The Dream fabric of every woman - Kimkhwab Brocade

Kimkhwab is known for its heavy and luxurious form of brocade. The word Kimkhwab proclaim as tiny or little dreams which extent to mean ‘ the fabric of dreams’. Kimkhwab different known as kamkwab , kimcab, zartari Kinkhwab,  zar-baft, puspapata and few others. 

Orign

China and Japan produces tilla earlier known as Kadavi. It was a combination of silver and Tamba ( copper) which was coated with silver and gold. Later Benaras in India introduced from Tibet by the Buddhist pilgrims and gradually, adopted to the Indian subcontinent. 

Recognize in India from olden times, Kimkhwab was called Hirany, or cloth of gold, in basic literature around 1500 BC. In Gupta period around 4th -6th century AD, it was known uas Puspapata, or the cloth with woven flowers. Kimkhwab brocade was greatly famous in the Mughal era and is known as luxurious items. When British came it is used to create variety of patterns and garments over the period of time, Kimkhwab circulated among the Indian ethnic, mughal, British, Chinese, Persian and back to Indian ethnic eventually ended up in fashion all over again.

Creation process 

Heavy and intricate form of embroidery is used in the Kimkhwab which has a hug number of wefts and multi layer of wrap threads which add to the embellished look of the embroidery. If the quality of work is top class, the silk fabric under the embroidery is hardly seen. The weft thread that is used are gold, silver, silk or combination of any with maximum of seven layers of wrap thread. 

Variety and style 

The process of Kimkhwab is an extensive process and requires high level of expertise. Kimkhwab is classified on the amount of gold and silver thread used to create the fabric. Some Kimkhwab fabric is created with just silver and gold threads, this is called ‘Tashi'.Some use the colored silk threads to magnify the metallic elements, while some are done only with colored silk threads,  gold and silver sparingly. 

The lavish look of the Kimkhwab is a combination of zari embroidery style covered with multi layered wrap brocade. The layers differs from style to style, goes up to seven layers in some style of fabric And helps the Kimkhwab classification according to the layer. The three layered fabric is called tiara, four layered fabric is called chaupara and seven layered is called Satpara. While the inserted weft to create a design is usually made of gold, silver,  silk thread or combination of them. 

Maintenance 

Silk is a delicate fabric to maintain and when it comes to brocade, maintaining it is much more difficult. To protect the garment preferably a soft muslin or cotton cloth should be wrapped. The wet brocade garment should not be dried in direct sunlight as it may lead to fading. 

Present day scenario 

Due to effect of fast fashion the real Kimkhwab is limited to designers fashion and royal fashion . The reason behind, is the present’s of several low cost alternatives in the market that replace gold and silver zari with polyester alternative and are made in bulk. 

During 19th century in British era brocade trade played an important role in the country economy Surat, Benaras, Aurangabad and Ahemdbad were major hubs where producing finish Kimkhwab brocade. Presently, only Benaras is only producing and selling center of fabric while Surat and Ahemdbad stop producing this style of fabric. In recent times, south India has become a good market for Kimkhwab. 

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