Mud cloth is a fabric originating in Mali, Africa. After being picked and cleaned, cotton is spun into rough yarns. These fibers are woven into 5-6 inch wide strips, traditionally by the men of the village, on hand looms. You need 9-10 strips, each around 5-6 feet long, in order to create an average size fabric piece! The strips are sewn together, sometimes with a sewing machine, sometimes by hand. Before decorating, the cloth is soaked in a tea from various tree leaves. This acts like a fixative for the colors to come and gives the fabric a tan background shade. Prior to this, dyes from boiling, mashing, and fermenting of various roots, leaves, flowers, stems, fruits, and seeds are mixed with mud and allowed to age, often for up to a year, until they reach their peak. Each artist has his or her own carefully guarded formulas for the hues, and secret spots for procuring the muds. This process may take years for the creators to learn, as not only dyes, but also their reactions with cloth and fixatives must be known. Traditionally, this was done by women, but nowadays men also do the designing. These pastes are individually applied, washed off, and reapplied according to the artist's desire. Various layers and combinations are used. The work may be soaked in a final solution which brings out the patterns. For white, areas need extra attention to rebleach with a soda. The entire process can take weeks, not counting all the prior preparation by the farmers and weavers. Patterns and colors on mud cloth have meaning, but they may not be the same across various areas. They stand for status, people group, or even character. Black with white markings is used for storytelling or proverbs. The rust color represents blood from either hunting or war. Cream is the color of the fabric after soaking in the fixative. Some patterns are simply meant to be beautiful, and the modern day artists experiment with new designs, colors, and combinations.
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