Tie-dying has a long history in India where the technique is used in many variations on a wide range of cloth-- from course cotton to fine silk.
In India the most widely used tie-dyed designs consist of tiny dots of color, ranging from large to small. The designs are formed by pinching a small area of cloth and then tightly wrapping cotton around the raised part. The cotton binding keeps the dye from reaching that part of the cloth, creating a white dot when the cotton binding is removed after dying. If the cloth is dyed before tying, a variety of colored dots can be created by dying the lightest color first. The smaller the dots, the more intricate the work.
Jaipur has gained a reputation as a tie-dying center. Its bazaars are full of both traditional and new bandhani designs. Most bandhanis we saw for sale were made of large dots spaced far apart. We were fortunate to find bandhanis made up of small dots in the bazaar in Jodhpur. If you have time to shop, keep a look out for the more intricate work.

Additional Reading:
Tie-dyed Textiles of India: Tradition and Trade
by Veronica Murphy and Rosemary Crill
Victoria and Albert Museum, Indian Art Series
Rizzoli International Publications, 1991
ISBN 0-8478-1162-x
LC 89-62642