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History | Culture | Religion | Art & Crafts | Shopping | Folk Music & Dance | Rajasthani Cuisine | Climate | Rajasthan Forts | Rajasthan Tribals | Desert Safari | Travelling Around Rajasthan RAJASTHAN SHOPPING The Arts of the Land
ANTIQUITIES : Though not all of them actually qualify as antiques, and many in fact are new, these are objects of daily use that exercise a fascination among most urban visitors. They can be found in small shops in places all over Rajasthan, as well as in large handicraft stores, are part of the landscape of the state.
DHURRIES AND CARPETS :
FABRICS :
PAINTINGS : You cannot travel anywhere within the state and remain oblivious to the master painters who, with the fine strokes of their squirrel's hair brushes, create such fine art. Principals' ateliers are at Udaipur and Jaipur where miniature artists continue to create their incredible portfolios of scenes from myth and legend, as well as history. PUPPETS : Walk around Hawa Mahal in Jaipur, and it will require more than human effort not to be attracted by the arrays of puppets on display. The art of puppeteering has a long tradition in Rajasthan, but the puppets themselves are fairly simple creations. Mostly they consist of painted wooden heads draped with dresses made from old fabrics and sequined for charm. The hands are made simply by stuffing rags or cotton into the sleeve of the dress and filling it out.
SHOPPING IN MAJOR TOWNS JAIPUR : Jaipur is the place to shop for best bargains. One can buy handicrafts ranging from grimacing papier-mache puppets to equisitely carved furniture. The place is essentially known for precious stones, which is definitely cheaper here than anywhere else in India and is even better known for semiprecious gems. Marble statues, costume jewellery and textile prints are other Jaipur specialities. BIKANER : Best for camel products that include leather footwear, and its brilliant gesso work. Wool carpets and blankets, light cotton quilts, and brilliantly dyed cotton fabrics can be tracked down in the maze of tiny shops around Kot Gate, with KEM Road providing the shopping in larger stores. Umul's shop at Junagarh Fort stocks some interesting products developed in cooperative style in the surrounding villages in the desert. CHITTAURGARH : Known for its wooden painted toys made in the surrounding villages, and thewa gold jewellery in its own distinctive style. Also, Akola printed fabrics and leather juttees made in Gangrar. JAISALMER : The local tradition of carving is best seen in little wooden boxes that are intricately pierced in exciting patterns and motifs. Also woolen and cotton rugs and blankets, embroidered fabrics, silver jewellery and trinkets, available in shops that open off the cobbled streets. JODHPUR : Once brides came here for their trousseau shopping because the dyes, and prints were resplendent, and the lame work brilliant. The same fabrics can still be found in the bazaars, and you may want to try on a sporty pair of Jodhpurs (the riding breeches that originated in this town). Badalas or zinc alloy pitchers used to carry water, covered with felted cloth, were an earlier version of today's water flask. Also wooden toys, leather goods, paintings, juttees and silver jewellery , all are found in the shops in the old city. Handsome pieces of old furniture and art & crafts can be found in the huddle of shops at the base of Chhattar Hill. KOTA : Best known for it's small checked - weave cotton sarees called Kota doriyas, in light floral prints. PUSHKAR : During the November fair, the mela is a bewildering array of shops with fabrics, embroideries, utensils, terracotta pots, trinkets, silver jewellery, camel saddles, blankets, shawls, beads, bangles and other baubles. SHEKHAWATI : Associated with the low - legged Shekhawati chair, this region is known for its wood carving, metal utensils, made -as - old furniture, and tiedye fabrics. UDAIPUR : One of the principal shopping zones outside Jaipur, here are a myriad shops with paintings of the miniature and pichwai variety, as well as terracotta tables and plaques. There are also locally dyed fabrics and textiles, embroideries, wooden toys, white metal objects dart, silver enamel artefacts, and images of Krishna in the Nathdwara style.
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When
you take a land and fill it with people who love celebrations, and whose love
for colour is unparalleled, even while it is sophisticated in its simplicity,
chances are you will come across a range of arts and crafts that meets with their
particular needs. It isn't an unfair assumption in the case of Rajasthan. The
bazaars spill with produce, and there is a magnificent glow of colours that permeates
the marts and spills over to the people themselves. There is nothing that is subtle
about it either. Colours on textiles and fabrics, glow in between gold settings,
is woven into the threads of rugs and carpets ; it is a bountiful celebration
where the range of materials at their command is put to amazing use. 
The
dhurrie is the humble cotton carpet that was once spread under carpets, or beds,
and has only now been found to be an alternative to the woollen carpet. Even though
it was used as an underlay, the dhurrie was woven on the village loom in vibrant
designs and motifs. The simplest were in a single colour with a contrasting border,
but the majority used geometric motifs and floral patterns in a mix of contrasting
colours. Available in a variety of sizes, 
the
dhurrie is woven not only in Jaipur, but in villages all over the state. In places
such as Bikaner and Jaisalmer, where the temperatures can dip alarmingly, woollen
dhurries are not uncommon, and use camel hair for the weave.
Nowhere
does the excellent craftsmanship come to the fore as splendidly as it does when
it comes to textiles. The art of fabric printing and dyeing is associated both
with home furnishings and clothes for personal wear, and cotton fabric is used
for both. Fabric dyers and block printers have used techniques that have survived
for as long as their families have been in the trade. Each regions has its own
motifs and choice of colours, and each settlement uses colours in a particular
way so that it is easy to recognise the geometric patterns and earth colours that
come from.
JEWELLERY
AND GEMSTONES : One of the largest centres in the world for the hand - cutting
of gems, It is not unusual to find its shops full of piles of everything from
onyx and cat's eye to lapiz lazauli, carnelian, garnets, amethysts and topaz and
on the other end of the scale, rubies, emeralds and diamonds. Even those who would
not like to spend much can take their pick from the cabochons so that the costs
on the precious stones are greatly reduced. Of course, even the most ordinary
stones can be found polished in its many stores, so that the choice and colours
are incredible.
FURNITURE
AND WOOD CARVING : The tradition of furniture is not a very old one in Rajasthan
where the preference for western styles of seating were rare. In fact, even early
durbars were held on large mattresses spread on the ground and covered with carpets
and cushions for support. Even in this, a strict hierarchy was maintained, a tradition
that was retained when the more formal mode of seating on ornate chairs was introduced
during the British regime. 
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