Ocarrans have a wide variety of artistic and craft traditions, many of which have their roots in their historical ways of life. Most of these traditions survive as rural crafts and are uncommonly performed in urban areas.
Fabric
Ocarrans have various different traditional ways of producing textiles with looms being the most common. They made fabric on large upright looms as well as on narrower backstrap looms and could make the fabric either plain or include patterns. Patterns may be achieved through Ikat or brocade weaving, by resist dying, or by applying the pattern after the fabric is finished.
Felting is also used, especially for outer clothing, shoes, and blankets.
The textiles are often made from the wool of a
Crocela, a domesticated animal on Ocarro. Other materials may be used, but crocela wool is by far the most common and most utilized material in traditional ocarran textiles.
Modernly, most of the traditional ways of hand-making textiles have been replaced by the use of modern machine-made fabrics which are mass-produced and then sold. Clothing and fabric made in the traditional manner are still often used for ceremonies, such as weddings and burials.
Embroidery
Embroidery is often used to decorate and reinforce fabric, using a combination of stitchwork and applique along with beads and other embellishments to achieve the desired design.
Embroidery is most often done along the hems where it reinforces the fabric from any wear and tear, but may also be done along larger areas of clothing, most often for important formal or ceremonial clothing.
The designs used, often include geometric stylizations of plants, animals, and other elements that people would see in their everyday lives; the different symbols are often enclosed in linear bands and grid patterns.
Pottery
Pottery is commonly hand-made often by coiling or pinching, without the use of a wheel, and then fired in a kiln. Matte glazes and slips are used to decorate and add color to the pots.
They are often used for storage, of both liquids and solids and are also often used for serving and cooking food.
Modernly, these pots have been mostly replaced by mass-produced containers and cookware.
Woodworking
Ocarran woodworking is used to make utilitarian items like chests and tables, and sometimes for more decorative pieces like decorative woodcarving or lattices to decorate windows and doors.
Carving and engraving are most commonly used to decorate wood pieces and paint can be used to color them. Lacquer and inlays may also be used but tend to be more expensive and upper-class.
Metalwork
Ocarrans use metal work often for tools and small decorative items like jewelry. Silver and gold are mostly used in jewelry and decoration. Baser metals like bronze and iron are used for more practical longer-lasting objects like pots and blades.
engravings and filigree are used to decorate metal items, especially jewelry and the like. Inlays and enamel may also be used, as well as precious stones.
More modern materials and methods have been brought to ocarro, so traditionally crafted metalwork is rarely used in the common day being mostly reserved for jewelry worn as part of traditional dress, or objects of ceremonial significance. Many of the objects still around are heirlooms passed down from the older generation.
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