Talli, also known as Alseen, is a traditional textile craft characterized by bright colors and artistic designs. It decorates all types of women's clothing in the United Arab Emirates, including wedding gowns, formal dresses, and everyday wear.
Talli is made up of six cotton threads sewn together with a silver thread in the middle. These colorful shapes reflect life in the desert and at sea through their symbolic meanings. By twisting and braiding different strands of thread together, talli creates a thin, long strip of textile with fine, elaborate patterns. To create these intricate patterns, the Talli braids used real silver or gold thread to make the centerpiece. Today, silver and gold have been replaced by synthetic forms.
As a time-consuming craft, Talli is passed from mothers to daughters both informally and formally through courses, workshops, and heritage development centers. During cultural events, festivals, and competitions, the practice is also promoted. Gatherings of women to braid Talli has a social dimension, as it allows women to interact and share Talli knowledge among themselves. Besides sharing folk tales and proverbs, these gatherings are also cultural forums that promote sharing of the country's intangible cultural heritage.
As well as offering the craft a permanent place on the market, Emirati craftswomen get involved in the craft and teach it to the younger generation. Rather than simply producing garments and fabrics embellished with talli, they believe it is not sufficient. As well as modernizing the ancient craft, they show modern designers its beauty and potential. As of today, talli embroidery is used more and more frequently by Emirati designers of clothing, accessories, tapestries, carpets, and décor. They are all sold not only in the UAE but also in European and American fashion boutiques.
The art of talli making survived through the mass production age where Korean and Japanese braids flooded the market. However, for a while, talli-making was considered a dying craft as fewer and fewer young Arab women learned it. As modern Arab women tended to dress more Western and corporately, the embellishments that adorned their daily clothing no longer were fashionable. However, small niche markets around the country are slowly bringing the craft back. Emirati fashion designers have also used the handmade embroidery technique in their designs. They have showcased it around the world through initiatives such as the Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council and Al Ghadeer UAE Crafts. Today, handmade talli embroidery can be seen adorning handbags, collars, sleeves, belts, tableware, jewelry, and so on.
References
(https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/al-talli-traditional-embroidery-skills-in-the-united-arab-emirates-01712) (https://thezay.org/talli/) (https://nationalclothing.org/middle-east/53-united-arab-emirates/212-talli-embroidery-%E2%80%93-famous-emirati-women%E2%80%99s-folk-craft.html)