Backwards Kawandi

 As I said in the first post I was interested not only in fabric decay but also the use of decayed fabrics. Decay #1 I dedicated to Japanese boro. The next 4 quilts were stitched using kantha stitch that originated in India. I had many scraps left from 5 previous projects and I decided to make a kawandi quilt. The technique was developed by the Siddi people, who are of African descent and settled in parts of India. Old sarees are used for the backing, and scraps of different colors are hand stitched with running stitch on top. The stitching starts from the outside and goes inwards. The centerpiece is called the belly and usually a few grains of rice are added for luck. No kawandi is properly finished until each corner has a phula, or decorative folded flower.  

Making my kawandi quilt was really challenging and what you see is the 3rd attempt of making a kawandi quilt. The first quilt I started with the backing of 16×16 inches but still it shrank and it was smaller than what I needed (15×15 inches) The 2nd one was about the right side but I didn’t like how the batting got pushed towards the center and was sticking out. I understood then why it is called “the belly”. Then I started making my kawandi quilt starting from the center going towards the esges so I call it a backwards kavandi. It doesn’t have a belly and I didn’t add phulas, decorative folded flowers in the corners.  That’s my story.

As always, with the last entry of the year I add a photo of all six quilts. This time it is Decay: