How it's Made—TOGETHER

Sharing the creation process with our DABU community is one of the things we love most about what we do. We’re all about handmade, small-batch, natural fibers and dyes, sustainability and yep, keeping it real and being transparent with our processes. 

 

Each textile we create goes through a very particular process. It's a science really! Elizabeth is often the person behind the camera to capture the action on film but even a great picture, although maybe worth a thousands words in some ways, can’t always explain the details of such intricate work. If you’ve ever wondered what exactly is happening in the pictures, today is your day! Follow along as we put words to pictures for our TOGETHER table linens origin story. 

 

 

First, this sturdy, 100% heavyweight cotton, sourced by our artisan partners, is prepared by a really intense washing process called scouring. Scouring removes any impurities in the fabric so that the dye is even.

 

 

Once dry, the process of dabu starts by block-printing the fabric with a special mixture of mud using carved wooden blocks. To learn more about the specifics of dabu printing, read all about the process here. 

 

 

After the fabric has been successfully printed with mud, camel dung is sprinkled over the print to keep it from sticking to anything while it dries. Yep, you read that right, camel dung. Camels are really prevalent in this part of Rajasthan because it is right in the middle of the Thar desert. Shoutout to artisan partners for using the resources around them.

 

 

Once the mud is dry, the fabric (with mud print still intact!) is dipped in a cold vat of indigo. As you may notice, the inner triangle of the print was not stamped with mud on the first round. Keep a look out for why! 

 

 

 

After drying, the inner triangle of the print is stamped with mud, powdered with camel dung and hung to dry.

 

 

Then the fabric is dyed a second time in the indigo, creating that deep blue we love so much. To get an even look, the fabric is washed to get rid of the excess dye (as you can see above). 

 

Once dry, the mud is removed by a thorough washing. There are three separate concrete basins for the washing process. The artisan fills the basin up with water and the recently dyed fabric. One by one, he beats the wet fabric over a stone ledge. Any loose pigment is released with each splash. Then the process is repeated in the next two basins with clean water. It's a really labor-intensive process, but works better than a washing machine.

 

 

Now you can see how the double dabu leaves the first print (arches) almost white and second print (inner triangles) a lighter blue. Beautiful! Lastly, the printed fabric is carefully cut and stitched to create our TOGETHER table linens.

 

 

Thanks for tagging along for today's story. We can’t wait to share how the rest of our Community Collection was made!