Traditional: Kantha is a personal expression of women of Bengal. It was never commissioned by rulers, nor ordered by the landed gentry. No two pieces are the same. It has been passed on for generations, from mothers to daughters. Some of the common traditional stitches include:
Jheere Run: This stitch is used to fill the motif by alternating the running stitch in every line
Daanth Phor: Daant in bengali means tooth. Usually found on the border, this stitch resembles canine tooth.
Cheli Stitch: Primarily a stitch designed for borders, This stitch looks like repeated forms of arrowheads.
Bahir Bhorat:These are generally small stitches,placed next to each other keeping the motif as a highlight and generally used for Nakshi Kantha.
Pradeep or lamp, Box Stitch, Mondir Phor or temple stitch, Button Stitch.
Kantha embroidery widely uses human, animal and floral motifs, inspired largely by their immediate surroundings.
Contemporary : The crafts persons of Nanoor today make diverse range of Kantha stitched products which include saree, shawls, stole, bed cover, cushion cover, bags etc. The product prices vary with intricacy and size and range from Rs.300 to Rs. 15000 or more. Price range of the products, especially sarees is Rs. 4500 to Rs. 8000. Exquisitely designed bed covers cost around Rs. 10000. Price depends on quality of fabric and intricacy of embroidery.
