How our shirts are made
We work with handloom producers and individual artisans who create each shirt by hand using heritage techniques.
Ikat
Ikat, which originated in Indonesia, is a method of making fabric where the threads are dyed before weaving. This is different to how most fabric is made, where the fabric is woven and then dyed as a a whole. Ikat on the other hand, interweaves pre-dyed thread into distinct patterns. There are various digitally printed fabrics out there, which are vastly inferior to a genuine Ikat. We only use traditional Ikat fabric in our shirts.
Blockprinting
Our Mul and Classic shirts are made by hand using heritage blockprinting techniques.
How blockprinting works
First the design is drawn by hand and transferred onto a wooden block. This wooden block is then hand-carved by artisans who typically learn the trade from their families. It requires a super steady hand and a deft but delicate touch, as some of the details are minute.
Carvers create a block for each element of the pattern, which means that within one pattern there are blocks for every border, leaf grouping, or flower style.
Each block can take up to three days to carve, and some patterns use up to fifteen blocks. Once carved, the blocks are left to macerate in mustard oil for three days and then dry in the sun, as this helps both harden and preserve the wood.
Once the fabric is prepped, the dye is poured out into a tray, depending on which colour is going first. The dye is applied using one of three methods.
The direct method is the simplest: Dip a block into a dye, and then stamp it onto the fabric. While this sounds simple, the challenge is that all the blocks have to line up precisely otherwise the pattern will not work. Lining up the pattern is done visually; artisans don't use fancy measuring tools or even rulers, the printers simply read the fabric and the pattern and print. It's extraordinary. Each block follows this process, in different colours depending on the pattern.
Block printing techniques remain largely unchanged since the time of the Mughals, at least where printing continues to happen by hand. Most block-printed textiles come about in one of three ways: direct, resist, or discharge printing. Discharge printing is used to create a white pattern on a colorful background. Printers place a simple bleaching agent on the wooden blocks and stamp them to achieve this. Resist printing happens in reverse. The wooden blocks are dipped in a waxy paste and stamped to create a pattern before the entire piece is dyed the final color. Once it is dried, the paste is removed, and the untouched pattern remains.
Menswear done differently
One-of-a-kind shirts in vibrant colours
Otherland is made for the global citizen who likes to stand out...with elegance. Our clothes are sustainably made, in limited edition prints, from the lightest, softest cotton you've ever worn. Each item we create we have done so with artisans, using heritage techniques.