CARDING THE WOOL
Carding is a mechanical process that disentangles, cleans and intermixes fibres to produce a continuous web or sliver suitable for subsequent processing. This prepares the wool for the next step. Seen here are the wives of our weavers. They have just started their training at the factory. At The D and P Co, we ensure a livelihood not just for the weaver, but for his/her family as well.
sPINNING THE YARN
The first part of the spinning process is called drafting. This is where the spinner takes a small chunk of fibers and stretches them out until they resemble a long cord. During this time, they have the spindle spinning. This puts twist into the wool, and it will eventually hold together into a strong thread or yarn. Caught candidly on camera while she was busy spinning, Shahana Begum, means business. She always wears black and you will often find her silently spinning her yarn.
CHOOSING THE RIGHT COLOUR
Light colors, dark colors, muted colors, bright and vibrant colors, rich and deep colors, or monochromatic colors. Whatever our customers need we at The Drugget & Parquetry Co have an in-house set of colors to choose from. We also specialize in making custom palettes to one’s own liking.
Dyeing
Just like there are variations in the quality of wool and silk used for making carpets, there are differences in the type and quality of dyes used to color carpets and rugs. The kind of dyes used can influence the value of the carpet and decide it’s worth in the market. Some dyes are rich and saturated while the others are soft. They say, a good dye is one that shines when light falls and reflects off it. Transparent quality dyes are regarded as the best as their colors come to life when combined with lustrous wool.
CREATING A MAP
The first step in making our carpets is preparing the design map. This is a crucial step, as it will determine the final outcome. Our expert designers spend as much time as necessary making sure their map is perfect. At our factory, we still design by hand sometimes to maintain authenticity and uniqueness. With hand knotted carpets, we usually draw our design maps with the help of a computer software in which we can specify each knot and make sure it is the way our customer wants to have it. The resulting design depiction will create a weaving graph for our weavers to follow later.
WEAVING
Hand-knotting found its way into Indian heritage from Persia, giving it its name, Persian Hand-knotting. It’s uniqueness in art is through its style of printing; knot by knot and line by line, paying attention to each intricate detail. It’s a process that requires a minimum of 2 months, ranging up to almost a year depending on the quality and size of carpet being woven. Manju Shyamkumar, is one of the oldest artisans of the family, seen in this picture. knows a rug when she sees it. Along with the many seasons that she has seen in her fifty years as a weaver, she heads up a community program at her village to support younger artisans to earn a livelihood.
WASHING
Soon after the weaving, the rug is washed by a bucket or two of water by using non-harmful detergent and chemicals. Saving water is a rigorous belief we at The Drugget & Parquetry live by. During a wash the chemical water is dispersed through a man-made sewer and is collected in a septic tank. Once the chemical is settled below, the water is used to irrigate crops on a field as the processed water tends to act as a chemical fertilizer and aids in it’s growth. Furthermore, the collected waste is then disposed of carefully to designated landfills.
FINISHING
Soon after the wash and dry, the rug goes into quality control. The surface of the rug is smoothened out by removing extra hanging fibers. Pointed sharp scissors are used for its levelling. Trimming brings out the clarity in the design of the rug. Every dirt, knot, and uneven thread is checked thoroughly in a white light to create the magnificent finish of a rug that’s our customer service.