KUTCH AND KATHIAWAR EMBROIDERY

Introduction
In Gujarat, embroidery seems to have spread to all aspects of life. Kutch in northwestern Gujarat and Saurashtra in western Gujarat has the finest and richest embroidey in a variety of styles.
Places
Bhuj, Mandavi, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar.
Threads and Colors
Cotton and untwisted silk in colors red, green, magenta, white, orange, yellow, often used.Other colors being royal blue, parrot green, purple, maroon, brown, violet, black, sky blue, pink and yelloe are rarely used.
Fabric
Oroginally silk and occassionly satinfabric was used. As silk is expensive, fabrics such as casement, poplin, khadi are used. These fabrics are brought from Bombay, Ahmedabad, Surat and Porbander in colors of red, maroon, yellow, green, orange, navy blue, brown, magenta and black. Today the colors included are sky blue, parrot green, light yellow, white, violet, pink, turquoise, blue and cream.
Stitch
The stitches used are chain, herringbone, mirrors (abhla), cross stitch, satin, running stitch, appliqué work, and moti bharat (bead work).

GOLD AND SILVER EMBROIDERY

Introduction
Gold and Silver embroidery is the earliest among the outstanding and famous Indian Embroidery. It was practiced almost all over the country. Each place was famous for it own style of Gold and Silver embroidery.
Places
Metal embroidery is practiced nearly all over India. Kashmir, Delhi, Agra and Lucknow and Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh, Ajmer in Rajasthan, Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, Ahmedabad, Bombay, Hydrabad in Andhra Pradesh, Madras and a host of other lesser known places like Vadodara, Dahod, Dholka, Dabhoi, Bharuch, Godra in Gujarat.
Threads
A vast variety of embroidery materials exists today. The pure Gold and Silver threads have been substituted with imitation, that is copper, steel. Powder coated, plastic and silk thread.
Stitches
Innumerable varieties of stitches are employed. This work is like an ocean which is vast and deep. It is difficult for an individual to learn all. The stitches used are basic. They are satin, stem running, couching, herring bone, bullion knot, French knot, long and short and cross stitch.
Fabric
Velvet and satin lined with buckram was used for the heavier kind of work, while chiffon, net and other lightweight materials were used for the lighter variety of work.

KASHIDA EMBROIDERY

Introduction
Kashmir means ‘Rock through’in regional language, where ‘KAS’ is water channel and ‘MIR’ I smountain.Kashmir is considered as a paradise of earth. Kashmir is famous for various arts, specifically, for its beautifully embroidered and woven shawls.
Places
Kashmir, Amritsar
Colors
Mostly used were crimson red, scarlet red, blue, yellow, green, purple,black, brown and white.
Threads
Fine quality woollen yarn, rich lustrous silk and cotton thread also, was used in bright colors.
Stitches
The stitches employed are simple. The dominant stitches are satin, stem, chain, long and short stitches, with the darning, button-hole and herring-bone stitches occasionally used.
Fabrics
Various types of un-dyed wool, Silk, cotton and linen were used. Usually, it was a cream background but according to the demand, mill made dyed fabric in dark colors like black, navy blue, brown maroon and bottle green were also used.

CHIKANKARI EMBROIDERY

Introduction
Chikan is the form of embroidery that is recognized for its timeless appeal. The word Chikan just means embroidery. A very subtle and suggestive white stitch on white is what is known ias chikan work. Chikan work is also known as the ‘white embroidery since it was always done with white thread on white fabric that is white on white.Thoudg today several pastel and dark shades have been employed as the base color, the thread remains to be predominatly white.
Places
The extremely lovely and elegent style of embroidery is produced in Lucknow.Though there are several other places where this art exists. They are Calcutta, Dacca, Varanasi, Bhopal, Allahabad, Delhi, Agra, Rampur, Patna and Gaya.
Thread
Whote cotton thread has always remained the choice of the embroidere, though earlier samples show the use of muga silk and tusser silk threads in yallow and off-white.
Stitch
The stitches commonly employed are herring-bone, back stitch, stem stitch, French knot, bullion knot, buttonhole, running stitch and satin stitch, being the rarely used.To be specific there are six type of Chikankari stitches, better known for their local names.
1.Bukhia: The most beautiful among the six, which appears as small stitch on the right side for outline while on the wrong side it is seen as a criss-cross pattern.
2. Khatao: It is better known as cheap imitation of Bukhia.Thr stitch is is a form of appliqué work prepared on a calico material.
3. Taipchi: This is mostly done by women on their saries.This is a type of running stitch with which the outlines are worked.
4. Jali: An effect of drawn thread work is achieved whitout drawing out any any threads.
5. Murri and Phanda: They are the most characteristics forms of chikan work and are used mostly to work out the center of the flower.Murri means rice shape and Phanda millet shape,The stitch essentially a French knot.
Fabric
Earlier fine Muslin in white, was the only fabric used.Today it is any fine fabric with transparency is used.

MANIPURI EMBROIDERY

Introduction
Manipur is a land of rich valleys surrounded by beautiful hills and lakes.Manipur is surrounded by mountains, its beautiful valleys covered with sheets of water.The people of Manipur are skilled in many arts. The women of Manipur carry the main burden of the society. The embroidery prepared by women is delicate and extremely fine.This craft is practiced by both men and women in Manipur.
Threads and colors
Earlier untwisted silk threads were used. Now the usage of cotton threads in shades of red, yellow, white, green, and even black is become more popular.
Stitches
Tiny satin chain and stem stitches are commonly applied. The chain stitch is mostly utilized for outlining the motifs.
Fabrics
Woven cotton normally with black as the base color, thus the colors of the embroidery stand out, At times green and yellow was also used.

KASUTI EMBROIDERY

Introduction
Kasuti is a domestic art and a fine folk embroidery of Karnataka. Kasuti in regional language-Kanarese means handwork of cotton thread. This art of embroidery was started and developed by women themselves.
Places
The places where the embroidery is done is in the district of northern of Karnataaka like Bijpur, Dharwar, Miraj, Sangli, Jamkhandi and the territory of Goa.
Colors
The colors most frequently used are red, orange, purple, green and crimson. Occasionally, blue and yellow is used.
Threads
Standard mercerized cotton threads and silk threads are used today.
Stitches
Four types of stitches known as Gavanti, Murgi, Negi and Menthi are used in this embroidery.
1. Gavanti: is the most commonly used double running stitch also known as line and back stitch.
2. Murgi: is the zigzag running stitch, which appears like steps of ladder.When neatly done they look identical on the right as well as the wrong side of the cloth.
3. Negi: is the ordinary stitch also known as the darning or the weaving stitch.
4. Menthi: is ordinary cross stitch.

PHULKARI EMBROIDERY

Introduction
Phulkari literally means flower-craft while Bagh that means a garden is also embroidery from Punjab. The term Bagh is used for similar shawls in the West Punjab districts of Peshavar, Sialkot, Jhelum, Rawalpindi and Hazara.
Places
The best phulkaries formarly were found in tht West Punjab districts of Peshavar, Sialkot, Jhelum, Rawalpindi and Hazara while in the East Punjab the places were Amritsar, Jukkundhar, Ambala, Ludiana and former states of Patiala, Kapurthala, Nabha Faridkot and Jind.The Bagh were particularly from Chakwal near Rawalpindi Hazara.
Colors
The colors commonly used are crimson red, white, golden yellow, green and orange.The other colors were blue-violet, dark broun and various shades of red.
Threads
Soft untwisted silk thread known as ‘pat’ was commonly used, though in few of southeast Punjab crude homespun cotton yarn was used more often than silk floss. ‘Pat’ was brought from Kashmir, Russia, Turkistan, Afghanistian andBengal.The best quality thread was received from China.
Stitches
Long and short darning stitches were commonly used. Herring bone, cross stitch, buttonhole, double running and satin stitches were also used occasionally.
Fabrics
The embroidery was invariably done on home spun, hand-woven and home-dyed coarse cotton material known as ‘Khadder’ in several weaves and textures.

KANTHA EMBROIDERY

Introduction
One of the most pleasing and best known forms of folk art in Bengal is the Kantha or the embroidery quilt. Kanthas are associated with rural women of Bengal.Bengali housewife RECYCLED worn out sari, dhoti and other garments by sandwiching layers of clothes and then quilting them with simple running stitches. Kanthas are extremely soft to touch, since they are made from old fabrics.

Places
They were mostly done in places like Jessore, Faridpur, Khulna and Mymensing all in Bengal Desh now. It is now commercially available in several states.
Colors
The clolrs commonly used are black, deep blue and red symbolizing the three basic aspects of nature namely the earth, sky and space.
Threads
Traditionally the threads were pulled out from the colorful border of the saries, dhotis, material of the fabric and used as embroidery threads. Today threads are bought in bright colors of cotton or silk.
Stitches
The running stitch is the most commonly used in Kantha. The outline of the design is generally in dark blue, filled with stitches of the same color or in contrasting color. After the design is embroidered, the area around is filled with white running stitches parallel to the outline of the motif. The other stitches occasionally used are chain, herringbone, satin and cross stitch to give wide textural effects. Also used was appliqué work.
Fabrics
The women of Bengal mostly wore white cotton sarees. Hence the base material was always old sarees and discarded dhotis for Kanthas. Traditionally the tussar silk was used for trade. Today, silks such as Kancheepuram,Tussar or raw silk, in fact any fabric is used as the based material.

INDIAN EMBROIDERY

Indian Embroidery

Since the dawn of civilization, man has felt the need of provide ornamentation to textiles through weaving, dyeing, printing and embroidery. Embroidery, according to encyclopedia Americana, is the addition of pattern of other ornamental effects to textiles by the use of needle and thread. The art of embroidery is ancient and it evolved from the process of plain sewing.

Though certain basic stitches maybe common in all embroidery, each region has developed distinct characteristics of its own that mark it out, because embroidery more than almost any other craft reflects the local tradition, culture and physical environment. It is this that has given so many different faces to the Indian Embroidery. Each is rooted in the original folk culture from which each has evolved and therefore each has

its predominant designs, color combination and techniques.

There are different embroideries popular in different parts of India.

Kantha of West Bengal
Kasuti of Karnataka
Phulkari of Punjab
Manipuri of Manipur
Chamba of Himachal Pradesh
Kashida of Kashmir
Chikankari of Uttar Pradesh
Zari or Zardozi embroidery of India
Kutch and Kathiawar embroidery of Gujarat