Cotton spinning (anukai)

Cotton (kabas) grows wildly and is also cultivated in gardens across the district of Lautem. Cotton is woven into colourful cloth, called tais, in at least four areas in Lautem; in Leuro, Lospalo, Caulutur, Fuiloro II and Malahara, Muapitine, and also in Cacavei.

Photo: A cotton tree in Lautem

Women spin cotton at any opportunity, while singing at ceremonies (such as lipal fa'i; weddings) or even while walking. The process of making cotton into thread involves a number of stages. Cotton fibers are first separated from the seedpods they grow in. Then, to make the fibers usable, the seeds and fibers are separated, a process known as ginning. Cotton is rolled flat using a stick, making it easier to pick out seeds. A tool that resembles a small bow is used to assist in the fiber removal; the cotton is wrapped around the taught twine and plucked, evening out the cotton fibers to remove any seeds left.

Photo: Cleaning cotton

Video: Cotton being cleaned and prepared for ginning

The cotton is then hand spun. Cleaned cotton is contained in a small basket (cocok), and drawn out into a length of thread, tied at the end to a spindle. The spindle itself has its own tradition to it. It is weighted at the bottom with a piece of coral taken from the ocean, and carved into a circular shape. The coral (ciki) acts as the whorl, and is attached to a piece of thin bamboo. These low whorl spindles spin slowly and steadily to create thick thread. The spun thread is wound around the shaft just above the whorl. As they spin cotton, women dip their fingers in fire ash (poko) stored in a small basket (ubu poko) which stops the cotton from slipping. Thread is then wound into balls to use for weaving.

Photo: Making cotton into thread

Video: Making cotton into thread in aldeia Malahara, Maupatine I.

Video: Twisting cotton into thread

Kapas (kabas) tumbuh liar dan juga dibudidayakan di kebun-kebun di distrik Lautem. Kapas yang ditenun menjadi kain berwarna-warni disebut tais, dikembangkan di setidaknya empat wilayah di Lautem, Leuro, Lospalo, Caulutur, Fuiloro II, dan Malahara, Muapitine, juga di Cacavei.

Para perempuan memintal kapas pada tiap kesempatan, sambil bernyanyi di upacara (misalnya dalam pernikahan-pernikahan lipal fa'i) atau bahkan sambil berjalan. Proses pembuatan kapas menjadi benang melibatkan sejumlah tahapan. Serat kapas yang pertama dipisahkan dari polong tempat mereka tumbuh. Kemudian, agar serat dapat digunakan, biji dan serat dipisahkan, proses ini dikenal dengan sebutan ginning. Kapas digulung datar menggunakan tongkat, sehingga lebih mudah untuk memilih bibit. Sebuah alat yang menyerupai busur kecil digunakan untuk membantu memisahkan serat; kapas yang melilit benang dipisahkan dan dipetik, biji yang tersisa juga dipisahkan.

Kapas kemudian dipintal dengan tangan. Kapas bersih disimpan dalam keranjang kecil (cocok), ditarik hingga sepanjang untaian benang, diikatkan ke alat pemintal. Alat pemintal tersebut juga memiliki tradisi tersendiri, dengan pemberat berupa sepotong karang laut yang diukir berbentuk melingkar di dasarnya. Karang (ciki) bertindak sebagai gelungan dan melekat ke sepotong bambu tipis. Gelungan alat pintal ini memutar dengan perlahan dan ajeg. Benang pintalan berputar di sekitar poros tepat di atas gelungan tersebut. Saat memutar kapas, para perempuan mencelupkan jemari mereka ke dalam abu api (poko) yang tersimpan dalam keranjang kecil (ubu poko) sehingga menghindarkan kapas tergelincir. Benang kemudian digulung menjadi bola yang digunakan untuk menenun.

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Cotton spinning (anukai)

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