15 Things about Batik cloth

Batik is not only comfortable but also a very ancient method of dyeing. Cloth, leather, wood, and batik can be dyed.

Indonesian batik was added to UNESCO‘s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009 and is internationally recognized as a historical fabric of human civilization.  It is believed to be more than 1,000 years old, with some estimates as long as 2,000 years. Apart from Indonesia, batik is famous in various Asian countries, including Africa, Japan, Malaysia, India, and Bangladesh.

Batik clothing in Bangladesh has gained popularity. Fabrics are dyed with two types of dyes: natural dyes and chemical dyes. The white cloth is first soaked in water and dried in the sun after removing the starch. The fabric is then placed on a sand-filled table and coated with hot melted wax with a wooden design frame. After drawing the design with a wax coating, the cloth is dipped in the desired dye, naphthalene powder, salt, etc., for 5-10 minutes.

Once the whole fabric is dyed, it is removed and placed in hot water to remove the dry waxes. Due to the hot water, the wax melts and mixes with the water, so the whole cloth is colored, and the wax parts show the white design. The entire process is completed and dried again in the sun.

In this article, I will discuss some information about batik worldwide.

15 Things about Batik cloth

1. Environment: Nature is always colorful. Suddenly, people’s minds started to be colorful; they chose blue dye from blue trees to color their clothes. Then, the blue color was the only hope. After that, he tried to dye clothes using other natural materials after blue. But the human mind changes color from time to time. Some natural colors are limited. Then came the mechanical arts to fulfill people’s needs using scientific knowledge. Various chemical colors are produced.

2. Indigo dye is a greenish-dark blue dye made either from the leaves of the tropical indigo plant (Indigofera), from woad (Isatis tinctoria), or Chinese indigo (Persicaria tinctoria). Indigofera plants are used to produce different shades of blue.

3. Cotton, woolen, viscose, and silk fabrics best suit natural colors. These colors are lighter than artificial colors or chemical colors. Natural colors are eco-friendly.

These colors are collected from various natural ingredients. Examples are:

• From carrot, onion peel, sunflower petals, paprika, turmeric root – yellow color.
• From oak bark, tea, coffee – brown.
• From the peel and seeds of berries, cherries, roses, avocados – pink.
• From red cabbage, blue leaves, red mulberry, and purple grapes – blue.
• Greens from spinach, pepper leaves, peach leaves, grass.

Apart from these, color materials are collected from nature in different ways. Since these colors are made from natural ingredients, these clothes are more expensive than chemical colors. These colors suit the skin as they are made from natural ingredients. People with skin allergies can wear batik clothes dyed in natural colors in any season or weather.

4. There are different types of batik. The price of batik is determined by the changes in design, color, and fabric.

1994 is called the golden year for Indonesia. Indonesia plays a vital role as a solid economic country in Southeast Asia. At this time, five countries held a meeting. The name of this meeting was Asian Tiger. Designer Maesta Ivan Tirta made batik-written design clothes for the five leaders coming to the conference. At that time, the different conditions of the five countries were highlighted in the clothes of the five leaders!

5. There is a batik museum in Central Java, Indonesia. The Ministry of Education and Culture officially established it on July 12, 1976. The museum has a collection of hundreds of years-old batik fabrics, including batik-making tools. Pekalongan is called the city of Batik. Batik here is different and creative in style. For this reason, this city has been chosen to build the museum.

This museum has a vast collection hall.  Contains information on the development of batik from the Dutch era to the Japanese influence during World War II.  There are offices, boutiques, libraries, and seminar rooms. There are also essential workshops. Those who are interested in batik can take training here.

6. Cotton and silk clothes in Indonesia bring out the culture, traditions, various symbols, and daily life around that country. Just as it is decorated with multiple motifs at the time of children’s birth, batik is also used in coffins. Also, this batik dress is preferred in their various rituals.

Arabic calligraphy, European flower bouquets, Chinese phoenix, Japanese cherry blossoms, and Indian peacocks are featured in Indonesia’s Batik Partan.

Generations in Indonesia have carried the art of batik with their lives. The craft of batik is associated with the cultural identity of the people of their country. Its colors, designs, and patterns express its creativity and spirituality.

7. Although the style of batik in our country is different, cotton or cloth is twisted on the head of a stick, dipped in dye, and then painted on the fabric. But in other countries, hand-painted batik is done with a steel or metal sheet tool called jaunting or canning.  This is quite a traditional method. With which it is possible to create multi-colored designs. It is known as tuli mom batik in our country. This method of batik is prevalent in our country, though less.

Hand-drawn batik is very expensive.  Because it requires technique, precision, and patience to make this batik. No machines are used here—very complex and long-term work. There are also batik works that take six months to two years to complete. Then there is the matter of weather. If it is cloudy or raining, batik work is stopped. Hand-painted batik is worth up to 50 million dollars just because of this method of making and skilled craftsmen.

8. Batik is the traditional art of Bangladesh. In 1975, the journey of batik started in this country at the hands of Mr. Lal Mia of Kamalpur village of Jagannathpur union of Adarsh ​​Nagar upazila of Comilla district.

Although batik originated in Indonesia, many people in our country are making a living through the Bangladeshi batik industry. Comilla, Gauchia-Bunty area has thousands of batik houses where millions of people work. He has kept the wheels of our country’s economy moving.

If the history of batik, its practice, production methods, colors, and designs can be stored in the e-book, then those interested will be able to know very quickly. There will be pictures and information of buyers wearing native batik. Apart from this, all information about batik.

9. In 1988, the late Haji Nurul Islam Mollah started making batik in the Banti village of Araihajar upazila of Narayanganj district. Apart from 2500 people, 90% of the surrounding 3-4 upazilas live in the batik industry. Not only people from Narayanganj but skilled people from other areas are coming here and doing batik work. Also, skilled artisans work on batik with 100% natural colors in Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj, Gazipur, Savar, Bangladesh.

10. A part from wax batik, clothes are dyed by tying and dipping in dyes using chundi, shiburi, and tie-dye methods. These methods are very popular in this world.

11. Generally, the price of batik depends on the fabric and the design of the batik. Among the cotton material, various count yarn knitting fabrics like 40-60, 60-60, 80-80, etc.  The higher the thread count, the higher the value of the fabric. In this case, the price of cotton cloth is different. Besides, batik is also made in half silk, matka, muslin, pure, balaka, endi etc. Batik dresses are exclusive in any design of these materials except silk.

Besides, the price of batik cloth varies due to the difference in design. For example, the prices of tie-dye, diced wax batik, tuli batik, and jaunting design batik vary. However, among them, the customized design and batik done by the jaunting method are exclusive.

Another reason behind being exclusive is the natural dye. Batik of silk material made of natural material is also exclusive.

12. Muslin silk is a susceptible fabric material. The whole process of making batik, from yarn making to weaving the cloth and wax design on that cloth, is done carefully at every step. Muslin silk should never be dry-washed. Dry-washing puts pressure on the fabric. Since muslin is a thin and lightweight fabric, I suggest not washing it dry or machine washing it. Soak for a few minutes in low-alkali shampoo, wash with light hands in plenty of water, and dry in low sunlight. If you iron the muslin cloth with a newspaper while ironing, it will be suitable for a long time inshallah.

13. Due to the weather and climate of Bangladesh, it feels hot for about 8-9 months, and the rest of the time is cold. We prefer to wear comfortable clothes under thick clothes in winter. Everyone knows about the comfort of batik. From this side, batik clothing is suitable for all ages to wear all year round.

14. Batik done in natural colors is good for the skin. Children’s skin is sensitive, so there is a little rash or allergy.  A little care should be taken about clothing. In this case, original natural dye clothes are more comfortable. Also, using chemical dyes such as batik and tie-dye light-colored clothing will provide comfort.

15. Indonesian batik designs have various motifs. Indonesians make batik on cloth with these designs. Significant among the motives are the Parang motif, Kawung motif, Sekar Jagad motif, Sido Asih motif, Mega Mendung motif, Sidu Luhur motif, Sidomukti motif, Pring Sedapur motif, etc.

Finally, the batik technique is popular and ancient in the world. Batik is also in demand and popularity in Bangladesh. Those who make batik in this country are very talented, but all these artisans must be provided with advanced world-quality training.