The Beauty of Hand Woven Rugs
Hand-woven rugs come to life through the rhythmic movement of a shuttle - a wooden and metal hand tool that holds a bobbin wound with yarn. A shuttle is skillfully maneuvered by the weaver across the loom in an east-west motion, perpendicular to the warp yarns. The warp yarns are pulled taut on either a floor loom or upright loom, and are the structural foundation of any hand-woven rug. Row by row, the weft yarns are woven over and under the warp, gradually building a design.
Fibers undergo what is called carding, where it's brushed between two bristled pads called carders. This aligns the naturally wavy fibers, priming them for the spinning stage. Once carded, skilled spinners called katwaris utilize a spinning wheel to twist the fibers. This action binds the fibers, forming yarn. The yarn is wound into hanks and then submerged in dye. Once the desired shades are achieved, the hanks bask in the warm Indian sun to dry. Once the yarn is ready, the weaving begins.
