weft yarn is tie-dyed, it is called single Ikat ; if both yarns are so treated, it can be combined Ikat (both are creating separate patterns) or double Ikat (a unified pattern is created). The Ikat artisan is not only proficient in the art of dyeing; she/he also has the technical knowledge of weaving. The process consists of calculating the amount of warp and filling yarns required for the article to be made. The tying of the yarn and weaving it after dyeing require great expertise so that warp and filling yarns match to produce the design.
Gujarat has the richest tradition of Ikat weaving. Patola is the most colourful double Ikat sari made in silk. Its manufacture is concentrated in Patan, in Mehsana district. Apart from geometrical design patterns inspired from local architecture, other designs are flowers, birds, animals and dancing dolls.
The colours most commonly used are red, yellow, green, black and white. They tend to flow into one another without the harshness of outline. I kat F abrics I kat F abrics Orissa is another region where Ikat saris and fabrics of cotton and silk are produced. The process here is known as Bandha , which may be single or combined ikat .
Compared to Patola , the designs here have a softer and curvilinear quality. They are also characterised by the addition of extra weft yarn woven in small figurative designs. Pochampalli and Chirala in Andhra Pradesh have the tradition of production of cotton ikat fabrics called Telia Rumals . These were designed – cms.
square pieces of fabric usually woven as a pair. The coarser ones were used as lungis , shoulder cloth or loincloth by the fishermen community and the finer ones as dupattas or veils.