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FASHION DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY - CITS

• Motifs: The motifs are inspired from nature’s flora including flowers, creepers and lace-like patterns.(Fig 6)
Fig 6

• Style of Embroidery: A common style present in each piece of Chikankari is the shadow work. To create
the light and shade effect, herringbone stitch is executed from the wrong side of the fabric which creates
shadow of lighter color on the right side and at the same imparts an outline to the motif.
• End Use: Traditionally the embroidery was done mainly for male garments such as kurta, bandi, choga etc.
for summer wear.Presently Chikankari is being explored for apparel as well as home products on different
fabrics like crepe silks, chiffons, georgettes and cotton polyester blends. Besides the traditional white on
white embroidery, the contemporary chikankari has a wider color palette, from pastels to bright colors.
7 Zardozi
• Region: Zardozi, the gold and silver embroidery is practiced in Lucknow, Agra, Varanasi, Bareilly, Bhopal,
Delhi and Chennai. The craft flourished under the patronage of the Mughal courts.
• Technique: The embroidery is done on different fabrics like velvet, satin and silk with a variety of zari
threads and materials like badla (the untwisted wire), salma (stiff finely twisted circular wire) gijai (twisted
metallic wire), dabka (zig-zag coiled wire), sitara (small circular disc), pearls and colored beads. The
different stitches used in Zardozi are chain stitch, stem stitch and satin stitch. The fabric to be embroidered
is first stretched on a rectangular wooden frame supported on two tripods called a karchob. A hook or an
awl is used to execute the embroidery.
• Motifs: The motifs used are mainly floral and geometrical. Some popular motifs are creepers, flowering
bush, floral scrolls and intricate jali patterns.(Fig 7)
• Style of Embroidery: There are two embroidery styles namely Karchobi and Kamdani under Zardozi. In
Karchobi, the fabric is clamped on wooden frame and elaborately embroidered to create decorative home
furnishings and ornate apparel. Kamdani is lighter embroidery done on apparel like dupattas and scarves
without clamping the fabric on any frame.
• End Use: Zardozi was traditionally done to ornament wall hangings, bedcovers, cushion covers, curtains,
palanquin covers, trappings for elephants, bullocks and horses, canopies, shoes, jackets, purses, boxes
etc. The embroidery continues to be one of the most favoured ornamentation for decoration of apparel such
as lehenga choli, sari etc. Presently, Zardozi is also explored on different types of base material like jute to
develop trendy products like bags and decorative fashion accessories.
8 Kasuti
• Region: Kasuti embroidery is practiced in Karnataka. The embroidery considered as an auspicious craft, is
executed by women. In ancient times, every bride would own a black silk sari, Chandrakali sari, with Kasuti
embroidery done on it.

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CITS : Apparel - Fashion Design & Technology - Lesson 2 CITS : Apparel - Fashion Design & Technology - Lesson 2