A dual tone magenta and purple body, closing in a large gold pallu.

Why this piece

Dual tone, woven — dhoop chhaon — the magenta reads purple as the cloth turns. It is a woven colour effect, not a print, a dye gradient or an ombre finish.
A large gold pallu — the pallu runs long and is banded horizontally in metal, with blue and green worked between the bands.
Measured handle — 350 to 360 g at 44 to 46 GSM, semi-sheer body, soft pleat-holding drape.

The colourway

Dual tone is the reason this piece is worth seeing in person: the magenta turns towards purple as the cloth moves, so the colour is never quite the same twice across a drape. It is done in the weaving rather than in the dyeing, which is why it does not sit as a gradient down the length.

How it is woven

Every piece is made end to end in Maheshwar, in the master-weaver households of Mominpura. This is hand weaving in the plain sense of it: a pit loom, a weft inserted by hand, and a dobby setting the buti across the body and the figures in the border. The pattern is built as the cloth is built, not printed on later.

Expect the small unevennesses that hand weaving leaves behind. They are evidence of how the cloth was made, and the piece is checked and finished before it leaves us either way.

The border, and how it wears

The border is woven bugdi: its design reads the same on both faces of the cloth. It is the detail in this weave most worth turning over and looking at.

The figures are ours, measured in-house: 350 to 360 g, 44 to 46 GSM. Light enough for warm weather and long wear, soft enough to pleat closely, and semi-sheer through the body, so wear it over a petticoat.

Specification

Total length: 6.3–6.5 m, including an 80–90 cm blouse piece
Width: 45–46 inches
Weight: 350–360 g, measured in-house
Fabric weight: 44–46 GSM
Body: semi-sheer; wear it with a petticoat
Drape: soft, holds its pleats, and stays soft after the first clean
Loom: pit loom, with the weft inserted by hand
Patterning: dobby-set, on body, border and pallu
Finishing: pallu kuchu, selvedge and edges finished; fall and pico on request
Woven in: Maheshwar, Khargone district, Madhya Pradesh
Country of origin: India
Net quantity: one saree with attached blouse piece
Care: Dry Clean Only

Care and storage

Professional dry clean only. Home washing is not recommended.
Air-dry in the shade, without wringing.
Iron inside out on a low-to-medium setting, under a cotton press cloth.
Store it wrapped in breathable cotton or muslin, in a cool dark cupboard.
Refold along fresh lines every three to six months.

Dispatch

This piece is held in stock rather than made to order, so hand weaving does not put you in a queue. About half of all orders leave the next day, most go within two to three days, and most orders inside India arrive in three to seven days.

A note on colour

This piece is a dual tone magenta and purple, with a large gold pallu. Screens, camera settings and the light a photograph was taken in all move a shade a little, so the piece that reaches you may sit slightly away from the image on this page. Every colour in this range has been tested for fastness on wash and rub.

Product details

Country of origin: India. Net quantity: one saree with attached blouse piece. Care: Dry Clean Only.

Magenta & Purple Dual Tone Pure Handloom Maheshwari Silk Saree, Gold Pallu | Nakshatra