Master weavers operating ancient looms, turn silk and cotton threads into fantastic fabric creations.
After the skeins have received their final dye bath, the wrappings are all removed and are stretched out to be completely dried. Once dry, the skeins are divided in half, using a book-match technique creating a mirror image of the pattern. So the outside skein on the right will be the outside skein on the left on so on.
“The skeins are bought to the weaving room which is the domain of the women who do all the weaving.”
A typical loom is a wooden rack about 5 feet high, 3 feet wide and 6 feet long.
The dyed warp thread is hung in a bag at the far end of the loom and weighted with stones to create some tension. The threads are fed into the back of the loom and kept separated with a comb, holding a wooden handle suspended on a string which she pulls to throw the shuttle carrying the "weft", or cotton background thread, back and forth across the loom. This thread can be white or dyed to achieve different colors in the final fabric. Her other hand pulls a large comb-like device called a "beater" to tighten up the weave.
The weaver uses her feet to push down on the treadles or foot pedals which in turn lift or drop the "heddles", wire gates which hold sequential groups of warp threads creating a space for the shuttle to pass between.
The weaver must coordinate four to eight treadles to achieve different types of weaves. (for example, an 8-pedal ikat is a one-sided glossy satin).
Watching the weavers work, one get the sense that any one of these women could be incredible drummers in a rock band, since the amount of coordination and concentration between hands and feet is impressive.
As the fabric is being woven, it exits just above the weaver's knees and is taken up on a roller. During the process, an assistant helps feed the threads into the loom, making repairs to broken threads and keeping everything moving smoothly.
Alo Bahkmal velvet
Another related textile is the hand-cut velvet that the Uzbekis call "alo bahkmal" which loosely translates as "the finest fabric".
It is created much like ikat fabrics, with the exception that fine wires are added into the weave. Once several inches of velvet is woven, the process stops and the wires are cut out of the loops with a razor, creating the "pile" of the velvet.
The process is extremely time consuming and only a few yards of velvet can be woven in a day.