When you visits the showroom at the centre, you will find several racks of gho and toego already sewn and ready for you to buy and wear. For special occasions such as weddings and festivals, everyone puts on their best clothes which are frequently made from fine silks. Everyday clothing is often made from woven cotton. Although the pieces of clothing worn by the Bhutanese are set by the national dress code, individuality is expressed through the choice of colors, patterns and materials.Īt Kelzang Weaving Centre, a variety of materials are produced. Women also have a colorful sash which is worn over the left shoulder and is called a rachu. This is a short jacket that falls just below the waist. You will also see the women of Bhutan wearing a long sleeved jacket over their kira known as a toego. A long piece of fabric that wraps around their body and hangs to their ankles, the kira is fastened at each shoulder with ornamental pins to create a long jumper effect. Women’s traditional dress in Bhutan calls for wearing a kira. For the winter season, they are allowed to wear pants underneath their gho. During the summer, they wear knee socks and the thighs are left uncovered. All men wear a gho which is an oversized robe that wraps around the body and hangs to their knees. The national dress in Bhutan calls for men and women to all wear set pieces in their wardrobe. In addition to the traditional garments, they also like to create fashion designs in more of a western style using fabrics familiar to all Bhutanese in a line they call Bhutanity. Kelzang Lhundrup has two daughters who are also accomplished weavers and assist him with the business. Keeping with the gender traditions, the weavers I observed in the studio were all women. Today, Kelzang Weaving Centre employs 20 weavers. He attracts other upmarket shoppers including elite businessmen and government officials as well as western tourists. One guide of mine joked that all the men in Bhutan want to marry a women from the East as she would be able to weave her own clothes and save him some money in purchases! Kelzang Lhundrup has excelled at his craft and it is said that members of the royal family in Bhutan frequent his shop to purchase cloth for their own clothes. It is not an accident that this now master in weaving comes from Eastern Bhutan where they are known for the excellent quality of their weaving. From that small village in Trashigang, Kelzang Lhundrup learned the skills and patterns he would need to begin his 35+ year career. Kelzang Lhundrup learned initially by sneaking around and observing his female cousins being taught to weave by their grandmother. It was their responsibility to weave all of the fabric needed to cloth all of their family members. Traditionally weaving was a skill dominated by women in the family. One of which is that he is one of the only men weaving in Bhutan. Founded by Kelzang Lhundrup, it is special for many reasons. One of the best places to purchase fabric and ready made clothing, as well as to see Bhutanese weaving traditions practiced, is to visit Kelzang Weaving Centre in Thimphu. By the end of your stay, you will likely want to purchase some cloth of your own to remember your time spent in the Land of the Thunder Dragon. Everywhere you wander, you will be struck by the unique fabrics women and men choose for their clothing. Throughout Bhutan, people observe the national dress code which helps to preserve the heritage of this beautiful and special country. The clothing worn by both women and men in Bhutan is created with distinctive fabrics that you are unlikely to have encountered elsewhere. When you are traveling in Bhutan, weaving traditions will be something you will want to learn more about as it reflects a centuries-old practice.
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