Ikat, or Ikkat, is a style of weaving that uses a resist dyeing process similar to tie-dye on either the warp or weft before the threads are woven to create a pattern or design. A Double Ikat is when both the warp and the weft are tie-dyed before weaving.
Ikat means "to tie" or "to bind" in the Malay language and has the same root as the words dekat ("close"), lekat ("to stick"), pikat ("to catch") etc. The word Katt has the same meaning in all o...
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Ikat, or Ikkat, is a style of weaving that uses a resist dyeing process similar to tie-dye on either the warp or weft before the threads are woven to create a pattern or design. A Double Ikat is when both the warp and the weft are tie-dyed before weaving.
Ikat means "to tie" or "to bind" in the Malay language and has the same root as the words dekat ("close"), lekat ("to stick"), pikat ("to catch") etc. The word Katt has the same meaning in all of the south Indian languages but there may be no relation. Through common usage, the word has come to describe both the process and the cloth itself. Ikats have been woven in cultures all over the world. In Central and South America, Ikat is still common in Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guatemala and Mexico. In the 19th century, the Silk Road desert oases of Bukhara and Samarkand (in what is now Uzbekistan in Central Asia) were famous for their fine silk Uzbek Ikat. India, Japan and several South-East Asian countries have cultures with long...
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