Namda (Felted Wool)

A namdha is a felted wool carpet. Much cheaper than the other woolen carpets, they are warm and stylish. In India it is said that a person named Nubi created the first namda to protect emperor Akbar's horse from cold. That namda was very intricately decorated and thus impressed the emperor. The craft of Namda making is followed in very limited areas in Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and parts of Rajasthan. They can be termed as woolen druggets. The craft is said to have originated in Iran and Turkey. Apart from the carpets different other things like clothing, caps and hats etc. may be formed of the namda. The quality is that all the namda products are seamless.

Material
The material used is different types of wools. Camel and goat wool is commonly used in Rajasthan and sheep and goat wool as used in Kashmir. The finer the wool the better the Namda. Jute or hessian may be requires as a base cloth. In Kashmir mats are used as base and jute or sack cloth in Rajasthan.

Process

To form a namda raw wool is first cleaned of the impurities. Wool is mixed with some quantities of cotton. It is then evenly spread on a mat or jute cloth. It is continually moistened with a special solution. The wool is pressed into felt by beating, treading or applying pressure. Patterns are created using embroidery or applique work.

Patterns and styles
Most namdas are made out of white, beige, brown, gray, or black natural wool. They may be dyed using special techniques before felting. The patterning is in terms of shapes and the embroidery and applique.

Kashmiri namdas are famous for chain stitch embroidery. The embroidery is so intricate and detailed that the namda almost resembles an Oriental rug despite that it is not knotted. The Rajasthani namdas of Bikaner, Malpura(chakma and ghogi namda) and pure wool un woven namdas of Tonk are famous for appliqued patterns supported by embroidery.

They can be used as floor coverings, sofa and chair throws and accent rugs. They are considered most suitable for the chilling winters.

Quality
Namdas are much less expensive than the other knotted rugs and carpets. The quality is judged by the felting and amount of wool. A nicely felted namda does not have loose wool and is durable. Namdas with more percentage of wool than cotton are considered better. Embroidery and applique enhance the richness as well as the quality.

Far less expensive are these colorful floor coverings made from woolen and cotton fiber which has been manually pressed into shape. Prices vary with the percentage of wool - a namda containing 80 percent wool being more expensive than one containing 20 percent wool. Embroidery is also done on namdas to make it more beautiful.