NAMDA AND GABBA

    

    The art of felting wool into namdas  has  come from Yarkland.

         Namdas are a kind of mattress,  originally from  state  of Jammu and  Kashmir. These are made by felting  the wool rather than weaving it. A low quality wool mixed with a small quality of cotton is used to manufacture namdas. They are usually of two types, plain and embroidered. Formerly, woolen yarn was used for embroidery, but now acrylic yarn is in use. Namdas and gabbas are embroidered with thread    which gives color, beauty and strength to them.

         Prices of namdas depend upon their quality of wool, pattern(plain or embroidery), size of the product and neatness in designs. Far less expensive are these colorful floor coverings made from woolen and cotton fiber which has been manually pressed into shape. Prices may  vary with the percentage of wool- a Namda containing 80% wool being more expensive than one containing 20% wool. Chain stitch embroidery in woolen and cotton thread is worked on these rugs.