The Dhaaga Tribe way
We did not choose Jaipur for how it looks on Instagram. We chose it because the craft is still alive there, in specific villages and specific families, passed down without a manual.
Bagru, Jaipur
Bagru is a small town 30 km west of Jaipur, home to the Chippa community, hereditary textile printers who have practised hand block printing for over 400 years. They use iron-mud resist (dabu) and dyes chosen to be gentle on skin, with colours that deepen with every wash instead of fading. The printer learnt the craft by watching his father, who watched his grandfather.
Amer, Jaipur
Near Amer Fort, printing families work on tables up to 30 metres long, aligning carved teak blocks by eye alone. No computer, no laser guide. The printer reads the cloth, positions the block, leans in with their full weight and stamps. No two prints are mathematically identical, and those small variations are what give hand block printed fabric its warmth.
Kukas, Jaipur
Before a pattern can be printed, it has to be carved. In Kukas, master craftsmen carve florals, paisleys, geometrics and jali patterns into seasoned teak with chisels that have been in their families for generations. A complex block can take three weeks. When the wood wears down the pattern is gone, so every season we commission new blocks and archive the old ones.
The journey
We sketch motifs inspired by Rajasthani architecture, gardens and textile history. A design goes through many drafts before a block is commissioned.
Master carvers in Kukas translate the design into teak, chiselling every line by hand. A complex block takes two to three weeks.
The cotton is washed, starched and stretched taut on the print table before any printing begins.
The printer dips the block in colour paste, sets it on the cloth and stamps with full body weight. Then repeats, for metres and metres.
Dyes are chosen to be gentle on skin. The cloth is sun-dried, washed and checked for colour fastness.
Garments are cut, stitched by our tailoring unit, quality-checked, tagged and packed by hand.
The canvas
The workhorse. Pit-loom woven, dense enough to hold a sharp print and light enough to breathe through a Jaipur summer. It softens with every wash.
Pre-shrunk · Gets softerSheer and floaty, so fine it moves with the room. A print on mul looks breathed onto the cloth rather than stamped. For heat and layering.
Sheer · Best in summerFrom Chanderi in Madhya Pradesh, with a natural lustre and a hint of transparency. We use it for occasion pieces where the cloth carries some of the weight.
Natural lustre · Occasion wearA machine can print 60 metres a minute, with every repeat identical. A hand cannot, and that is exactly why no two of our pieces are alike.
The case for imperfection Shop the collectionThe Craft
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