Magic Carpet

While in Agra, I went on a tour of a carpet making artisan shop.  The pattern is hand painted onto graph paper that the weavers will use to make the carpet.  He is an apprentice copying a pattern.  After a few years, he will move to a different table where he can create patterns.

 

Once the pattern is complete, they create a template card of the wool colours to be used in the rug.

 

 

In the wool storage room, the amount of wool required for the making of the rug is gathered. (This is all wool I am sitting on and the room was large).

 

The wool is bundled into kits. 

 



Then two weavers tie the knots of the various coloured strings onto the strands of the loom.  The weaver on the left side has the pattern for the border, the weaver on the right has the pattern for the middle.  When starting a new row, they begin to sing out the pattern.  One sings out the colour first while tying the knot and the other sings out the repeat while matching the knot.  This continues until they reach the plain area. Then just an eerie silence as they work tying the remaining knots.  I need to add that they work INCREDIBLY fast.  Every twenty minutes they take a break or their eyes cannot focus on the pattern.

When the weavers are done, the next step is to burn off the stray wool fibres.  The carpet will not burn because it is tightly woven.  The singed carpet is washed to remove any flame marks.

After the carpet is taken off the loom, each section is hand raked and trimmed with scissors.

Here is a finished rug.  It feels fantastic when you walk on it bare foot. If you want to try it, stop by the house next week.  It will be home before I am. :D