SAEDNEWS: Join Saed News to explore the beautiful art of Tafresh embroidery.
Darvish Sewing or Tafrishi Sewing is one of the traditional Iranian embroidery techniques. It is called Tafrishi because, historically, the people of Tafrish were the main producers of this craft. Unfortunately, this beautiful embroidery has lost much of its market and popularity today. This type of stitching is based on a very simple technique and is typically created as broad borders on fabric. It closely resembles Cheshmeh embroidery, with the key difference that it involves less thread pulling.
Handicrafts and civilization in Iran have a long-standing history. Tafrishi sewing became popular in the city of Tafrish in the late Qajar period, giving this art a history of over a century. In the past, it was used to decorate felt hats worn by dervishes, sheepskin coats, cloaks, woolen belts, and dervish tablecloths.
This delicate art reached its peak in the early Pahlavi era in Tafrish, the residence of Zahir al-Dawlah, the son-in-law of Naser al-Din Shah. Zahir al-Dawlah himself was a renowned dervish of his time. By establishing an association that taught various handicrafts to both men and women, he aimed to provide skills to those in need. Since this embroidery was popular among dervishes, the association helped spread it to the wider population. In his later years, Zahir al-Dawlah, despite falling into poverty, supported himself by fulfilling embroidery commissions. Examples of his work, preserved in the Tafrish Museum, showcase exquisite detail and craftsmanship.
Tafrishi Sewing Technique
Darvish stitching is very simple, composed entirely of small shalal stitches. First, the artist sketches the design on graph paper, which is then pinned onto the base fabric. Next, the pattern is stitched onto the fabric using embroidery tools. At the end, the paper is moistened and removed, and the fabric is ironed and lined.
In an alternative method, the design is created directly on the fabric without tracing, entirely from memory. The stitches are formed by counting the warp and weft threads of the fabric. Small 1 cm squares are marked by pulling three threads in both directions, and the center of each square is stitched with silk thread matching the fabric. The first row is stitched with uniform shalal stitches, while in the second row, each stitch is placed under the stitch from the previous row. A key point: the rows of stitches in the design should be even—usually six or eight rows.
Historically, this type of embroidery adorned decorative fabrics on heating tables, chests, and household items, as well as gift bundles, prayer mats, tablecloths, curtains, mantles, and bedcovers.
Thread: Usually wool, sometimes silk
Needle: Simple, medium-length
Graph Paper: For transferring the design to paper and then to fabric
Scissors
Fabric: Plain-weave fabrics with countable threads, such as worsted fabrics for tablecloths or coarser fabrics like hemp for clothing, bags, and other items
Thimble
This embroidery style has been practiced for centuries in cities such as Qazvin, Mashhad, Gonabad, Sanandaj, and Arak. However, as the name suggests, the heart of this beautiful craft remains Tafrish.
