Ikat Ikat Everywhere, But Nary A Real One!

Indigo Handloom Denim Ikat

The process of ikat weaving is what inspired me to start Indigo Handloom. 

I was drawn in by this intricate technique where the threads of the fabric are dyed into a design before the endless bundles of threads are put onto the loom.  My first visit to a handloom village was one of the last remaining areas which specialized in 'real' ikat. I stood there dumbfounded as I watched weavers and dyers working together - almost all of them illiterate - to create the most intricate designs of ikat I'd ever seen. 


I've seen Yemeni ikat hanging in museums in Boston, shopped south American style in markets in Peru and seen Thai ikat hanging in shops in Manhattan - but none of it had this level of sophistication and precision.  I think it's safe to say that I know my ikat!

Even while India has the most amazing handweaving skill of any place I've ever seen - ikat is among the most difficult skill to master. When you look at true ikat, imagine someone drawing out the design in their mind  - they don't even map it out ahead of time - and then dyeing each thread in the correct place so that when the thread is woven into the fabric, it sits next to the following thread and the dyed design matches up perfectly.  All this design expertise and artistry - is done from knowledge handed down generations and it still exists in some handloom villages. 

So when the current trend of ikat came about - I was initially excited because I thought it might revive this industry - which like all handloom - is in decline. Unfortunately, the meaning of the word 'ikat' has been completely misunderstood by the West. 

Much like the word 'pashmina' which now seems to mean a large scarf or 'wrap' - not the original meaning which described a kind of fine cashmere wool found in the Indian state of Kashmir and the products made from this handwoven material. 'Real' pashmina shawls cost thousands, but if you ask any New Yorker where to get a 'pashmina' they will point you to the stalls that sell them in a rainbow of colors for 10-bucks each. This polyester junk is not pashmina - but it's hard to argue once a word's meaning has denigrated to this degree.   

At least Wikipedia got it right! 

"Ikat' has the same problem.  Designer Oscar de la Renta deserves so much credit for starting this trend by going to UUzbekistan and using real ikat in his collections. 

Indigo Handloom's Shadow Ikat in Circus

Unfortunately most of the fashion industry failed to understand that ikat was not a print, but a weave - and just stole the designs worked out by weavers around the world and stamped it as a print onto every fabric from knits to wools. Today if you ask people about ikat, they will assume you want printed fabric. 

Sigh

This would be great but while the world is in love with 'ikat' the same villagers who created the designer are all abandoning their looms because of the lack of work. I don't normally let fashion trends give me anxiety but I'm well aware of how quickly this skill can disappear - not because of the lack of interest in the marketplace - but because of simple ignorance about the process.Those ikat prints are costing the jobs of the very people who developed the designs. 

Indigo Handloom's Shadow Ikat in Graphic

So - now is your  chance to stop being part of the ignorant masses! How to tell if you are purchasing a 'real' ikat or just a cheap imitation print?  Flip the fabric - if the design is equally as vibrant on both sides - that means that is a true yarn-dyed 'ikat.'  

At Indigo Handloom, we are trying to revive ikat into our line of scarves and fabrics. Check out our latest offerings of Denim Ikat,  Ikat Shadow in Circus and in Graphic black and white!

Bonding At An Altitude of 30,000 Feet

I sat next to a man on my flight to New York last week who was on his way to a meeting he was dreading. He had spent his entire life working in the insurance industry and now with only 14 months until retirement, he said he could barely stand to go to work.


He said he was the first person to go to college from his family, the son of immigrants and therefore expected to find a good job and work hard to 'get ahead.'


I would say he's done a good job - he and his wife are financially secure and own their own home. For most of his career he was happy to go to work, to compete and make his company bigger and more profitable. Now, it's painful to think of all the things that go on in this corporate atmosphere that make his stomach turn, he told me. 


Deep in his heart, he wants to do something good. He wants to be aligned with his nature of having some purpose in his life that betters the environment, other people or the world at large. 


His face lit up when he talked about his post-retirement plans of going to a developing country and building houses or volunteering with an international aid organization. So we brainstormed 

about these ideas for the rest of the trip.

I certainly understand this desire. I left a career in journalism because I couldn't stomach the changes in my profession anymore. I went into journalism with a desire to help people - but after the initial high of being a reporter waned, I started to wonder what real impact I was making. Whatever it was, it was too diffuse. The nature of journalism means that you are covering the surface of an issue and once the story is done - you are off to the next story. I knew my role as a journalist was to shed light upon a topic. But what about the next step?


So I decided to focus on one idea, one area and one community - to test my idea that a for-profit business could mix with a social mission. I would provide jobs by employing handloom weavers in villages who desperately needed work, create a beautiful product that I would sell to the rest of the world and then invest back into the weaving community where I worked and therefore have a discernible impact.  


At the time I started, there was no term to describe what I was trying to do - I remember hearing the phrase 'social entrepeneur' for the first time around 2006. Now just six years later, the idea and interest in social entrepreneurship has exploded. Entire business schools have sprung up and huge organizations like SOCAP and LOHAS have been created to support these new style entrepreneurs.


It seems this itch, this desire to throw yourself into some bigger than yourself, resonates with people more than ever. IN fact, according to the famous English sculptor Henry Moore, it may be the secret to a full, satisfying life.


In his words, "The secret to life is to have a task, something you do your entire life, something you bring everything to, every minute of the day for your whole life. And the most important thing is: It must be something you cannot possibly do.”

Peach AND Fuchsia

Walking to the mandap under a banner of fuchsia 

My wedding was truly my vision come to life and so much more. I had a wonderful time and ended up using both the peach as well as the fuchsia handloom fabric. We draped peach on the mandap and I walked under a banner of the fuchsia carried by my brother and three cousins. 
I read about this ancient Hindu tradition in Wikpedia and decided to incorporate it into my wedding.   I've included a few other photos as well - including the moment when my girlfriends picked me up and I body-surfed in my sari over them.  I love that my wedding was a mix of ancient tradition and modern-day silliness....So much fun..it almost makes me want to get married again!

Sitting under the mandap draped with peach handloom

Andre and I sharing a laugh under the mandap.

Tied the knot!

Love this moment!