The Process

You will need fabric of your choice, threads, neeedle and a embroidery hoop.

The cost of making ‘Nakshi Katha’ is minimum, but the value and time-consuming embroidery work make it luxurious and valuable. A medium-sized quilt takes 2-3 months to complete and valued around 1,000 to 5,000 taka. The profit margin is sufficient due to the availability of old clothes and simple material. The process of making a katha would start with first making a sketch of the design before transferring the final design onto a tracing paper. The lines are drawn neatly in pencil. Depending on the type of katha one is making the steps may vary. Traditionally, multiple saree would be layered and first just sewn together to keep them together so that the design can be traced on to the fabric. Then a embroidery hoop would be placed around the part of the design that’s to be embroidered.

(Image courtesy: www.wanderingsilk.org)

There are different types of sewing methods to make one design and different colors threads are often used to give dimension to designs. Some of these methods were discussed in the prior sections. There are many tutorials available online for artists to explore. Youtube is an excellent resource to watch videos of the process.

(Image courtesy: www.wanderingsilk.org)

(Image courtesy: www.wanderingsilk.org) The kathas are usally made in the homes of the artists or outside in the yard under a tree.

Image courtesy: www.wanderingsilk.org

For this specific type of design shown on the right- One of the artisans, specially trained in this task, will prick thousands of tiny pin holes along all the design lines. A small pin stuck in bit of bamboo is used for this - the bamboo makes it easier for the artisan to hold. This takes around one day. After the this part is completed, they would begin the embroidery.

The skeches are usually done on paper and later traced on to the fabric.

Image courtesy: www.wanderingsilk.org

The papers are rolled up and stored properly. The patterns are usually re-used in different design. An artist may combine different designs to make each katha different from the other