh. The printed portion of the fabric are pinched and pushed into small points and then knotted with 2 or 3 twists of thread. The knotted parts remain uncoloured and the fabric is dyed in the lightest shade first, retied and dyed in the darker colour. 

The fabric may be tied and dyed several times, depending on the number of shades in the final colour scheme. The price of the 'bandhani' depends not only on the fabric, but also on the number of times it has to be tied and dyed and on the intricacy of the design. 

BANDHANI SAREES: THE POPULAR WOMAN ATTIRE
The Bandhani, tie and dye variety of sari is a very popular women's wear. It involves an intricate process of tying knots on the fine white fabrics, which are dipped in colours. The hues of deeper shades are used over the previous ones to form the coloured background of the cloth. 

'Bandhani' sarees are easily available in all the bazaars and shopping centres of Jamnagar and here you can also find them brocaded with fine gold thread zaris.

EXOTIC HANDICRAFTS OF KACHCHH

If arid, harsh desert lands propagate the most wonderful craft traditions in the country, Kachchh is a living testimony to it. It is like man trying to compensate for nature's neglect. In the midst of the innumerable chores of daily existence the women folk set aside a few hours for embroidering the most vibrant, fine and varied collection of embroidery in the country. 

PAINITING WITH NEEDLES : 
If any one deserves the credit of adding, a touch of exotic colour to the monochromatic desert scapes of the Rann of Kachchh and the arid semi desert scrubby grasslands of Banni, it is the embroiderers. The embroidery of Kachchh is very picturesque and has the quality of jewellery. 

An inexplicable bond weaves nature and the Kachchhi together. Using simple materials the craftsmen create objects of great beauty, filling their lives and the bleak surroundings with infinite beauty. Kachchh is known for its distinctive traditional crafts, from embroidery to jewellery-making and carving. 

The Kachchhi crafts however range from block printing on textiles, bandhni of the khatris, to the exquisite beadwork of Rabari women. Some of the villages and communities have specialised for generation in certain crafts and thereby create masterpieces that delight a connoisseur.

A few of them are the Sodha embroidery from Loriya village, Patch work of Bhirandiyara, the extremely detailed Mochi embroidery, the Rabari embroidery from Nana Nakhatrana, the leather creations by Meghwal artisans, the very famous silver work on precious metals of Bhuj and Anjar, besides traditional wood and lacquer work and Rogan, the extremely fine lacquer work on cloth produced by the artisans of Chobari and Nirona villages. Dhordo is known for its wood-carving. 

EMBROIDERY: A BRILLIANT SKILL 
Kachchh owes much of its fame today to its embroidery. Much of the most colourful in Gujarati embroidery belongs to Kachchh. With a needle for a paintbrush, the Kachchhi woman gives expression to her creativity and proclaims her oneness with nature by churning out beautifully embroidered pieces.

The folk embroidery of Kachchh is an ongoing and dynamic tradition. The most interesting aspect of the whole process is that needlework and embroidery traditions are preserved and propagated by almost every community, caste and sub- group in Kachchh.

The finest needlework today comes from the many communities living in the Banni tract of Kachchh district. The women of different communities in Kachchh have their distinct styles, the most distinctive being that of the Rabari community of Kachchh. The finest example of their applique work can be seen on the decorative hanging which covers the entrance of houses in Kachchh 

EMBROIDERY IN LEATHER:
It is a common art form of the Kachchh region of Gujarat. The northern villages of Dhordo, Khavda and Hodko are home to the few remaining communities of leather embroiderers who soak hide in a solution of water, latex and lime in an underground earthen pot before stitching it with flower, peacock and fish motifs. The finished bags, fans, horse belts, wallets, cushion covers and mirror frames are sold in villages all through the region. 

AJRAKH: A UNIQUE PRINTING METHOD 
Khavda is one of the last villages to continue the printing method known as 'ajrakh'. Cloth is dyed with natural pigments in a lengthy process similar to batik, but instead of wax, a mixture of lime and gum is used to resist the dye in certain parts of the cloth when new colours are added. 

TERRACOTTA:
Women in Khavda paint terracotta pots with dusky whites, reds and blacks, using cotton rags and brushes made from bamboo leaves. 

ROGAN PAINTING:
Rogan painting is now practised only in Biber in northern Kachchh. Hand-pounded castor oil is turned into coloured dyes by a complex process, which are then used to decorate cushion covers, bedspreads and curtains with simple geometric patterns.