Shopping for garments in the modern market is not an easy job, especially if you are out in search of handloom products. There is no specific mark, certification, or branding that can help determine whether what you are buying is genuine handloom, more so where the purchase of sarees is involved. So how can we tell for sure that what we are buying is a genuine handloom product and not a powerloom-made jamdani saree being passed off as its more elegant, expensive cousin? Here is a guide on how you can identify authentic Bengal handloom sarees.
Warp and Weft Techniques
There are two main threads involved in the production of a saree – the warp or the fixed thread, and the weft or the thread that is worked upon by the weaver. The warp is fixed on the weaving machine and the weft is pulled in place through a heddle by the weaver. While you may have read a lot about the various identification procedures for a handloom saree, this is the most accurate identification you can rely on. For a handloom saree, the distance between successive wefts will be irregular but in a powerloom, they will be in a fine pattern. Whoever said that perfection is not always a good thing must have had some kind of association with Bengal handloom sarees!
While this technique will hold good for most handloom cotton sarees, the same cannot be said to be true for more sophisticated silk sarees where the weave is much tighter, be it a handloom or powerloom make. What technique can we use in this case?
Material Identification
For the second technique, you need to identify whether the material is pure silk or polyester. There are a number of tests available that will help you determine the same. If the material turns out to be polyester then you can rest assured that the product is of a powerloom make because this machine is not capable of the finery of pure silk.
Conducting the second test for identification may not be easy at all times, especially if you buy handloom sarees online, since it usually involves burning a small thread from the saree. It is thus advisable that you try to establish the make from the warp and weft pattern. In case it does not yield the necessary results, then proceed to the second test which is bound to help you in identifying whether the online handloom saree seller is selling you the genuine goods or a powerloom saree rebranded as the more expensive handloom product.
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