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Most research on the handloom industry is focused upon the export trade and production for export, and, by extension, upon the Coromandel Coast. This article, by contrast, explores the physical and human geography of weaving for the ‘domestic’ market in the ‘inland’ regions of south India. Using visual sources such as Company paintings, together with archival materials and statistical data, it reconstructs everyday modes of dress and clothing in the early nineteenth century in order to obtain a picture of the ‘kinds’ of cloth produced: this analysis shows that the largest proportion was white or predominantly white, and of coarse to middling quality. It goes on to map different systems of cloth production, and the pattern of weaver settlements, and shows that both were significantly different from those described for the Coromandel Coast. In the inland regions, coarse and durable kinds of cloth were woven almost everywhere by plebeian weavers scattered through the countryside; patterned and fine varieties were woven by specialist, full-time weavers who usually lived in large settlements. The article describes a diversity of markets and production systems, unpicks the meanings of part-time and full-time work, and their significance. The data and analysis serve to complicate the debate on the nature of the textile economy in early modern India. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose – Drape is a property that affects the aesthetic appeal and functionality of materials used for clothing manufacture. When various cut components of apparel are assembled together, the drape behavior of the final garment could be affected compared to the base fabric. Goat suede leathers are widely used for making apparels. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the effect of sewing on the drape characteristics of goat suede leather. Design/methodology/approach – For this study commercially available goat suede leathers of Indian origin from five different firms were used. The bending length, drape coefficient and number of nodes were measured for goat suede leathers with different stitch and seam values and compared with the same measurements taken in plain leather. For bending length measurement, plain, single stitched and seamed samples were prepared. For drape coefficient measurement, plain, radially stitched and seamed namely half circle and quarter circle samples were prepared. Findings – The introduction of seam (0.5 and 1 cm allowance) on the goat suede leathers increases the bending length significantly thereby reducing the drape ability but the influence of single stitch on the bending length is negligible. On contrary, there is a significant increase in drape coefficient values for simple radial stitched as well as for seamed samples. The number of nodes generated reduced marginally upon the introduction of stitch or seam. Originality/value – The paper provides the information on the effect of sewing on the drape characteristics of goat suede apparel leathers. This is the first of its kind study on leather as clothing material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article calls for a reconsideration of the materiality of things in dynamic processes of self-making and personhood. Grounded in research in contemporary urban India, it is argued that it is in the act of divestment that the capacity for the recreation of the self is made most apparent, due to the intimate connection between clothing and the body. Cloth is also a vital element of gift-giving and the re-creation of social networks. The case study of a woman frying to get rid of an unwanted garment highlights the options available and the different regimes of value by which the worth of used clothing can be assessed. These include handing on treasured pieces to family members, recycling within the home, giving to servants, bartering them for new stainless steel pots or burning them for their silver and gold content. The sacrifice and destruction of such intimate objects are the necessary prerequisite for the renewal of self within a network of mutually constitutive person-object relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]