Indian Quilts: Native Craft of Upcycling with love.
- shruti chawan
- Jul 22, 2022
- 3 min read
The native craft of quilting from western India which is said to be brought by Immigrants of Africa called siddis, still remains a part of native traditions today widely known as upcycled quilts.
Upcycling trends in today’s era are very common but India is home to a traditional craft of upcycling where quilts are upcycled with pieces of scraps or discarded fabrics which usually would end up in landfills are refurbished and used.
This traditional craft of upcycled quilts is most commonly found and known as Godhadi in Maharashtra, whereas Similar to this is the traditional form of Quilting known as Kawandi or kawadi from north karantaka. In olden times the women of the house would get together in the afternoons to sew these beautiful quilts usually when there was less or no farming work. As per the traditions these handstitched Quilts being a symbol of love and warmth are passed on by women of one generation to the other. To sew these old and discarded sarees, different pieces of clothes like shirts or pants are also used. Size of these Quilts depends on requirement for example Quilts for children are comparatively smaller in size than that for adults. Six yard or Nine-yard (nauvari) sarees are primarily used for godhadis(quilts) in Maharashtra.
Layers of different sizes of colorful cloth pieces are arranged and sewn together which gives it a beautiful abstract visual with a unique patchwork pattern. The clothes are divided into two types according to their positioning, one used for an external layer which is generally a long piece of cloth which includes saris or dupattas. And the other is for internal layering which are smaller clothes, in which they use flat portions from shirts, pants etc. For the internal layering, the extra thick edges and buttons are separated from the cloth to achieve a flat surface. The needles and threads are used to give stitches to the cloth, different size needles are used for different sizes of stitches as well as according to the thickness of cloth. White thread is most commonly used for the stitches which has given these Quilts a different identity. Different types of thicknesses are achieved by adding or subtracting middle layers. All the layers are hand-stitched using thread and needle. Women add designs and details to it according to their sewing mastery and ideas. Today these quilts are also stitched directly on the sewing machine.
Working on traditional Kawandi quilts artist Bishakha Raviraj has experimented with this craft in her own way, where she also converts photographs into her portrait quilts. Along with upcycling the fabrics in her own beautiful colour co-ordinated and designed quilts she has successfully upcycled plastic waste from supermarket into a quilt. Exploring and innovating in kawandi Bishaka says “kawandi or kawadi is a craft where Pieces of scraps are put together with needle and thread. Humble, slow handmade stitching make it a beautiful and useful piece.”
Just like Bishaka slowly artists are trying to experiment and bring this craft into limelight through fashion, Bags, Book covers, Table mats and lot more.
More than a craft this craft of quilt known as godhadi, kawandi or kawadi priorly remains as a symbol of love and warmth which is gifted by grandmother or mother to their children. A native ancient craft which teaches the importance of upcycling in the simplest way.
Credits:
Image and information about Kawandi/kawadi credits: Artist BISHAKHA RAVIRAJ
Images for Godhadi from Maharashtra:
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