Wild grass is sorted, softened and dyed before it ever reaches the loom. The lotus and Tirumala namam patterns are counted out from memory — no pattern sheet, no machine guide. What comes off the loom is a little different every time, and that is the point.
Sourcing
We buy grass in small lots from local weavers so nothing sits in a box for a year. Colour is dyed to order in a copper pot on the studio’s back veranda.
Weaving
The loom sits low, on the floor, and the pattern is held in the weaver’s head. A mat that will be given as a gift is set slightly tighter than one for a shrine shelf, so the border braid sits flush.
Finishing
Trimmed, pressed under a wooden weight overnight, wrapped in tissue paper. A handwritten note goes in if it is going out as a gift.
