Ikat, or ikkat, is a dyeing technique used to pattern textiles that employ resist dyeing on the yarns prior to dyeing and weaving the fabric.
In ikat, the resist is formed by binding individual yarns or bundles of yarns with a tight wrapping applied in the desired pattern.
The yarns are then dyed. The bindings may then be altered to create a new pattern and the yarns dyed again with another colour. This process may be repeated multiple times to produce elaborate, multicoloured patterns. When the dyeing is finished all the bindings are removed and the yarns are woven into cloth. In other resist-dyeing techniques such as tie-dye and batik, the resist is applied to the woven cloth, whereas in ikat the resist is applied to the yarns before they are woven into cloth. Because the surface design is created in the yarns rather than on the finished cloth, in ikat both fabric faces are patterned.
