n the magazine, El Rebozo, a contemporary master makers from Santa María del Rio in Mexico of silk ikat rebozos describe three sizes of rebozos but they only differ in length:
- grande or large--360cm ( 142inches)
- mediano or medium--280cm (110inches)
- raton o ratoncito or literally mouse meaning small--220cm (87inches).
The width is 70-80cm (28-32 inches). Some older rebozos, found in museums are slightly narrower, 63cm, but fall in the range of of the lengths above. These were orginally woven on backstrap looms and some still are. On a backstrap loom the wider the cloth the harder it is to open the shed, so the width, I suspect, used to be limited by the weavers size and strength. These wide webs are a test of the skill of the weaver.
The cloth must be wide and supple enough to tie around a baby and hold it securely against the body.
I think that I will make mine 30" wide and aim for a finished length of 120", which is twice my height. That should go over my head and down to the floor. Maybe I should try it out by draping a piece of commercial cloth from my stash over me and look in the mirror.