Naga Backstrap-Woven Runner Mustard and Black

The women weavers of Nagaland's Himalayan foothills work on backstrap looms, the warp anchored to a post, the other end tied to the weaver's own waist. Tension is held by the body. The mustard and black in this runner are woven in 100% cotton with azo-free dyes, the motifs drawn from the symbolic vocabulary specific to the tribe, a visual language that predates writing in this region and still carries meaning.

In Nagaland, every tribe has its own motif system. The patterns woven into cloth are not decorative choices, they are declarations of identity, markers of clan and community that have been worn and used for generations. The women who wove this mustard and black runner inherited those motifs as knowledge, not as design references. The loin loom does not allow for imprecision: every thread is placed by hand, under tension held by the weaver's body.

The mustard and black together are striking in a way that is not decorative, they are the color combination of the earth and the night sky in the eastern Himalayan foothills. On a dining table in a New York apartment or a Chicago kitchen, this runner carries that geography without explanation. It announces its origin the way good textile always does.

Backstrap Loom Weave · Nagaland · 100% Cotton · Azo-Free Dyes

Care Instructions

• Machine wash cold, gentle cycle.
• Do not bleach. Line dry or tumble dry low.
• Iron on medium while slightly damp.
• Wash separately first two washes.