Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Innaguration 2

3. About IDPMS 3

4. Sisal Fibre 5

5. Approach and Design intrevention 7

5. Design Workshop 8

6. Learning in the workshop 11

7. Products Developed 15

8. Participants 25

9. Conclusion 27

10. Recomendations 28

11. About Designer 29

12. Acknowledgements. 31

The people of “Tenkal mole” and “Badagalamole” Near Kuderu, Chamarajanagar Dist, aremainly in to agricultural labor and in ropemaking craft. Sisal is abundantly available inthe area and the people are involved in makigropes to sell in the local weekly markets.

These ropes are sold in bundles and are usedfor tieing cattle , bullock cart etc. The demandfor sisal rope is limited and therefore thepeople have started making ropes from theplastic Cement bags.

The Bags are ripped apart in strands and thenthe strands are spun into ropes that areapproximately 8mm in diameter. Four of theseropes are twisted together to form a thickrope.

In the villages, children and ladies are involvedin the stripping of strands and the spinningof rope is done by the men folk. This way it isa good team work and at the end of the daythe women are able to earn Rs.15 to 25, andthat is how the life goes on.

The market now recognises the plastic ropeand sisal is less and less to be seen in themarkets.

BACKGROUND:

Badagala mole Village

Ropemaking in Badagala mole

Ready plastic ropes1

Mr. S.C.Devaramani, A.D. MNSEC, Mysore,Mr. S.Sadananda, Director IDPMS,Mr. Seshaprasad, Cluster manager IDPMS,Mr. Chandrasekhar, ADS, Kuderu,Mr. Honappa, ADS, Kuderu,Mr. M.N.Mangalore SI &Designer Mr. Rajshekhar Narayan

along with his team were present at theinaugural function at Kuderu, ChamarajnagarDist, on 14 March 2005, at 11:30 am.

Mr. Devarmani spoke about the new productsand the opportunity to learn new things. Hesuggested that the participants should learnnew skills and come up with new products.He pointed out the support provided by AHVY;a scheme for the SHG’s to generate incomeand contribute to the economic growth.

Mr. S.Sadananda spoke to the participantsabout the purpose of the design developmentworkshop and the results that are expectedfrom it. He stressed on the need for a selfreliance motto with in every women artisan.He spoke about the various programmes takenup by IDPMS , and the continual support ofthe artisans in the entire developmentprogramme . Mr. Sadananda thanked the DC(H) for providing such an effective Programmefor the rural artisans.

INNAGURATION :

Innaguration of the workshop

2

IDPMS started functioning in 1988, and it asjointly established by the Govt. Of Karnatakaand the Govt. of Netherlands. At the time itwas known as Indo Dutch Project ManagementSociety. IDPMS worked with variousdevelopment projects situated in Karnataka,and working through these projects, theorganization gained experience andconsiderable knowledge and helped into itstransformation into a resource organization.The array of knowledge includes issues forsustainable livelihood, Women empowerment,Information systems, Environment andconservation.

IDPMS which truly means Initiatives forDevelopment through Participation ofMarginalized Sections, is committed to theeconomic growth of the rural poor.

IDPMS has been instrumental in formation ofSelf help groups for the past 15 years. Mysore,Chamarajnagar, Bellary and Bidar, Havery andGadag districts have been covered under theoperations.

5300 women involved in over 335 Self HelpGroups has been formed in the guidance ofIDPMS.

About IDPMS:

Existing products

3

Presently more than 200 artisans in the sisalfiber craft , in and around Kuderumole inChamarajanagar Dist, have been coveredunder this umbrella.

• The current activities of IDPMS are:• Skill trainings and Design development

activities in the field of Handicrafts• Training programme on Micro enterprise

development, PRA, PersonalityDevelopment etc,

• Guidance to Micro Enterprise,• Formation of SHG’s and their successful

operations,• Strengthening of the local support

agencies ;Gram panchayat, ngo’s etc.• Networking of SHG’s,• Establishing access to formal credit

organizations,• Training and orientation of banking

Personnel.• Market related services; linkages, up

scaling of enterprises operations,• Gender sensitization programme,• Technology Development and Data Bank

Services,• Income generation activities in craft

areas, and other activities.• Monitoring,Evaluation and Documentation.• Councilling for enterprise activities.Existing products

4

Agriculture is the main source of livelihood inand around Kuderu.Sisal fibre is a large geniusof short stemmed, woody plants bearing arosette of long, erect, pointed, fleshy leaves.About 275 pieces are distributed in tropicalregions.

The Portuguese introduced agave in India inthe 15th century. They are completelynaturalized throughout the country. Sisal isgrown in widely in India. It is small greenishgray hedge plant. The leaves have a thorn atthe tip and grows up to a height of4-5 feet.These leaves yield valuable fibre.

Sisal is locally called as katthale & Bhoothaleits Botanical name is Agave sisalana and it islocally available in Chamarajnagar dist. Thepropagation happens by removing and re-rooting the suckers.

Sisal fibre is a very strong, Lustrous naturalfibre and can take wear and tear very well.Sisal is commonly used for marine ropes. Sisalis the favorite world wide for floor coveringsit is the most preferred natural fibre due toits clean smooth& shiny surface texture.

The most known application of sisal is ropesfor local use.

SISAL FIBRE:

Sisal plant

5

India exports sisal floor covering products fromKerala and all fibre is Imported from Tanzaniaand china. Indian sisal is yet to gain its entryInto the export market.

Sisal is being extracted in Ananthpur (AP),Utharanchal, seoni (MP), Gokak (Karnataka)& Kanyakumari (TN). Sisal is used for makingrops, cordage and twines.It’s also used formaking hub cleaning fancy brushes used inbicycle.

Sisal fibre is available locally for Rs 10-15 perkg.

Sisal fibre ready for use

Local use of Sisal rope

6

Since the number of artisans is more and theskill levels are average, the initial efforts wereto introduce the concept of fineness, use ofspinning skills to produce finer yarns with sisalfiber. .

The products should mainly be for the localmarkets and exhibitions countrywide.

Using new techniques for the products, usingtechniques that requires low skills and usingthe colour combinations that appeal to themasses, would be the most appropriateapproach for this workshop.

The blend of Sisal with other materials likeBanana bark , which is abundant in theneighborhood, bamboo, Plastic rope which iscommon packing material, and cotton yarns,would give interesting results.

The use of the available technology forspinning of sisal, and different method ofproducing yarns would add more value to theend products.

Various techniques like weaving, coiling ,braiding and stitching can be put together inorder to get a novelty.

APPROACH FOR DESIGN INTERVENTION:

Shades dyed in sisal

7

Fibre knotting :

This is the technique of getting a thincontinuous long length by knotting the fibrestogether using a weavers knot. Thecontinuous long length then can be used forproducing a fine yarn that can later be usedfor weaving, knitting or any such applications

Fine Yarn making:

Using the knotted fibre in multiple ply a fineyarn can be made by using a rope spinner .This yarn has the strength and finish for usein high value products like woven material,floor and other interior woven fabrics.

The traditional way of hand spinning broughtback, to make the fine Sisal twines, suitablefor weaving and fine coiling.

Tie and Dye :

Sisal fibre is usually dyed with plain shades,this is made more interesting with thetraditional Tie and Dye technique using rubbertubes to tie the fibre bunch and dyeing toachieve amazing tie – dyed effects.

NEW TECHNIQUES INTRODUCED IN THE WORKSHOP:

Fibre knotting

Fine yarn making

8

Crochet:

Crochet using the dyed sisal fibre to form lacesand motifs for making bags and mats, belts.

Loom Weaving:

Using the simple handloom, and a sisal warp,a simple structure was woven which issuitable for bags and other accessories. Inthe process a poly cotton warp was also triedout and a screen was developed. This was toinitiate the weaving process and demonstratethe possibilities with weaving to the group.The artisans were glad to see the newpossibility and wanted to adopt the weavingtechnique to develop new products.

Crochet with fibres

Simple weaving on table loom

Crochet using 4 ply

9

Knitting:

Using the fine 4 ply yarn, knitting was triedout and the outcome was highly interesting.The fine delicate fabric that is produced isgood for the expensive gift bags and alsoother natural fashion accessories.

Using the direct dyes six shades were producedfor the products and these shades wereengineered according to the colour trends.

The natural palette has been the basis of theshades and there are deep earth colours alongwith some mineral accents.

Tye dye using rubber tubes

4 ply sisal knitted

10

Yarn developed

DESIGN DEVELOPMENT:

Dyeing of fibre

The workshop stated with dyeing of fibre inpre planned colurs and some techniques oftie dye, using rubber cycle tubes was done.

Next the raw material was sorted out and theartisans were asked to make fine hand twistedtwines and ropes.

Hand spinning of Sisal twineDyeing of Sisal fibre

Raw material preparation

11

The task of achieving fine yarn was taken upand induvidual fibres were knotted, and thenthe knotted string of fibre was made into aball. four of such balls taken together, usingthe normal rope making machine, a twine wasprepared. This twine is found to be mostsuitable for Crochet and Knitting.

Knotting of Fibres making a continuous strand

The fine 4 ply yarn makes the product lookvery crisp and delicate. It also optimises theuse of fibre, almost all the fibre is used up inthis method.

Small products were tried out with the fineyarn and it was seen that knitting and crochetproducts look good and fresh.Crochet using the fine yarn

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Hand spinning of fine twine

Yarn developed

The fibre strands seperated manually and thenfed in to Medilary Charkha, also was tried outand it was seen that provided that thethickness is controlled, it is workable processfor fibre conversion by Crochet.

Six of the artisans are from Hampapura whereMedileri Charkhas are in use and it has beenadapted to sisal fibre spinning in thisworkshop.

The product making happened slowly and inthe way, many experiments were done.Weaving was also tried out and using a Sisal4 ply and hand twisted thick twined warp ,Plainweaving was done. The outcome of this is aninteresting fabric which in turn is good formaking bags and table top items.

Bags were made using the skills of theartisans and medilery charkha for the yarn.

Crochet using strands of Sisal seperated by hand

Weaving on polycot warp

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Crochet using multiple strands

Making of twines for weaving

The table top loom Sisal yarn was woven inwarp and weft and the next set had Polycotyarn in warp and sisal single strand twisted ,Rope and braid in the weft.This made aninteresting fabric for Window screens.

New technique of using a U- Pin andinterlacining the twines for making bags andfootmats was tried out and it gave goodresults. One design for bag and one designfor foot mat was made.

Using the ropes that are made on the ropemaking machine, and coiling technique, someideas were tried out. An interesting bag wasmade in this technique. Using crochet needleand the machine made rope, coil coasterswere made. This however opened up a wholelot of new possibilities. A combination of theplaids and crochet was also done and a verynice bag was made .

Plaid and crochet bag

Weaving with twines

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NEW PRODUCTS:

Cashew bag

01 02Checker bag

15

NEW PRODUCTS:

Coil coasters03

Foot mat04

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NEW PRODUCTS:

Gift Pouch

05 Gold bag

06

17

NEW PRODUCTS:

Fruit Bowl

07 Gypsy bag

08

18

NEW PRODUCTS:

Lace fruit Bowl

09Oval tray

10

19

NEW PRODUCTS:

Punitha bag

11Rope bag

12

20

NEW PRODUCTS:

Coil Coasters

13Money Purse

14

21

NEW PRODUCTS:

Plate Mat

15Fruit Bowl

16

22

NEW PRODUCTS:

Sunrise bag

17‘U’ pin bag

18

23

NEW PRODUCTS:

Window Screen

19Lace bag

20

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PARTICIPANTS OF THE WORKSHOP:

Mahadevamma,Sampathamma, Puttabasamma, Rajamma, Javanamma,Maramma, Prema, Jamuna, Saroja & Manjula.

Shobha, Ambika, Geetha, Asha, Raajmma, Puttataiamma, Bhagya, Prema,Madhamma & Jayamma

ChikkaHennamma, Chikkatayiamma,Mallajamma,Bhagya,Mahadevvamnma,Ratnamma,Gowramma,Basavarajamma,Mahadevamma,Bangaramma

1

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s.no. Name of the artisan Village Caste

1 Mahadevamma w/o Rachashetty Tenkanamole obc2 Sampathammaw/o chikarangshetty Tenkanamole obc3 Puttabasammaw/o marisiddashetty Badagalamole obc4 Rajamma w/o siddaraju Badgamole obc5 Javanamma w/o mahadevashetty Badqagalamole obc6 Maramma w/o basavashetty Badagalamole obc7 Prema w/o shivanna Kuderu SC8 Jamuna w/o prabhuswamy Kuderu SC9 Saroja w/o revanna kuderu SC10 Manjula d/o javaraiah kuderu SC11 Shobha D/o shivmalla Kuderu SC12 Ambika D/o mallikarjuna Kuderu SC13 Geetha d/o nagasundaramurthy Kuderu SC14 Asha d/o chickkabasaiah Kuderu SC15 Rajamma , w/o Mariswamy , Kuderu SC16 Puttataiamma , W/o Naganna Nerale OBC17 Bhagya, D/o Madha Shetty Nerale OBC18 Prema D/O Madhappa Nrale OBC19 Madhamma W/O Doddashetty Hampapura OBC20 Jayamma w/o shivegowda Hampapura OBC21 ChikkaHennamma W/O SiddhegoudaHampapura OBC22 Chikkatayiamma W/O Nagegowda Hampapura OBC23 Mallajamma W/O Manohar Honnur SC24 Bhagya w/o Linngaraju Honnur SC25 Mahadevvamnmaw/oGovindegouda Hampapura OBC26 Ratnamma, W/O siddharaja shetty Hampapura OBC27. Gowramma w/o mohadev settee Thenkulmole OBC28. Basavarajamma w/o siddarajsety Thenkulmole OBC29 Mahadevamma w/o Siddesetty Thenkulmole OBC30 Bangaramma w/o Doolosety Thenkulmole OBC

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All the 30 participants in the workshop, feltthat the workshop was very useful and theywould look forward to such developmentinterventions more often.

There were so many new products andtechniques were evolved. The learning of thenew techniques gave a new hope to theartisans. The real potential was felt and thecrafts women felt that they can do much morethan they have been doing all these years.

Mass production at a lower cost; seemspossible with the use of new methods of handspinning, braiding, knotting and the like.The workshop concluded on a very happy noteMr.K.S.Raghupathi,AGM, NABARD Chamarajanagar,was happy to see such good work done bythe participants.

Mr. S.C. Devaramani , Mr. Rajshekhar Narayan(Consultant Designer), and Mr. K.S.Raghupathi, Mr. Seshaprasad, clustermanager, IDPMS, MS. Padma Murthy, (knit andCrochet expert), addressed the participantsand encouraged them on their efforts.

On the whole , the workshop was an eyeopener for the artisans and the feedback andnew requirements are continuously updatedto the Office of DC (Handicrafts).

Conclusion:

Concluding Day function

27

1. The artisans are from the background of ropemaking, and therefore it would be moreappropriate to develop and refine the skillsof spinning, fine twine making for theseartisans.

2. The demand for hand spun twines is good inthe domestic and the export market; thereforeit would be good if twines and yarns could bethe end products.

3. The medilary charkha is quite useful in twineand fine cord making, and all the artisansshould be trained on it.

4. Sisal fibre lends itself very well to weavingand basic floor covering structures should bedeveloped along with the fabrics foraccessories on simple looms.

5. The design workshop should be conducted atleast once in six months and it should be acontinuity of the last workshop, this wouldensure visible results.

6. Some products from the design workshopshould be selected for bulk production andartisans should be advised to produce a stockof the designs at least 24 pieces each design.This would ensure that the products are testedin the market and the groups have sufficientstock of products whenever any fair is there.

7. There needs to be continual market supportprogramme that helps the artisans to producewhat market needs and have a continuousflow of work.

Recommendations:

28

ABOUT THE DESIGNER:

RAJSHEKHAR NARAYAN

87/133, Govindappa road, Basavanagudi .Bangalore 560 004, KarnatakaIndia

E-Mail : studioadc@vsnl.netrsnarayan@vsnl.com

Telephone : 080 6601024, 51203950

EDUCATION:

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF DESIGN,Ahmedabad

Post Graduate Diploma in Textile Design 1991

Indian Institute of Handloom TechnologyVaranasiDiploma in Handloom Technology 1988

Syed Burhanuddin S JQ College,Burhanpur, M.P.Bachelor of Science 1985 (two years)

SKILLS

Weaving, jacquard design, Jacquard weaving, printdesigns, furnishing design, made-ups design, silk fabricsdesign, visual Merchandising, sample photography, handand machine embroidery, interior space design, handicraftdesign, curriculum for skill and design workshops,Documentation and training.

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• Survey of Natural Fibers in Kerala andTamilnadu; a study in the Philippines and aexhaustive documentation of the outcome fol-lowed by a craft interface workshop to dis-seminate the findings of the survey and aforeign expert to teach new techniques to thecraft groups. 1999

• Design and development of Sisal Fiberproducts; this project was for IDPMS workingwith the craft groups in Mysore andChamarajanagar Districts of Karnataka. Skillup gradation training was an integral part ofthe project.1997

• Design Development for Natural fibre craftsat ICF, Bangalore 2001

• Development of designs for Palm leaf craftsat SHARE Vellore, 2001

• Development of designs for Jute Productsat RDS Khanagaon, 2005

• Design Development for Screwpine crafts atKIDS, Kodangallur 2005

• Development of designs for Palm leaf craftsat CJWS, Nellore 2005

• Development of designs for Hand paintingcrafts at Naidupeta, 2005

PROJECTS:

30

Acknowledgement and credits:

Designer : Rajshekhar Narayan

Design Assistants : Mr. Srinivasulu.Y Mr. Devaraj Ms. Padma Murthy

MNSEC, Mysore: Mr. S.C Devarmani, A.D.

NABARD,Chamarajnagar: Mr. K.S. Raghupathi, AGM

IDPMS :

Mr. S. Sadanand Ms. Geetha Mr. Sesha prasad Ms. Parvati Mr. Ramesh Mr. Nagaraj Mr. Siddhappa

And all the others at IDPMS

31