Have you ever found yourself asking how are SónChiraiya zari Kota sarees made?
Well, allow us to walk you through the entire process. Listed below are all the steps involved in the time and labour-intensive weaving process of a SónChiraiya zari Kota saree.
Sourcing of fibres:
- Natural degummed mulberry silk is sourced from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
- Combed and undyed cotton is sourced from Gujarat and Maharashtra.
- 1gm real gold zari yarns are manufactured by us.
Yarn treatment involves:
- Washing
- Winding to transfer yarns from hanks to bobbins for warp
- Winding to transfer yarns from hanks to pirns for weft
- Dyeing using eco-friendly azo-free dyes
- Sizing to strengthen and protect yarns using juice of local wild onions and rice paste
Loom setup & weaving involves:
- Zari Kota sarees are crafted on pit looms using a technique called throw shuttle.
- Each silk and cotton yarn is drafted through ‘ranch’, a double clasped heddle before being dented via bamboo dents or steel reed dents called ‘fani’
- The base fabric is made up of silk and cotton threads. They are woven in warp and weft ways in varying densities. The check pattern is created so adroitly that uniformity in size of ‘khats’ and a certain degree of translucency is achieved.
- Designs are drawn on graph papers before being transferred onto fabrics.
- Silver and gold Zari threads are woven in extra weft and extra warp for elaborate designs.
- Time efficient piecing is also used apart from drafting and denting. It refers to the tying of corresponding warp threads with new individual warp threads.
In the following video, we take you behind the scenes for an exclusive sneak peek into one of our weaver’s workshops where she, accompanied by our founder Mrs. Preety Singh Pareek, shares some details about how she crafts the finest zari Kota handloom sarees.
Using this weaving process our legacy weavers craft luxury handloom sarees in the following fabrics.
Fabrics woven:
- Kota doria: Hand woven primarily using cotton yarns
- Kota silk: Hand woven using real silk yarns
- Zari Kota: Hand woven primarily using real silk, cotton, and real gold and silver zari yarns
- Ektara real zari Paithani: Hand woven primarily using real silk, and gold and silver zari yarns
No finishing required:
All superior quality yarns used to weave zari Kota sarees are exceptionally soft, strong and lustrous, hence require no finishing agents.