Laguna Riviera |
Garden View |
On the Water |
Anemones |
|
Laguna Riviera |
Garden View |
|
On the Water |
Anemones |
About Our Tapestries "Tapestry" normally evokes an image of traditional European wall hangings utilizing the artistic designs of the classical age. We have broken out of this mold by creating a beautiful line of tapestries suited to the tastes and color trends of contemporary interior decor. We have translated art into original hand-woven images. The result is a woven painting with warmth and texture that easily finds a place in any interior design scheme. You will treasure your tapestry for many years.
Tapestries are woven in four standard sizes, keeping in mind the requirements of the modern home and office. Unlike machine made tapestries, each of our designs is created by hand on a traditional upright loom using the finest quality carpet wool.
The tapestries are manufactured in Pondicherry, India and imported into the United States. Pondicherry is 100 miles south of the major southern city of Madras on the Bay of Bengal. The weaving center was founded in the mid 1970's by members of The Mother's Service Society, a social science research organization dedicated to national and international development. From its early beginnings with a few weavers and simple tapestry designs, the center has flourished and now employs over 150 weavers from the local community. We have produced a select set of designs, from popular scenic and floral paintings.
The tapestries are wool woven on a cotton warp (the warp is the threads around which the tapestry is constructed). The design you see is all wool. We use the finest grade of carpet wool from the northern province of Punjab in India. Our color palette includes an enormous range of rich and subtle colors. Most of our wool is dyed by hand at the weaving center in Pondicherry using the highest grade commercial dyes to ensure uniformity, color fastness and resistance to fading. The wool is moth-proofed before being spun into yarn for the weaving, and the finished tapestries are all shipped with moth balls.
The wall hangings are woven by young adult women from the local community who receive special training in European style tapestry weaving. Our most intricate designs require a great deal of skill and dexterity which only the most talented weavers can acquire. Production time varies according to the design and the size of each piece. The complex designs may take a month or more for weaving even in a small size.
The tapestries are woven on upright looms. The weaver sits on a stool in front of the loom to work on the piece. She works from a drawing called a cartoon, which is a black and white rendition of the tapestry with numbered areas corresponding to the various colors of wool to be used. The weaving technique used is called split weave, so called because there are gaps or splits in the tapestry after the weaver is finished, generally wherever there are color changes in the design. This technique allows for the depiction of very fine, life-like detail in the design. When the weaver is finished, the tapestry is sent to the sewing room, where the splits in the design are hand sewn tightly shut and the edges of the tapestry are finished. A sleeve is also sewn on the back where a rod can be slipped through for hanging on the wall.
Occasionally there is interest in using these hangings as rugs. This is fine in an area where there is little foot traffic. The overall construction of these tapestries is strong and finished pieces are very durable, but they are still not woven in the same manner as rugs meant to hold up under a lot of foot traffic.
Sizes:
24" x 40"
30" x 48"
3 ft. x 5 ft.
4 ft. x 6 ft.Please call the store for availability, sizes, other designs and prices.
home - store