At the Sari Shop......

Yesterday, I had to follow my DW to this shop. There was a Sale of Saris @ a fabulous discount at a reputed/popular shop. OMG, these Ls flock there whenever they fix their eyes to such ads or lend an ear in a 'gossip' that merely mention 'discount sale'! And poor chaps like us have to dumbly watch them reject tens of designs and colours! No doubt, they turn to us for their shortlisted ones and decide on buying the chosen one. I can tell you, it is not fun watching it. Those sales girls are used to it, nevertheless - it's their job! They even took her aside to show how it looks when draped. That's a lovely trick. She wanted a gray coloured variety that was 'not yet' added to the wardrobe contents. So she bought one of that shade and it was a joint approval. I had my cam handy to take a few shots there as the saris came down the shelves to be picked up.

The lighting is yellowish inside the hall to make the colours look more attractive. Some shades dupe us. So we are allowed to take it to the window outside to look at it in natural light and one of the girls accompany.

Please let us see more of those wonderful saris Dinu.
Josephine.

Look at the crowd here. Actually this is no way compared to the actual 'rush'. They can fall on one another! But at such times, a guard is posted at the door to let in only a set number of persons inside while others wait in a queue. This happens sometimes when Kidswear get on discount sale at another shop.

I won't even go to the stores here when they have a big sale. After Thanksgiving, some of the stores in the area advertised LOW prices on many items for a few hours early in the morning. Apparently the whole thing backfired, because the stores around here didn't have nearly the crowds expected. I went into one later in the day and the prices were the same as they had advertised.

The salesgirl on the right is spreading one to show (shaken) to another customer not in pic. They have to see the border, the area that hangs down or comes in front (called 'pallu') and the work. All these factors must add! My DW waits as the girl attending her had gone to a shelf out of pic to bring another batch! Did you notice a 'poor chap' waiting there in the picture in the above post?

Wonderful! How much time does your wife spend looking at the saris? How long is the wait?

We know only when it starts, but the end is in 'divine hands'!!!! But luckily that day, it was just about half an hour!

They must be experts then, I would want to see every one!

Surely, not all though. But I can tell that I'm lucky to bracket my DW in that category. Being a tailor's daughter, she probably knows the hang of textures and their value for money.

aren't the pretty...I'd love to own them all...although on my short pudgy self I'm sure they would look terrible. But ohh they are soo pretty. Such colors...Do you have more pictures? How much does something like that cost? What are they made out of? LOL am I asking to many questions?

Dinu, Very interesting pictures. Thank you for sharing more of your culture. On occasion we will see a woman wearing a Sari in our little town. I''v wondered about the construction of a sari. Are they ready-to-wear as they come from the shop, or do they have to be made up from the material ? I assume they are of one piece and wrapped around the lady. Always enjoy seeing your pictures.

It is a length of five and half metres that goes all around the lady! It has the following jobs: To protect the bottom/border side a liner has to be stitched (it is a cotton cloth - like a tape about 5"x3metres). some saris require the edges to be stitched. Then comes a matching blouse. There are tailors doing these specific jobs. How I wish a ready to wear sari was found! It's not fun for hubbies to watch them do all these and I can tell you from my experience!! Draping is an art they develop almost naturally. You should see them make the pleats using the thumb and the first two fingers.

Saris have shrunk to five and a half metres now! Egads! They used to be six metres. It is difficult to make enough pleats in front when it's that short.

balvenie, the beauty of wrapping the sari when you put it on is that you automatically adjust it to fit. You can put on weight or lose weight and your sari will always fit (the blouse may need adjustment). If they were stitched together, they would only fit the day your tailor stitched it. One can always wear a salwar or chudidar kameez (aka 'ready made'), which is a tunic top with drawstring trousers beneath. Salwar trousers are looser around the lower leg. Chudidar's are fitted along the calf, although I'm not sure they are in style at the moment.

Taller women need to stitch two falls onto the sari, since the fabric is usually a standard width. One goes on the bottom to protect that edge, the other goes along the top to provide more fabric to tuck into the pettycoat so that the wrap will be secure.

Dinu, do schoolgirls still start out with half-saris?

gm,
That's so beautifully said. Half-saris are not in vogue - very rarely seen these days. But I see one in many wearing at some gathering or a function. The skirt and top has given way for the popular churidar. They now come in thousands of textures and designs. The convenience aspect is of utmost importance, perhaps. Schools from 8th onwards have uniforms of salwar/churidar. Each school has a different colour combo.

Dinu

Dinu, thank you for the update. I am wondering how the girls will learn to be comfortable in draping/wearing a full sari if they do not start with half sari in school? Do the girls still receive their first sari at their ritu kala samskara? Perhaps I am just being an old fuddy-duddy!

http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/375097/ That is a link to my old thread on the Indian sari.

We have to bear with dumb old fuddy-duddies..... it's part and parcel of life! LOL. The girls learn it a bit late - the present generation I mean. Just yesterday, my DD had her class gathering and many of her mates had come in saris but not she. She will take much longer to wear her first! Yes, the tradition goes like that. But then, things are changing. Here is a picture (a poor one due to the camera's limitations) of her y'day's gathering.

Lovely photo Dinu. No need to rush your daughter. Her time will come soon enough, and then time will slip away very quickly thereafter.

Dinu I'm so glad I spotted this thread. I've only seen a few ladies wearing saris in my whole life but could never stare or ask questions to my satisfaction. I've always wondered how they were constructed. I still don't really understand but this has been helpful. The ones I've seen were made from thin cotton and were lovely. So feminine and graceful and at the same time so comfortable looking. I think I'd look ridiculous wearing one but I'd sure like to try it. Do your women wear it for housework and gardening or is it more of a dress-up to wear away from home?

I just saw your new post and will go check out your old thread.

The two ladies sitting here are Swiss. They visited us last week with the man as my DW (in a churidar) brings tea. The one in the centre is wearing a gray sari and the one on the right is wearing a churidar (a sweater covers it - cold weather). She had draped it just like she's had a good practise of it formany years! I see some of the foreign tourists here wear the sari and churidar with ease and comfort. They even adorn themselves with bangles and 'bindis' on their foreheads. Many stay here to learn Yoga and by the way, they naturally get impressed with the traditions and customs and follow them diligently!

teenie tiny picture! Is there a bigger one? thanks

Lovely photos Dinu!

I'd like a sari, I do have a Kashmiri phiran which is very comfortable and colourful. Here's a link to how to arrange a sari which I thought was interesting http://www.shijucreation.com/wearingasari.htm

Am sorry, I copied that pic from another post. Here is the original from my own PC.

Will check the link tomorrow as I'm preparing to go to bed now.

Ah, there it is! Thank you, looks great. :)

Baa, Thanks for that link. At last I think I understand. They're gorgeous but I'm more the pants and tunic type. Those look as comfortable as pajamas. The first thing I'd have to do is sew those pleats in the sari and thereby spoil the elegant simplicity of it. Dinu, I think we in America could learn much from your culture and most others and should be more open to it.

Dinu thanks for sharing all these great pictures. I just happened to stumble across this forum. The women look beautiful in their sari.

twiggybuds, if you sew the pleats, you'll never get your sari to wrap correctly. It's actually quite easy to form the pleats by winding them between your fingers. If you can find someone to demonstrate the technique, you'll soon see how easy it is. I did note that the illustration at the link from Shiju Creations is showing the pettycoat worn at the high hip rather than the waist as is customary. Perhaps this is the Bollywood influence. Dinu, are women wearing their saris so low these days? My relatives would have thrown fits if I'd worn my sari so low that it exposed the navel. They would have considered that a mark of bad breeding and low moral character. Of course, it has been a few decades since I received my first sari.
FYI, for those who may not be familiar, a girl is presented with her first sari when she reaches puberty. The sari is a mark of womanhood. Girls do not wear them. At least, that's the way it used to be.
Dinu, you'll have to enlighten me as to how much has changed.

I too would like to thank you for sharing all of the pictures. I had never seen a sari up close before. I did not know it was just one long piece of fabric. They are lovely and so graceful! Yet another reason to keep my new years resolution and lose weight!! LOL I have to tell you that many women have the female "shopping" gene........ all it takes is to hear the word "sale" and we are off to the races. I personally enjoy the crowds, makes it a lot more fun as long as you have the right attitude and patience. If I am really good and lose weight will you brave the crowds and pick me out a pretty one??....... :-)

Baa, that is a handy link! Thanks for the same - it also could be of use to other non-sari-wearers to learn and practise, esp. of forming the pleats. And you should see how easily they fold them back after use/wash to be kept in the wardrobe. They just fold it back as if it is a handkerchief!

Yes, the first sari was to be customarily presented 'that day'. Some traditional families have a function to 'announce' the event, even now. But this is all changing as attitudes are changing, leaving customs behind. Some also don't suit really to today's society.

Belly-button-show is getting popular --- yes indeed, the Bollywood has its role in breeding these 'undesirable' fashion here in what was supposed to be a conservative society. Many decades back, people exposed the body less and shared their joys and sorrows more with others. It is quite the opposite now!!! They expose more and keep their 'secrets'!!