1. Chapter at a Glance

Nature has its own artists. The baya weaver bird weaves hanging nests from grass, and the tailorbird stitches leaves together with plant fibres. People learned to weave long ago: in weaving, one set of threads goes up and down and the other goes across, crossing over and under to form cloth, mats and baskets.

Indians have been weaving for over 4,000 years. Handloom weavers make famous fabrics like Kanjeevaram, Pashmina and Ikat. Thread is made by spinning, which means twisting fibres together, on a charkha. Gandhi ji made khadi a symbol of freedom and self-reliance. Fibres can be natural (cotton, silk, wool, jute, linen, bamboo) or synthetic (nylon, polyester, rayon). Silk comes from the cocoon of the silk moth.

We also learn the running stitch and India’s many embroidery styles, like Chikankari, Phulkari and Kantha. Indians rarely throw away clothes. They pass them on, reuse them and make quilts from small pieces.

2. Word Meanings

3. Important Topics

A. Nature’s Weavers and Tailors

• The baya weaver (male) weaves a pouch-shaped hanging nest from grass. Expert birds make fine nests; young ones make rough ones.
• The tailorbird pokes holes in a big leaf and stitches its edges with plant fibres or spider silk, then lines the nest to make it soft.
• Spiders spin webs too.

B. Weaving

• One set of threads is vertical and the other horizontal. They cross over and under to form fabric.
• People weave mats, baskets and sheets from coconut fibre, palm reeds, bamboo, grass, jute, cotton and silk.
• Look at cloth through a magnifying glass and you can see the criss-cross pattern.

C. Traditions of Weaving

• Indians knew how to weave over 4,000 years ago.
• Cloth woven by hand on a loom is handloom fabric.
• Famous weaves include Kanjeevaram (Tamil Nadu), Pashmina (Kashmir), Ikat (Odisha and Gujarat) and Patola (Patan, Gujarat, which takes 6 months to a year per saree).
• Indian muslin was so fine it was called “woven air”.
• India was the first country to grow cotton for clothes.
• Weaving gives work to many families and keeps traditional skills alive. Handloom uses no electricity.

D. Spinning

• Twisting cotton fibres together into thread is called spinning.
• A charkha, or spinning wheel, is used to spin thread.
• Gandhi ji promoted spinning and weaving our own cloth, khadi, as a symbol of freedom and self-reliance.

E. Types of Fibres

Synthetic fibres are made by humans: nylon, polyester, terylene and rayon.

F. Life Cycle of the Silk Moth

1. The silk moth lays eggs.
2. Eggs hatch into tiny caterpillars.
3. Caterpillars eat mulberry leaves and grow big.
4. Caterpillars spin cocoons around themselves.
5. The adult moth comes out of the cocoon.
6. The cycle begins again.

Silk thread is taken by putting cocoons in hot water and gently pulling out the thread.

G. Stitching and Embroidery

• The running stitch goes up, down, up, down in a straight line.
• It can join two pieces of cloth to make mats, coasters and cleaning cloths.

• Bandhani is tie-dye, where parts of cloth are tied by hand and dyed to make dots and patterns.

H. Reuse and Recycle

• Clothes that no longer fit are given to younger siblings or others.
• Old clothes are made into new things, like quilts from small pieces.

4. Question-Answers

Very Short Answer Questions

1. Which bird weaves hanging nests?
The baya weaver.

2. Which bird stitches leaves to make a nest?
The tailorbird.

3. What is spinning?
Twisting fibres together to make thread.

4. What is a charkha?
A spinning wheel.

5. What is khadi?
Cloth that is hand-spun and hand-woven.

6. Where does silk come from?
The cocoon of the silk moth.

7. What do silk caterpillars eat?
Mulberry leaves.

8. Name two synthetic fibres.
Nylon and polyester.

9. Which fibre is India the largest producer of?
Jute.

10. Where does Chikankari come from?
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is weaving?
Weaving means crossing two sets of threads, one vertical and one horizontal, over and under each other to make fabric like cloth, mats or baskets.

2. How does a tailorbird make its nest?
It pokes holes along the edge of a big leaf and stitches the edges together with plant fibres or spider silk, like a tailor. Then it lines the nest to make it soft.

3. Why is khadi important in India’s history?
Gandhi ji encouraged people to spin and weave their own cloth. Khadi became a symbol of the freedom struggle and of being self-reliant.

4. What is the difference between natural and synthetic fibres?
Natural fibres come from plants and animals, like cotton, jute, wool and silk. Synthetic fibres are made by humans from artificial materials, like nylon and polyester.

5. How is a running stitch made?
Bring the needle up from the back at one point, push it down a little further, bring it up again and keep going up and down in a straight line.

6. Why is weaving important for India?
It provides work for many families, keeps traditional skills and designs alive and is eco-friendly, because handlooms use no electricity.

Long Answer Questions

1. Describe the life cycle of the silk moth and how silk is made.
The silk moth lays eggs, which hatch into tiny caterpillars. The caterpillars eat mulberry leaves and grow big. Each caterpillar then spins a cocoon around itself, and an adult moth later comes out of it, starting the cycle again. To make silk, the cocoons are put in hot water and the silk thread is gently pulled out and made into yarn for silk fabric.

2. How do people in India reuse and recycle clothes?
People rarely throw away clothes. Clothes that no longer fit are given to younger siblings or others who can use them. Elders make old clothes into new things like bags, mats and cleaning cloths. There is an old tradition of joining small pieces of cloth to make beautiful quilts. This saves money and reduces waste.

Textbook Exercise Answers (Let us reflect)

1. Have you ever reused an old piece of cloth? What was made from it?
Sample: My mother turned an old saree into a quilt, and old T-shirts into cleaning cloths.

2. What happens if one thread breaks in a stitched cloth or woven mat?
The nearby threads loosen and the stitch or weave starts to open. Every thread holds the others together, so each one is important.

3. What tools or machines are used at a tailor’s shop?
Sewing machine, scissors, measuring tape, needles, thread, chalk and an iron.

4. Why should we not throw old clothes away?
Old clothes can be reused, given to others or made into new things. Throwing them away wastes material and adds to waste.

5. Put the life cycle of the moth in order.

1. Silk moth lays eggs.
2. Eggs hatch into tiny caterpillars.
3. Caterpillars eat mulberry leaves and grow big.
4. Caterpillars spin cocoons around themselves.
5. Adult moth comes out of the cocoon.
6. The cycle begins again.

Name some products woven from natural materials.
Jute bags, bamboo baskets, coconut fibre mats (coir), cotton sarees and grass mats.

If one thread breaks in your running stitch, what happens?
The stitches next to it may come loose, and the two pieces of cloth may start to separate.