4 Most Demanded Weaves Used In Pashmina Shawls
Pashmina shawls, made from one of the finest quality fabric “Pashm” are the outcome of fine weaving from the considerably finer undercoat which is cleaned and hand-spun into yarn. The process of hand-spinning this fragile fibre to yarn is typically done by the local women artisans who are extremely skilled and talented in doing this job. Once the yarn gets ready, then the process of creating a warp and weaving gets started.
The weaving of a pashmina yarn is performed with a special type of resin or natural starch. The process of weaving is generally performed by women artisans. It comprises three steps.
- Shedding
- Picking
- Beating
Here, artisans use a weft yarn horizontally at some precise angles to warp. The movement of the warp and weft alternatively creates different types of weaving. During the first step of weaving, i.e., shedding, artisans add on the design components on the pashmina shawl. After that, beautiful patterns have been created by choosing the yarns to lift up while inserting the weft. This is how we get a beautiful looking pashmina shawl that has a glistening effect.
Weaving is of so many types, but four of them are the most popular ones as mentioned below.
Types of Weaving Done On Pashmina Shawls
- Plain Weave: It is one of the most common yet popular weave types. Plain weave is done in a simple criss-cross pattern with warp and weft threads crossing at right angles. This type of weave is very strong and resembles a checkerboard.
- Fishbone Weave: Fishbone weaves also known as broken twill is a distinct v-shaped weave pattern crafted on pashmina fabric. This type of weave looks amazing on a plain chevron. It irregularly breaks the continuity and looks like a broken zig-zag or fishbone like herring. This pattern is also known as a herringbone as the design looks similar to a skeleton of a herring fish.
- Diamond Weave: This is one of the elegant and beautiful patterned weave crafted with an aesthetic sheen that looks absolutely pleasant. This type of weave is done in the shape of diamonds and hence known as Chashme Bulbul. Preparing pashmina shawls with diamond weave is quite an intricate process and can only be done by experienced weavers.
- Kani Weave: Finally, the last yet another exclusive weave is done on beautiful looking pashmina shawls and stoles. This is also one of the sophisticated forms of weaving. In this type of weaving, “Kani” small wooden oblong spool sticks are used to weave each colour in Kani shawls. In the beginning, the weaver first creates a design and then start the weaving to bring in accuracy.
Over the years, the impact of beautiful looking pashmina shawls is ruling everyone’s mind. However, none of the other fabric shawls can withstand the test of time like Pashmina. It is all because of the intricate weaving of pashmina done by the local artisans. The beautifully crafted design leaves a lasting impression in terms of aesthetic beauty as well as quality. Nowadays, there are a lot of top sustainable brands available that offer platforms to local artisans and weavers to craft beautiful looking pashmina shawls from their hands. The shawls that we praise today are the result of the hard work and dedication of the artisans.
