चिकनकारीچکن کاری
Hand-embroidered chikankari from Lucknow
Kurtis, palazzo suits, dupattas and more, each one stitched by hand in fine thread on chanderi, malmal and georgette.
- Handmade no two pieces alike
- 2–3 days dispatch with tracking
- 30 days easy returns
The blue lines are the printed pattern. They wash out once the stitching is done.
Print · stitch · wash · finish
How a piece is made
Chikankari is a centuries-old hand embroidery from Lucknow, traditionally white thread on fine muslin. Every piece goes through the same four stages.
Print
chhapai
The pattern is stamped onto the cloth with carved wooden blocks and a blue dye that washes out.
Stitch
kadhai
Artisans in and around Lucknow embroider over the blue lines by hand, stitch by stitch.
Wash
dhulai
The finished piece is washed to remove the print, leaving only the thread.
Finish
starch and press
Lightly starched, pressed and checked before it comes to you.
Criss-crossed on the back of sheer cloth, so each petal looks softly filled from the front.
Knots the size of a millet grain, packed into flower centres.
Threads eased apart into tiny holes, so the cloth looks like fine net.
No two pieces are the same
Every piece is embroidered by hand, so stitch lengths and spacing vary a little. That’s how you can tell real chikankari from machine embroidery. Most of our pieces are one of a kind, in a single size.