A Sari or Saree as a Fabric Source
Find Beautiful and Unusual Silks, Cottons and Other Lovely Materials
If you are fortunate enough to come across an old or used sari in your travels, snap it up quick as these beautiful items offer great opportunities to the creative sewer.
What is a Sari?
The sari is the traditional item of clothing worn by women on the Indian subcontinent. This garment is steeped in history, however is still widely worn today. A sari is a length of material that is worn draped around the body. Different parts of the Indian Subcontinent wear the sari with different drapes, for instance women in the north will wear it with the drape coming from back to front, in the south women will wear it with the drape thrown over the shoulder.
The sari is woven in a single length and is typically between 12 and 26 feet in length and 4 feet wide. It will be made from a lightweight fabric – traditionally silk or light weight cotton, however today made from a variety of man made fabrics too.
Different saris will be worn depending on the occasion, for instance a wedding sari will be extremely ornate, highly embroidered and decorated with metal threads, beads and sequins – perhaps hand dyed. An every day sari is likely to be much more practical. However it is likely that a sari will be brightly colored and made from a fine material.
Even if you have not been lucky enough to make a trip to the Indian Subcontinent, you may still find a sari closer to home. You might find an old sari at a thrift shop, garage sale – or of course don’t forget Ebay! If you are lucky enough to find a sari then it presents a wide range of opportunities. Of course you can wear it – and why not? Millions of women do and it is possible to actually stitch it into shape so it can be worn as a dress, ensuring it doesn’t unravel leaving you displaying more than you originally intended! An Asian seamstress will easily be able to do this for you.
What else can a Sari be used for?
However with such a length of wonderful and perhaps highly decorated fabric there are many other things that can be done with it if you don’t want to wear it as a sari. Here are some ideas for using your sari fabric.
Clothes
With 12 or more feet of heavily decorated fabric, this will lend itself to being formed into a variety of clothes. A jacket or skirt would look great, you might have enough material for a dress. One way or another the garment you make will be pretty special. If you don't have enough for a complete garment then team the sari fabric with some complementary material.
Window Dressings
Again, such a long decorated piece of fabric would make a great curtain or blind. This would really show off the decoration. A light weight sari would make a wonderful replacement for voile. Another alternative would be to make a light weight door curtain – a fantastic replacement for a fly curtain during the summer months!
Household Accessories
The sari would work well if used as part of a bed covering. Combined with two pieces of complimentary material, this could make a fantastic bed throw. Or it could be cut into pieces and a large patchwork effect achieved (although it would be a shame to cut up such a long length of material). Large cushions covers would look fantastic from pieces of sari material. This can be backed with a firmer fabric to give it more strength.
Accessories
The sari could be cut up into lengths and scarves or wraps made from the lengths. If you are lucky enough to have a silk sari then this could be backed with some velvet fabric for a really luxurious finish.
Any left over odds and ends will be ideal for applique.
Have fun and let your creativity fly!
For more interesting articles take a look around the Sewing and Needlework section at Suite101.
