Kashidakari of Kashmir

Kashidakari:

Chain Stitch

Kashida Kari (Kashidakari) is a traditional and exquisite embroidery style from Kashmir, known for its elegant, nature-inspired motifs and fine craftsmanship. The word "Kashida" means needlework in Persian, and it has become synonymous with the art of embroidery in Kashmir.

---

🧵 What is Kashidakari (Kashmiri Embroidery)?

• Origin: Native to the Kashmir Valley, this art has been passed down through generations and is deeply rooted in the cultural and artistic heritage of the region.
• Motifs: The designs often include:
  • Chinar leaves (maple leaves)
  • Lotus flowers
  • Paisleys (ambis)
  • Birds (especially kingfishers and parrots)
  • Trees and vines
• Stitches Used:
  • Chain stitch
  • Satin stitch
  • Slanted darn stitch
  • Stem stitch

These stitches are worked with such precision that the back of the fabric often looks as neat as the front.

---

🧶 Types of Kashidakari Based on Material:

1. Sozni embroidery – Fine needlework, mostly done on pashmina shawls using a single strand of silk or cotton thread. It features symmetrical designs on both sides.
2. Aari embroidery – Done with a hooked needle (like zardozi), often on thicker woolen or cotton fabric. Richer and more textured.
3. Tilla embroidery – Made with gold or silver thread (similar to zardozi), often used on bridal wear and pherans (traditional Kashmiri cloaks).
4. Crewel embroidery – Uses woolen threads and is mostly done for home furnishings like curtains, cushion covers, and bedspreads.

---

📍 Cities and Villages Where It's Done:

• Srinagar – The cultural hub of Kashmir and main production center for sozni, tilla, and aari work.
• Baramulla and Anantnag – Known for artisan clusters practicing both sozni and crewel embroidery.
• Kupwara, Pulwama, and Budgam – Other districts in Kashmir Valley where families are engaged in embroidery work.

---

📦 Sourcing (Materials and Centers):

• Raw Materials:

  • Pashmina wool – Sourced from Ladakh and high-altitude regions of Kashmir, spun by hand and woven into shawls.
  • Silk/cotton threads – Often sourced from Delhi or Ludhiana, but sometimes dyed locally.
  • Woolen threads (for crewel) – Locally produced or brought from northern manufacturing hubs.

• Finished Products Sourcing/Export:

  • Srinagar markets (like Lal Chowk and Zaina Kadal) are major trading points.
  • Craft development centers and cooperatives (e.g., under JK Handloom or Craft Development Institute Srinagar) also facilitate sourcing for large orders or export.

---

🎯 Usage:

• Pashmina and wool shawls
• Phirans (traditional Kashmiri dresses)
• Home décor (curtains, wall hangings, cushions)
• Stoles, dupattas, and scarves

---

Would you like help comparing Kashidakari and Zardozi or tips on how to authenticate real Kashmiri embroidery?

Chain stitch:-

    Chain Stitch and Crewel Furnishings Two chain stitch, be it is in wool, silk or cotton, is done by hook rather than any needle. The hook is referred to as Ari, and quality for quality, hook work covers a much larger area than needle work in the same amount of time. All the embroidery is executed on white cotton fabric, pre-shrinked by the manufacturers. The intrinsic worth of each piece lies in the size of the stitches and the yarn used. Tiny stitches are used to cover the entire area the figures or motifs are worked in striking colors; the background in a single color, made up of a series of coin sized concentric circles which impact dynamism and a sense of movement to a design. The background fabric should not be visible through the stitches. Crewel is basically similar to chain stitch. Its also Chain stitch done on white background, but here the motifs, mainly stylish flowers, do not cover the entire surface, and the background is not embroidered upon. Wool is almost invariably used in Crewel work and color ways are not as elaborate as in chain stitch. They make excellent household furnishings being hand or machine washable.

You may like this

Print on demand Shoping Here

Original clothing for original people. Tees, tops, dresses, hats, and more with designs for pretty much any interest.

Hand Embroidery

Ari Work
Chain stitch embroidery is famous throughout India. Kutch people give it name chain stitch embroidery which was called Mochi stitch, which was originally used by cobblers to enrich leather. Later it was transferred to the cotton fabric and after that to all type of fabrics. In other areas of Delhi and Hyderabad, this work is combined with Zardozi (Metal Coils), sequins, beads and other different materials.For Ari embroidery work needs wooden frame and needle. Wooden frame used to stretch fabric before start the Ari work. After framed the fabric, next step is making Khaka, Khaka is a butter paper which is used for making Design (art work).
Button StitchButton Stitch is looking the same as the Button Hole stitch of the hand embroidery or eyelet stitch of machine embroidery. It is made by taking the needle always from the same centre point so that the filled effect is obtained with stitches radiating from the centre outlined with a chine stitch. It is mostly used for floral motifs.
Chhalla Work
It is variation of knot stitch, which is obtained by making a loose loop of thread to from on the surface of the fabric, beneath a knot stitch it is also done with hand needle.
Kashmiri Embroidery This stitch includes two types of stitches. The work is outlined with the Chine Stitch and a damming stitch follows the stitch on the outlined.
Choti Embroidery
Choti (in Hindi language) means plat. Choti work as the name indicates resembles a ladies plat. It is like a row of triangles in a horizontal line. It is sometimes outlined with chain stitch.
Zari Work
Any type of chain stitch done by either gold or silver zari (metal thread) is called as zari work.
Knot StitchIt is the basic knot stitch. It is variety of knot stitch in ari embroidery. Where knot are formed with a number of silk thread stands. It is done by using hand needle.
Kasab Resham
When a silk thread (resham) is used in combination with zari thread in the embroidery it is called Kasab Resham.
Lakdi-Ka-Bead
As the name indicates, they are beads made from wood. These are available in different shapes and sizes. They are stitched to the fabric by using a different needle unlike the needle used for stitching resham (silk thread). The needle used for stitching the beads is called as Cut-Dani Sewi.
Cut-DanaThese are long transparent beads used as accessories in Ari embroidery. These are also stitched with Cut-Dani Sewi (needle used for stitching beads).
Surahi Moti
Long pearls also form the list of accessories in Ari embroidery. Round pearl (Moti) of different sizes are also available
Kundan
Plastic, cut work bead like accessories called kundan are used. They have flat surface on one side with a hole to pass the thread and fix them on the fabric. They are available in different shapes, size, and colors.
Mirrors
Mirrors of different size are stitched with Ari technique. First, the mirrors are pasted with glue on the fabric and then Ari work is done around the mirror.
Aari Zardosi
Metal spring (Zardozi) work done in Ari technique is known as Ari Zardozi. It done for filling areas, forming, stem, floral motif etc.

Ari Embroidery

Aari work:

   Aari weaving is one of the many types of weaving, began in the Mughal period. Aari work is a kind of weaving work that is finished by extending the texture firmly over a wooden edge. A pen like needle, that looks like a stitch needle is utilized to do the inborn Aari work. Aari weaving is polished in different districts, for example, in Kashmir and Kutch (Gujarat).

    Aari work is a sort of weaving which is done on an extended texture and sewing the plan with a long needle(hooked) which has a snare eventually. The needle is named as Aari, from which the weaving work determines its name as Aari work.

Hand Ari work by Hook Needle

A pen like needle, that looks like a hook needle

    First the tracing of the design is made on tracing paper, Using a needle, holes are pierced all along the lines. Then transferred onto the fabric the help of  A mixture of kerosene and blue powder is made and rubbed with a cotton-bud on the tracing paper. It comes through the holes and is transferred to the fabric. Some craftsman spontaneously draws the pattern on the fabric directly by pencil or chalk. The craftsman's tool used for embroidery is caled aari, a hooked needle, from which the style gets its name. Then stretch the abric tightly over a frame called the adda,  frame (adda)can be made to fit any size of fabric.

    The adda consists of four square wooden rod 2 of 2"x2.5"x60" and 2 of them are smaller size of 2"x0.5"x36" this is called ADDA.  It follows the assembly and tightening principles of the ADDA, and gives the cloth a uniform tension. Some craftsman use a smaller metal frame, it also be used if the embroidery focus is in a small area. Aari embroidery is done by tightening the cloth to be embroidered upon the adda frame, the thread work on portions on the stretched cloth with an aari or hooked needle as a instrument or tools. The genuine weaving includes pushing the needle through the texture. From behind, string is driven into the snare.

    At the point when the needle is pulled up once more, it concocts a string circle. The following time, the needle goes through the string circle and thinks of another string circle through the past circle. A similar cycle is rehashed. The lines are exceptionally fine and little.