Four hands, one length of cloth

I

The cocoon is reeled, never spun

A single filament from each cocoon, pulled by hand in warm water — fifteen to twenty drawn together to make one thread that catches light along its length.

การสาวไหม Reeling · Korat

II

The weft is tied before it is dyed

Bundles of weft are bound off in tight knots so the dye cannot reach them. The pattern is decided here, on a frame, weeks before the loom is touched.

มัดหมี่ Resist · Surin

III

Mangosteen rind gives the deepest purples

Boiled rind, an iron-pot mordant, four immersions over three days — the colour we call sí muang mangkhut only arrives on the fourth dip, never the first.

ย้อมเปลือกมังคุด Natural dye

IV

Four wefts make one shimmer

Purple, dark red, blue-violet and grey are thrown in sequence on a single warp. The cloth changes colour as you tilt it — that is the shot, not a finish applied later.

ผ้าไหมแพรวา Shot weft