Threads of Tradition: Unravelling of Ikat Weaving

 Fabric ornamentation is the art and science of embellishing each finished textile product according to the quick changes in customer style and fashion preferences. Compared to other nations, India's top handloom clusters make ikat, or tie and dye fabrics, with elaborate and artistic designs that are essential to the country's export industry and draw in worldwide consumers (Behera et al 2019). It is a shared textile art, particularly between India and Indonesia, and it universally symbolises riches, power, and status. The word "ikat" itself comes from the Indonesian verb mengikat, which means "to tie" (Sagar, 2019). It is a fabric ornamentation technique that involves the tie and dye process in various patterns and styles (Mohanty, 2010). Many nations, including Persia, Japan, China, Egypt, Nigeria, the Philippines, Germany, France, Italy, Sweden, and Finland, are home to ikat. Different names for it are used throughout the world, such as "patolu" in Bali, "geringing" in Japan, and "ikat" in India (Niessen, 2009). A typical visual feature of an ikat fabric is a feather-like look, resulting from the dye bath's colour penetrating through the resistant material and the threads' minor movement due to weaving tensions (Hann, 2005). Various studies have shown that since India's handloom industry has grown in several states, this textile has once again gained support in India and around the world (Maxwell, 2003).