Wooden Handicrafts

Pakistani and Indian Handicrafts

Wooden Handicraft Introduction

Handicraft, as the name suggests, is the traditional art of creating useful and decorative items entirely by hand. Thus, wooden handicraft is a craft where skilled labor is employed to decorate or carve wood to create items with bare minimum tools. India takes the pride of superlative craftsmanship which reflects the right shades of traditional beauty and style. Important to mention here is the fact that goods involving mass production or machinery are not considered as “Handicraft”.

Types of Handicrafts

Now moving on, we find that wooden handicrafts can be segregated under the following categories. They are:

• Antique Woodcraft
• Wooden furniture
• Wooden Gift Items
• Wooden Kitchen accessories
• Wooden Toys and Games
• Wooden Statues
• Wooden blinds for corporate as well as domestic purposes

Wooden Handicraft Industry

Pakistan and India is one of the chief exporters of wooden handicrafts in the global market. The factors that have added to the benefit of this industry from India’s perspective are:

• A low capital investment and other resources
• Scope of employment for about six million artisans (becoming the second largest employment provider after agriculture)
• Scope of earning for the women folk, who, constitute a large section of the handicrafts industry

Information about Wooden Handicraft Suppliers

Each state mentioned have a unique workmanship which add to the value of that product from that region. The Pakistan and Indian states which contribute to the growth of this sector are:

• Sargodha, Pakistan
  
• Sialkot, Pakistan
  
• Arunachal Pradesh
• Rajasthan
• Gujarat
• Madhya Pradesh
• West Bengal
• Karnataka
• Andhra Pradesh
• Tamil Nadu
• Kashmir

Apart from these states and the related business centre, many B2B market places have emerged to eradicate the gap between demand and supply. At the very click of the mouse, an array of suppliers and manufacturers line up to satisfy every individual need.Right from antique handicrafts, wooden furniture designs to kitchen accessories and gift items, these market places have the solution to every problem.

Conclusion:- The Indian craftsmen of each state create these handicrafts using wood that is available locally. Some of the the most common varieties used to make Indian handicrafts are:

• Teak,
• Sheesham,
• Sal,
• Oak,
• Mango,
• Ebony and
• Mahogany

Worth mentioning here is the fact that Sandalwood, rosewood and walnut are the exotic varieties and are highly expensive raw materials. Hence, they are used in producing very niche and high end furniture and decorative items.Although, Decentralization of this sector, perennial Deforestation, Lack of Infrastructure and Working Capital, and above all Poor Marketing Strategies have been a major concern in the growth and development of this sector, one cannot deny the following landmarks too:

• Pakistan and Indian Wooden Handicrafts has emerged as one of the major sources of foreign exchange earnings for both countries Pakistan and India
• Considered to be an important export commodity for Pakistan and India
• India’s handicraft exports show a consistent increase of sixteen per cent every year