Business on textile of Bhutan.

  Criteria used for judging  The judging session was held on April 26 where the products were selected by panel of 12 judges comprising of both national and international experts on handicrafts. The criteria used to judge the products were authenticity,design ,skills or technique, material, finishing marketing and innovation. Based on the scores that meet the bhutan seal standards the products are certified with either the seal of quality or seal of excellence. Although the trade department received 18 products this year, no products was awarded the seal of excellence. Quality being judged Focusing on bhutanese handicrafts, the products are caterogised into two broad categoried- traditional and non traditional or contemporary zorig chusam (Bhutanese handicrafts). Products that qualified for seal of quantity were brass doorknob from the traditional category while the non traditional products included textiles and a contemporary painting. Participants from the bronze casting wor...

 Bhutan is absolutely land locked in every sense. Because of its geographical oddity, there was hardly any interaction between people from different regions as their mobility was constantly restricted by the difficult mountainous terrain. People in different regions had their own distinct languages and variation in their lifestyles and the kind of materials they produced according to the climate and region they live in. In highlands one comes across waterproof tents that yak herders made out of yak hair. For other materials they used the softer felt out of the underbelly wool. Moving on towards warmer climates and more fixed settlement's, one being to realize that sheep wool was primarily raw material for textile.  The animal based wool or plant based fibre(depending upon which one is used) is then treated processed and spun into yarn for weaving. In the past weavers who wove at home either collected the raw materials directly from the Forest or chose to grow them depending up...

  Backstrap loom/ pang Tha. This loom is one of the oldest of its kind. It is designed for convenience as it is portable and doesn't occupy too much small space. It can easily be set up in a corner in ones home. This loom is a blessing for a Weaver who wants to work at home while looking after the children and getting household chorus done at the same time. It is made of wooden frame combined with bamboo parts.  Though it can be used to weave a variety of textiles, the length of the cloth is limited on this loom. Because of the convenience of its usage, it is the most popularly used loom in Bhutan. Horizontal frame loom/ thrue tha. Thue tha or the horizontal frame loom was introduced in Bhutan in the twentieth century. It is said that a lady from the Royal family send a Weaver who happened to be a male to Tibet. It's venture ended up being a success and consequently this particular loom along with the knowledge pertaining to it's usage was introduced in Bhutan for the firs...

 The map below shows the depicts the association of a particular textile with a district or dzongkhag. This map takes into account the fact that some regions, especially those in central and eastern Bhutan can be identified with many kinds of hand woven textiles and patterns. It also identifies what each region, specialized in historically. For example Trongsa was known for cotton and nettle and Bumthang for the west and south tried to assign woven materials in accordance to modern trends.  These are some examples to help illustrate the point paro has an elaborate pesar ( new design) indicating usage , wangdue has an Adha Martha and Adha Rachu as it originated there in pema gatshel we see a stack of jadrima Kira that are woven there. The pangtsi and serthras in the southern part of the country have been influenced by neighbouring Assam and are therefore identified with sooth. Likewise the rari or sheep wool rug is identified with Tsirang. 

 Bhutanese women weave beautiful handloom textiles with intricate pattern on the back strap, treadle and card looms, using a variety of yarns, in rich, vibrant colours. The vivid colours are obtained both from chemical and natural, vegetables and herbal dyes. Weaving is prevalent throughout the kingdom and traditionally it was the lady of the house who had to see to the dyeing and weaving process in addition to her household duties. The entire process of weaving a fabric from the spinning of yarn, the dyeing and final weaving was done by hand, at home. Every fabric has a name, which describes it's particular combination of fibre,colour and pattern.aterial could be either striped or checked. Extra motifs and patterns are obtained by supplementary weft threads or by adding warp threads. All patterns have a symbolic meaning:the tree swastika the wheel, the vajra, the diamond, etc. This checked wollen materials is called mathra, sertha, or tsangthra, depending on it's colour. Wome...

How to wear a full Kira The won(under blouse) is worn first. Then the Kira is draped around the back under the right arm and pinned. In this same manner wrap the Kira from the front and pin it on the left shoulder. Right shoulder pin is optional. Once it is pinned at the shoulder(s) with a koma (brooch) , tie it at the waist with kera (belt).    5. Put on your tego ( jacket) over the kira,        and  double- fold the sleeves of the                  wongu (blouse) with Tego to form cuffs. How to wear a half Kira The half Kira is simply a piece of fabric wrapped around the waist, worn wit wonju and tego. Five steps to wear a half Kira. 1. Put on the wonju (short blouse). 2.wrap the kira. Observe the end of the fabric and fold over. 3. Tie the kera (belt) around your waist and tuck in the fringe. 4. Put tego (jacket). Adjust neckline so it is beautiful.  5. Pin the tego in place.     The Gh...

 The cotton/ Terrycot machine made Gho/Kira ones will cost us around 850 to 1000 Nu and we can find good bargains in both the capital of the country and outside the borders of the countries. If full length fabrics do not interest us much, we can buy pouches or bags made from these textiles. We can also buy scarf and skirt woven from bhutanese textiles. Most locals shops for their daily satorial need at the neighbouring borders . Once we crossed the border we find a considerable difference in price .  Special occasion can often be expensive in bhutan because everyone must wear the finest embroider Gho's and Kira's with intricate patterns. To be sure,a bhutanese wedding is not for poor. Both groom and bride need to wear something unique and handmade, which can cost over 50,000 ngultrum ($700 USD) each. This can make a wedding quite expensive. Not only the bride and groom but also other member of the family who are part of the ceremony must wear their best finery, so the cost o...

 In Bhutan, every region has its own specialty. For example, bura (raw silk) is popular in Trashigang. In kurtoe or lhuntse , sesho (fine silk) is very widely used. And of course, yathra is the trade mark of bumthang and western parts of the country. What makes them special is that all the weavers in Bhutan are women. Come winter, and the village of khoma in kurtoe, lhuntse reverberates with the sound of the wodden beater hitting the wrap as women weave the famous kishuthara. Kishuthara is special in that the silk patterns are one of the most colourful and intricately woven bhutanese fabrics in the country. It's origins go back several centuries and each kishuthara has the signature of it's Weaver who designs patterns depending on the occasion that kishuthara is to be worn at as on ocassions grown in importance, so do the intricacy and denseness of the patterns. It is a common sight, especially after the harvest season in khoma, to find women in groups of six to ten sitting ...

Introduction Bhutanese textiles represents a rich and complex repository of a unique art of form. They are recognised for their abdundance of colour, sophistication and variation of patterns , and the intricate dyeing and weaving techniques. The weavers, who are mostly women, must not be seen merely as creator of wealth but also as an innovators and owners of artistic skills. Developed and over nutured over centuries of time.    History The history of bhutanese textiles became more evidence in the last century. As textile production moved beyond the confines of clothing to artistic expression of individuals and communities patronage from the royal house hold was virtual . Although the founders of the wangchuck dynasty are from bumthang, their ancestral home is in lhuntse district which was historically recognised as the home of the most celebrated weavers in the country.  Women weavers   Ordinary weavers produced fabrics for general use that were of standard qualit...

 1. Plain weavers Plain weave textiles are usually woven in patterns with stripped and plaids. Martha-This is a palided weave usually with red or maroon as the dominant colour.  sertha- plaid weaves usually with yellow or orange as the dominant colour. Thara - woven only for production of horizontal striped Kira with white as the dominant colour. 2.warp pattern weaves Warp is the yarn that runs lengthwise on the loom. The warp pattern designs are characterized by their supplementary warp floating technique that forms bands of repeated motifs on ground. The different warp pattern designs are different with their colour schemes. The number of legs or cross hatches in each supplementary warp pattern band is one indicator of the superitority of the textile. The textile is even more priced when the Weaver includes weft pattern designs.       Mentsi Martha : Alternate yellow warp bands with plain weave red ground.  Lungserma: Alternative green red on orange...