The earliest art of hand weaving remains embedded in our heritage and culture. There are different types of weaving looms, all of which has distinct styles and outlook. Here’s a fast guide to recognise them:

The Original Hand Loom: The first and original loom has threads hung from a wooden branch or fixed to the ground. The weft threads are manually pushed through a rod that also becomes the shuttle. Raising and lowering each warp thread one by one is how the weaving starts. It is considered to bring out the best in fabric output.

Ground Looms: Horizontal ground looms permit the warp threads to be chained between a couple of rows of rods. The weaver then bends forward to weave. These are less and less used today

Back Strap Looms: This loom is attached to the body, with one end of the loom secured around the waist of the weaver, and the other end is attached around a fixed object. Weavers just bend back to apply the pressure needed.

Frame Looms: Very similar to ground looms, it is made of rods and panels to construct a form similar to a box. Very handy and manageable, frame looms are quite common even today for their portability and ease.

Rigid heddle Looms: Back strap looms and frame looms fall under this magnificent creation which looks similar to a ground loom. It features one harness, with its heddles attached in the harness. However, it has a problem, for which it is slowly becoming obsolete. The disadvantage of rigid heddles is that the weaver has less freedom, and cannot create a wider variety of fabrics.