Party Wear Lehenga Choli

When we talk about parties, there are birthday parties, marriage anniversaries, kitty parties, official parties, family get together and so on. Wearing of custom Lehengas at any occasions is the latest fashion. There are different dresses for different occasions. The Lehanga Choli is most popular Indian dress. An original creation of Rajasthan, designer Indian Lehenga Choli became the center of attraction of all parties. It consists of a long skirt called Lehenga and a small blouse called Choli.

Every one wants to look their best in every occasion. There is materialization of variety of dresses both Indian and western for the party wear. Indian ladies prefer to wear sari, salwar suit or other formal western outfits in the parties. Some ladies prefer to wear Lehenga Cholis in parties like sangeet ceremony before a wedding or a theme party where traditional outfit are used. For party wear heavily embroidered Lehenga Cholis with sequins or stones are not always required. Nowadays young girls prefer a fashionable look. They don’t mind being more loud or going for the ‘mix and match look’

Party wears Lehenga Cholis are not the regular umbrella cut rather the Lahenga are of mermaid shape or A cut or fish cut or straight cut Lehangas to give a sleek look. These party wear Ghagra Choli are designer ones. The design of the Choli has undergone a sea change like sleeveless blouses, spaghetti straps, and bell sleeves to give a different traditional outfit look.

Indian ethnic garments have special significance in accordance with color, fabric and festival. Most elegant and comfortable Party Wear Lehenga Choli is presented in different color combination. The collection is offered according to the customized solution as per the client design specification. The collection has evolved up with gota, kundan and patch work. Tempting embroidery and designs are also integrated in the garment.

There is huge collection of Lehenga Choli in different size, style fabric and design. There is also a huge collection of Lehenga Choli for party wear. Crepe Lehanga is the most sensuous of all Indian Lehanga. It is gracefully light and figure hugging and it makes the look fascinating. Georgette Lehanga is a traditional wear with class .It is exclusively a party wear and is a gorgeous outfit for the girls.Net Lehanga is an open fabrics Lehenga which is created by connecting the intersection in a woven, knitted to form a mesh like appearance which won’t untangle. Satin Lehanga is the most preferred dress during Navratri.and party time. Due to its lustier it glitters as the light falls on it and no mirror work is required on this outfit. Silk Lehanga takes a special place in modern days. Silk is a protein fiber and usually burns readily not with a steady flame which smells like a burning hair. This is a very special dress for a party. Silk Lehanga is an outfit that never goes out of fashion.

Lehengas are one of the most precious outfits in a women’s wardrobe. Purchasing a Ghagra Choli is a big deal, maintaining a Lehanga is something delicate. A good shampoo works well on Silk Lehanga; it removes oil and revitalizes Silk Lehangas.

Cotton Sarees- Discover A New You With This Comfort Clothing

When it comes to the fashion taste and dressing styles of Indian women, most of them like to wear a Saree as it is a representation of an enriched Indian culture. Indian Sarees are illustrious among women across the world. The main forte of wearing a Saree is that it accentuates the beauty of a woman. Generally, the length of Saree is between 5 to 5 and half meters. According to their ethnicity and customs, Indian women wear the Saree in different styles.

The saree has its birth in both South and North India. The word 'sari' was taken from the Prakrit word 'sattika' as written in the most primitive Jain and Buddhist texts. The first known portrayal of the saree in Indian is the figurine of an Indus valley priest wearing a drape. In early Indian tradition and the Natya Shastra (an ancient Indian treatise describing ancient dance and costumes), the navel of the Supreme Being is considered to be the starting place of existence and creativity; hence the midriff is to be left uncovered by the saree.

The Cotton printed sarees gives a pure comforting ease. Cotton Sarees are the most preferred sarees for Indian Women. You can exploit cotton sarees in your every day wear especially during the summer months. Cotton sarees are worn in holi, diwali, dussehra, lohri, baisakhi and all the other festivals of our country. Indian Cotton sarees can also be worn to the workplace, worn by teachers while going to schools/colleges, lady doctors and housewives in their daily wear.

The Indian subcontinent is the abode for the Cotton produce. The skill of weaving and dyeing of cotton was recognized in India some 5000 years ago. Every state has its own time-honored cotton weaving practice. Every state of India has its own aboriginal area of expertise in cotton fabric, each different in weaves, textures, motifs, printing techniques and colours.

The famed cotton sarees area wise are as follows:

The jamdani cotton sarees from West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh are well-liked and they follow the customary patterns. Then there are the Sambalpuri, Bomkai and Vichitrapuri cotton saris of Orissa. These sarees come in a multiplicity of colours and traditional motifs enthused by nature. Chanderi Sarees in Madhya Pradesh are excellent cotton sarees with a silk warp and cotton weft.

Maheshwari sarees of Madhya Pradesh are either unadulterated cottons or silk/cotton mix, with check patterns being the forte.Hyderabad is well-known for its antique cotton weaving practice. The Venkatgiri fine cotton saris are created here, which are idyllic for summers. These sarees are primarily in off-white colour and adorned with dull golden motifs. Nander in Andhra Pradesh is renowned for its fine eminence of cotton sari ornately worked in gold thread with silk border. Pochampalli sarees of Andhra Pradesh are woven with the ikat patterns, where the yarn is pre dyed based on pattern before weaving.

In Tamilnadu, the cotton sari patterns closely resemble the silk ones. The significant centers like Kanjeevaram, Salem, Pudukottai and Madurai. These centres in the South are well-known for cotton weaves with motifs & checks laid on the body. The border & pallav are worked with thread or zari weaves. Kerala has begun weaving cotton sarees lately. Its field is the Karalkudi sarees of unbleached cotton with rich broad gold borders and pallus. We also have the tie and dye cotton sarees from Rajasthan and Gujarat. Women folk meticulously craft these multihued saris, tying every lone thread by hand and then dying in vivacious and bright colors. There are also other cotton sarees like the Ikat sarees of Karnataka and the Narayanpet sarees of Andhra Pradesh etc.

We also have other varieties of cotton sarees like Handloom cotton saree, cotton printed sarees, cotton sarees with embroidery and Zari work. Apart from conventional and traditional collections of saris for middle and old-aged women, stylish sarees for the youth are available in the Indian Market. Handloom khadi sarees are also weaved in India. The customary Indian cotton weaving revolves around 'Khadi'. Khadi is a fabric woven manually using handspun yarn only. Handlooms that produce Khadi weave cotton in such a manner that the interweaving of threads provides utmost passageway of air to the body, thus creating a cooling outcome, making Khadi a perfect summer wear.

Earlier, sarees in India were woven by the weavers only by using cotton, because, then, people did not know any other raw material except cotton to weave Sarees with. Like every trade in India is progressing day-by-day, radical changes have occurred in the Saree industry too. Now, our designers are crafting the latest Sarees by using an assortment of raw materials and putting their labors to add more allure to the Indian Saree. However, the allure of our Indian cotton saree is timeless. The Cotton printed sarees indeed give a classy, feminine, refined and chic look to any lady.

Indian Pavada Or Half Sarees - The Fading Tradition Of The South

The half-saree of south India is very age-specific, unlike the saree or the salwar-kameez. It solely belongs to the young generation and no woman past her teens would generally wear it. The half-saree scripts a sartorial evolution from girlhood to womanhood. It combines the feistiness of a girl with the feminine elegance of a young woman. That is one cause possibly why south Indian filmmakers are rediscovering the half-saree, giving the piece of clothing a fresh lease of life.

Half Saree was very common among young girls of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Full skirt, short blouse and a davani (shawl) constitutes this dressing style. It is considered to be originated in Tamil Nadu, but is very commonly used in Kerala till about 30 years back. These days with all contemporary fashions, half saree has almost entirely disappeared among Kerala girls.

If the songs, `Pavada prayathil' and `Pavadai davaniyil', were to be written at present, the lyrics would not be the same anymore, for, the pavada is almost missing from the Malayali girl's wardrobe. In Kerala, only the `audacious’ wore the salwar kurta two decades ago. The foray of the electronic media and salwar kurtas found their way into the hearts of Malayali girls. If you want to see Malayali girls in pattu pavada-blouse sets in our day, then you have to be invited to a marriage ceremony. Or you should stopover a temple or wait for November 1 (Kerala Piravi Day).

Traditionalists, however, need not fret. A few still favor the Indian pavada. Young girls are still getting pavadas stitched. But it's impractical to think that pavada will be worn as it used to be 15 to 20 years ago. But things now have enhanced from the way it was five years ago, when the pavada or the half sari was barely seen. Wearing pavada and blouse in everyday life is very uncomfortable and tiresome. Getting on and off buses, in weighty pavadas, is very difficult. It is an ornamental outfit, and not a functional one. Hence, it is best to wear it on choice occasions. Most people buy it only once a year, during Onam, and that's the only time it is hugely worn.

Even mothers don't want to compel their daughters to wear the Indian pavada today. Of course, the pavada is very gorgeous and traditional and mothers, however, would love to see their daughters wear the pavada-blouse often. It gives a certain distinguished look to the teenager. Just as the sari has displaced the mundum neriaythum, salwar kurtas have replaced the pavada – blouse. Pavada often means the pattu pavada, stitched in shimmering Kancheevaram. For some people the pavada is made in no other material. The flamboyance is part of the fashion statement it makes. But Pavadas in printed georgette or other synthetic fabrics, which make good formal as well as casual wear, were admired even a decade ago.

Some girls dislike the pavada because it is "revealing". "With salwar kurta, are worn with dupattas. But what can be worn with a pavada-blouse set? Even a half sari can appear revealing if not worn properly. As far as dressing is concerned, Hindi films and TV channels are the bibles for youngsters. At some point, the pavada did become the apparel of the not-so-modern heroine, the village belle. But even in this case, it was a singular version of the pavada -- a cross between the north Indian ghagra/lehenga and our conventional pavada. Aishwarya Rai and Sreedevi were seen wearing it in `Kandukonden Kandukonden' and `Devaragam' respectively. And they indeed looked stunning.

Designers are sensible when they say that we cannot imagine the pavada to make a comeback. To the modern girl, it is indeed a formal dress. One aspect that works to the benefit of the Indian pavada is that it can be tailored and improvised to suit the wearer's taste. This encourages young women to check it out. The girls are keen on adding current elements to the conventional design. That is, they want the half sari to be embellished or the blouse to be embroidered. The designers acknowledge that the Indian pavada has become a costume, almost a `uniform' for precise occasions like south Indian weddings or festivals like onam. There's something traditional and beautiful about the dress. It seems to bear the spirit of the south Indian culture.

Boutiques come to the forefront for toddlers with cute readymade pavadais for younger children. These come in silk, raw silk and cotton fabric with embroidery and appliqué work. Fabrics for stitching the pavadais are also obtainable. For older girls designer boutiques are sanctuaries for pavadai dhavinis. Here one can pick and mix and match the fabrics for the skirt, blouse and dhavinis or dupattas. The colors and fabrics available in this boutique are abundant for the pavada dhavinis.

The kids today love pavadayum blousum, kuppi vala (glass bangles) and mulla poovu (jasmine). So, take heart, traditionalists…all is not lost.

Right choice of Fabrics and Blouse-Styles

Various fabrics are available for weaving of sarees, depending upon the seasons and occasions. The stature and built of the person who would wear the saree also matters. Fabrics that are lustrous like tussar silk, brocade silk, jamevar silk are for heavy-work sarees for very special occasions. Cottons, chiffons and georgettes are for casual wear. If one is slightly bulky and broad-shouldered, then chiffons and georgettes are best suited for her. The slimmer bodies should be draped in cotton, khadi and silk. When the weather is hot and humid, definitely cotton brings comfort.

A saree becomes yet more elegant when the blouse is designed to be compatible. True artistry lies in bringing about a harmony between the saree and the blouse. There are several cuts, neck and back designs, based on the occasion, the ornamental works on the blouse. The sleeves can be spaghetti very short, short, till the elbows and covering the elbow. The shoulder could be puffed, piped, frilled or laced. There is the open-back style, where the blouse needs to be string tied. It could be buttoned on the front or on the back. Nowadays, the pull –on blouses, that are not hooked, buttoned or stringed, are also in vogue. They are stretchable. Traditional sarees are usually coupled with bordered, embroidered and stringed blouses. The party wears are usually bettered by spaghettis and shoulder-less ones. Slim figures carry short sleeves and collared necklines well. A compatible blouse style defines of the bust and adds to her dignity.

So, it is always wise to look for the befitting fabrics and blouse styles for gracefulness and smartness.

Saree – Beautiful and Beautifying Down the Ages

Turning the pages of history, one would find that saree has always made its presence felt. In every civilization, age or generation, woman of the eastern world have always revealed her true grace in a saree. A saree has always veiled her shyness, and expressed her dignity.

A sari is probably the most lengthy of the garments. The fact that it is unstitched, allows the artisan to use the entire dimension. The base tells a story and the borders draw the conclusions! The blouse adds to the final finish.
It is a panoramic. It can carry prints, machine embroideries and handworks. It can be worn in various ways to display the most prominently ornamented portions of the length. There is the simple style where the ‘aanchal’ or ‘pallu’ is pleated and tucked onto the left shoulder. This is mostly for young or modern women. The older generation might take the ‘aanchal’ up from behind, allow it to come in front over the right shoulder and fix the loose end on the left waist. There is yet another style preferred by the women of Bengal and Orissa in India and also Bangladesh.
In this the skirt is left non-pleated. There is a simple enwrapping. The ‘aanchal’ is left hanging over the left shoulder, at times a bunch of keys knotted on the end.
Again, in parties or weddings, the aanchal is left non-pleated to display work, if it is a saree with heavy embroideries and embellishments.

Choice of Fabrics

Various fabrics are available for weaving of sarees, depending upon the seasons and occasions. The stature and built of the person who would wear the saree also matters. Fabrics that are lustrous like tussar silk, brocade silk, jamevar silk are for heavy work sarees for very special occasions. Cottons, chiffons and georgettes are for casual wear. If one is slightly bulky and broad-shouldered, then chiffons and georgettes are best suited for her. The slimmer bodies should be draped in cotton, khadi and silk.

Saree coupled with the right kind of blouse

A saree becomes yet more elegant when the blouse is designed to be compatible. True artistry lies in bringing about a harmony between the saree and the blouse. There are several cuts, neck and back designs, based on the occasion, the ornamental works on the blouse. The sleeves can be spaghetti very short, short, till the elbows and covering the elbow. The shoulder could be puffed, piped, frilled or laced. There is the open back style, where the blouse needs to be string tied. It could be buttoned on the front or on the back. Nowadays, the pull –on blouses, that are not hooked, buttoned or stringed, are also in vogue. They are stretchable. Traditional sarees are usually coupled with bordered, embroidered and stringed blouses. The party wears are usually bettered by spaghettis and shoulder-less ones.

So a saree can be stylized and fashioned in every way. It can be the best friend of woman who adheres to tradition as well as the woman who changes her preferences with the changing fashions, or one who is bold enough to make her own style statement – a trend-setter. It veils a shy woman and reveals the bold beauty. Saree is ever beautiful and beautifying. It is hand-in-hand with history and heritage yet can bring a fresh lease whenever woman desires a new look.

Salwar Kameez and the Comfort Factor

Once the right fabric prepares the base for the artisan, the real play begins with his handwork. By handwork, it is meant that it is not0 machine embroidered. The work is done with manual labor and patience. India has a great many number of embroidery styles having their roots in different provinces. The most common for salwars and kurtis, is the chikkankari of Lucknow, Rampur and Agra. Fine threads are used to embroider floral patterns usually cotton cloth. Hand-painting and Jamdani weave are the specialization of Faizabad.

Moving to the north of India, the embroidery most prominently practiced by the women of Punjab is the ‘phulkari’. ‘Phulkari’ means growing of flowers. It dates back to the vedic ages. There is the use of silk floss on simple Khadi cloth. Stitching done in different directions brings out the light-and-shadow effect. Some of the different styles of Phulkari are – chope, ghunghat bagh, suber, darshan-dwaar and chamba. In Bengal there is the famous Kantha Stitch that is mostly thought of in association with wedding sarees. The variations are – sujni kantha, archilata kantha, durjani kantha and rumal kantha. The run stitches are of various types. For example simple, mat style, maze style and tessellation style. Mirror-work over multi-colored thread embroidery is the contribution of the western India. It looks very colorful and befitting the gypsy culture where people enjoy wandering, singing and dancing in groups. There is the enigmatic jaali work of Jodhpur. Rajasthan has given to us the art of block printing and tie-and die (baandhni).
Places in and around Indore and Bhopal are renowned for their Zari and leather appliqué works; Sikkim, for leather appliqué.

The Aari or Zardosi embroidery has been in India since the Mughal regime (15th century). ‘Aar’ means needle. The zardosi stitch requires a wooden frame in order to keep the cotton cloth fixed and fully stretched so that the designs on paper can be traced and thereafter the needle could be firmly pushed through the cloth. The concept is borrowed from the idea of a stretched cot or khatia. This enables the craftsman to use both hands with adroitness and speed. After this work, beads, sequins or fine wires of real gold and silver are used for ornamentation.

Indian embroidery and artistry has always been seducing people from different corners of the world with its colors, individualities and ability to leave the gazers awe-struck at the skill which has come down from one generation to the other without a loosening of the chords of tradition.

Silk and Cotton

Silk: Silks are the wonders from the bounties of nature. The home of a worm turned into fine resplendent fabrics with a natural sheen. Silk is measured in “mm”, pronounced as “mommy”. Raw silks are usually not as lustrous as the processed silks. It has the sericin removed, but looks luster-less and easily absorbs dirt and odors. This silk can be used if one prefers stiff fabrics for occasional wear. Jacquard silks are truly enigmatic with multi-threading so has to give off a light and shade.They are heavy because of the dense weave. There is the douppioni silk cannot resist stress and abrasions. They need dry-cleaning. With the first few washes the fabric sheds away the dyes. Quite unlike douppioni, the noil silk can bear abrasions due to casual wearing and travel. Though often mistaken to be cotton, it has a unique soft and wrinkle-free attribute. The tussah silk is the stubborn one of its breeds. It is difficult to dye tussah silk and therefore, it is usually available in its natural tan or dark wheat color. Charmeuse silk is befitting the common man’s idea of silk. It is apt for blouse, scarves and ladies lingerie. In India Mumbai, Surat, Benaras, Chanderi, Maheshwar, Mysore, Kanchipuram, Tanjore and Kumbakonam contribute to the silk weaving industry. Parts of Meghalaya, Manipur and Mizoram are also famous for silk.

Cotton: The word ‘cotton’ originates in Arabic. Cotton is the most comfortable and elegant fabric for daily wear. It needs to be tailored properly. It is especially preferable in hot and humid weather. But, it is equally advisable for winters too. It has an ability to retain body temperature. In rainy seasons it takes time to dry up, as the fibers retain water/moisture for a long time. Handloom cotton looks most graceful. Formal or casual Salwar Suits or casual Kurtis are mostly in cotton.
India has a wide variety of cotton. Most wonderfully, in spite of all its diversities, India has always dressed up unanimously in a variety of cotton. It saw the birth of Khadi. In every state, there is the use of cotton for garments.
Cotton can be beautifully printed and embroidered. It remains well-set and is quite manageable. Slimmer bodies look good in cotton apparels. Cotton sarees are also appealing to the Indian women. If worn tidily, a simple cotton printed saree and salwar kameez can really be fascinating and they enhance your dignity.