Spoiler Alert - Spoiler Alert

If you expect to get a Christmas present from me, you probably shouldn't look at this...I suspect this comes too late, however....

I ordered these from a friend for Christmas presents, and last week I watched Vishnudevi's sister print them. These colors are traditional designs made from dyes that are famous among designers all over the world. They're called Bagru prints because they are from Bagru and this red and black design with the cream colored background is traditionally unique to this area. During the height of the Indian cloth printing exports in the 1970s Indira Gandhi went to Bagru and was presented with a Bagru print Sari. Later, several Bollywood stars made a deal about wearing Bagru print saris. Today most of their exports go to Japan, but many also go to the US and other places around the world.

If you look closely you can see, in the border, where the lines of one block end and the other begins. This particular piece of cloth was made with nine separate wooden blocks (three sets of three -- two for the different borders and one for the center trellis). Each piece there, where you can see the line, was stamped three individual times repeatedly along the entire length of the cloth. Here is a close up of some blocks. Though these are not the ones used to make this pattern.

My friends want me to help them sell them, but I'm not a salesperson...I really haven't the foggiest notion of how to do such a thing. So I buy them for Christmas presents!