Naga, meaning serpent or snake, is an auspicious symbol deeply revered in Buddhism and Hinduism. Naga is depicted widely from temples to arts, and it is an aspiring theme for all the weavers throughout Asia. Creating Naga on a loom is a very ambitious task and it takes master weavers to perfect the piece.
 
Use of subdued -- almost zen -- colours typifies Emiko's aesthetics. Mono tone on the main part of the textile only brings out the weaver's skills, accentuating its perfection. Emiko first thought of using 5-7 colours to do the Naga, but quickly realized that it would take double the time and raise the price of the piece significantly! Instead, she decided to use the 5 colours only for the border design incorporated into one piece, which resulted in a more subtle and unique design. With or without colours, weaving skills at the highest level are required to weave a Naga piece.
 
The weaving technique used to create Naga is supplementary weft weaving, which is one of the most used traditional techniques in Laos. In this complicated loom set-up, supplementary threads are inserted onto the loom to create the raised patterns on the surface. It is absolutely breathtaking!
 
This is the medium size of our Master Weaver Naga series. Emiko modified the proportion of the pattern for this size, consisting of Naga pattern blocks and narrow borders. Breaking the Naga patterns into blocks with borders in between has made the conventional design very refreshing. This piece employs more of a discontinuous supplementary weave, which I've learned takes more time and effort..!
 
This beautiful brocade can proudly deccorate the walls or tables in your home, or be the epitome of elegance worn on your dress.