Mirror work of rajasthan

mirror work of rajashtan...

1. MIRROR WORK OF RAJASTHAN

2. INTRODUCTION Mirror work is also known as shisha, is one of the most captivating characteristics of traditional Indian handicrafts. An early form of mirror work was introduced to India during the reign of the Mughal Empire. Small pieces of mirror of various shapes and sizes, including circular, square, triangular and decoratively stitched into place on the base fabric. In earlier times, mica, a type of sheet silicate mineral, was used in mirror work instead of mirrors. There are three common types of embellishments used in mirror work. 1) Hand blown glass shisha 2) Machine cut glass shisha 3) Shisha embroidery.

3. HISTORY Mirror work, can be traced back to 13 th century P ersia. Tradesmen and travellers brought the handicraft to I ndia in the same century, during the Mughal era. Due to this, the use of mirrors and the crafts of mirror work stem from traditional Islamic beliefs: the mirror help to trap or blind the evil eye, reflecting bad luck and evil spirit away from the wearer. In Indian mirror work, the use of mirrors widely represents the breathtaking landscapes and nature of India. Traditional Rajasthani clothes are adorned with mirror work embroidery.

4. Motifs and colours Mirror work that hails from Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana and Odisha , each state produces mirror work with its own unique style. Mirror work is commonly heavily encrusted with white, red, orange, saffron, green and blue stitches. Mirror embellishments are often found in a wide variety of shapes and sizes and represent shapes found in nature, such as flower petals, leaves and animals is still employed in today’s mirror work. These small piece of mirrors are stitched onto the base fabric by means of a chain stitch or buttonhole stitch. The latter form of stitching is commonly used to embellish small, round objects onto fabric.