I would, and have! But then I’m of Indian heritage. However, the other half has indicated that he would like to wear a full sherwani for our wedding 
Nope, it’s Hawker’s Corner. They seem to have a zillion saris available.
Oh, and thanks much for the definitions!
I’ve alwasy thought they were beautiful (and practical in some respects), and years ago I actually went into a couple of shops on Devon Ave. in Chicago in an attempt to buy a salwar khameez. They looked so comfy, light and gauzy, but dressier than shorts and a t-shirt…and such beautiful fabrics! I don’t think they’d look weird on me at all; I’m on the olive-skinned side with dark hair, and I tend to wear bright colors anyway. I ran into language problems with the salespeople, though, and finally gave up.
Now I’m just an old fuddy-duddy who’s afraid of looking weird. I don’t know what happened to my alternative fashion side; I think I used it all up in college. Tie-dye hardly even counts as alternative fashion anymore.
Interesting – Hawker’s Corner is indeed a feature on what was “GlobalBharat” until recently; they’ve apparently renamed themselves “BengalCommerce”.
I bought from them once, specifically from Renuka Saris. What I saw was blue and described as “sky blue”, but what I got was thoroughly green.
You should know that the prices Hawker’s Corner shows are slightly higher than other people are charging for identical items. Do bargain – 20% less than the posted price is a good opening offer, or an even bigger % off if the one you want is towards the bottom of the list (meaning it’s been up for a long time).
“Peco” means hemming of both short ends – Hawker’s Corner uses that term a lot.
Note that “dupion” and “art silk” are two of the many Indian terms for “artificial silk made from synthetic fiber that may or may not closely resemble silk”.
Note that for any sari sold anywhere, unless it says “STITCHED blouse” the “blouse included” will be just a piece of material. “Blouse attached” or “blouse piece attached” mean that the material intended to be made into a blouse is still attached to the length of the sari.
Renuka Sari’s blouses (through Hawker’s Corner) are pre-made (stitched, but off the rack) and in my opinion crap; thin cotton that doesn’t match the sari and cut to fit only women with needle-pointed breasts.
And you’re welcome! I’d be thrilled to explain any other terms you come across.
Oh, and Eva Luna, I bet you’d look enchanting in a sari…
My sister-in-law (who’s English) wore one for her and my brother’s Hindu marriage blessing (my family is Indian) and she’s as pasty as everyone else in Oxford, but still looked good in it. Blood red is an excellent color for pale-skinned white women thinking of trying a sari, IMHO.
Personally, I can’t think of anyone who’d really be offended by a white woman who wore a sari… Shalwar (kameez) are a little different- Punjabis are quite attached to their clothing, although my mother has just begun wearing them to formal occasions (her second, and presumably, last, husband is Multani).
On the other hand, my grandmother, who had reservations about my sister-in-law before the wedding, was so impressed that she asked to wear a sari that she shed all her misgivings on the spot.
Emily, I may email you when I have some cash to spare…
And I don’t know if I’d like cotton, silk, or a synthetic. Hmm. But I’d like dark blue with a little gold. Not too big, not too small designs–just medium. 
I like embroidery…
Yeah, I’ve looked at sarees and whatnot on ebay. I want to buy in person. (There’s a large Indian market an hour from me. I am itching to go, but again. . . bloody lack of money!) I want to see the fabric and touch it. I can’t wait to have money! Thanks for the link, I’ll take a look.
It is habit-forming for me, but I thought maybe it was just me. heh Guess not!
I have a question about sarees (since I have never worn one myself.) I’ve seen the instructions on how to wrap them, and it leads me to wonder if the saree must be re-wrapped every time a woman goes to the bathroom. Is that right? Or is there a trick to that?
And, in stores, I haven’t really come across saree sets (the petticoat and blouse), just the fabric. Is it difficult to find sarees ready to go? Or do stores usually custom make the blouses? (I don’t sew personally.) What about the petticoat/pants for underneath? Are they something you can get when you buy your saree?
Lots out there for you and probably a lot less expensive than you think.
• Cotton: most comfy for hot places but wrinkles like crazy.
• Silk: can’t go wrong with silk, but it does wrinkle and needs some lovin’ care.
• Synthetic: you usually can toss it in the washer and the dryer, and it’s dirt cheap, with the greatest variety of styles.
Here’s some inexpensive blue-and-gold synthetics: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=13737&item=3237706917
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=13737&item=3236694345
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=13737&item=3236694170
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=13737&item=3236694042
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=13737&item=3236693973
I’ve bought from this eBay seller a few times – she’s great. No blouses though.
A probably silk-blend royal blue one:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2850153682
I’ve bought from her, too – good experience.
One of my faves, Indian Exotica, has this dark teal-blue and gold synthetic one that ends in less than an hour:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3237517395
PLENNNTY of embroidery out there too. Indian Exotica on eBay carries a lot of embroidered stuff.
Note to alla y’all: I don’t get commisions from anyone, not even Priyanka’s.
Nope; you just hike up the wrapped sari like you would a skirt.
There are a few less-common drapes that wind around your legs like pants, but the most common drape (known as the “nivi” drape) leaves your legs free.
I’ve actually never bought a sari anywhere but online. Most online sellers will also sell you a more-or-less matching petticoat, and many will sell you a tailoring service for the blouse piece that comes with the sari.
My impression is that most clothing places in India either sell readymade blouses or have connections with tailors, and most women have tailors they patronize often (just like we sometimes have, say, drycleaners we trust). Any Indian dopers out there who can elaborate?
As for petticoats (not pants, by the way), I think there may be stores in India that specialize in them. I have heard that there are “matching stores” that sell plain cotton cloth in a thousand and one colors, so you can buy a length to make a fall for your new sari; presumably they sell material for petticoats as well. Premade petticoats are also common because they’re a “one size fits all” type item, although that one size really fits only up to about a size 14. They’re made with a drawstring waist.
I would think that in cities where there are sari sellers, they could tell you how to acquire a blouse and petticoat locally. Note that many, many non-Indian Americans buy saris in order to use the cloth for something else, so they may not automatically assume you need the blouse and petticoat; you probably need to ask.
I personally prefer lycra sari blouses. (By the way, a sari blouse is called a “choli”.) Stretch cholies are the way to go, IMHO, because a properly tailored blouse fits skin-tight, and my skin keeps changing size (damn these female genes of mine!). I get 'em on eBay or from my friends at Priyanka’s.
I’ve thought about wearing a sari, but I’m not keen on the idea of a choli. I hate tight clothing, and I think it would be a pain to get in and out of, since I have arthritis. I wonder if I could get away with an opaque Tshirt? I’ve thought, too, of buying a border print fabric and perhaps a “sister” print of the border print, to try to make my own sari. I’m fat, and I’m not sure that a “standard” size sari would quite cover me. I know that I’d have to make my own petticoat, though I’d probably just make it out of muslin.
Speaking of cholis, can you get them in a longer style that doesn’t bare the midriff? My religion isn’t big on showing that much skin, and I’ve had two enormous children that left my tummy less than lovely anyway.
Thanks for the links, emilyforce–I love that teal one. And a couple of the blues, too. I’m a bit nervous about buying online, though…
Sure, absolutely. I often wear saris with T-shirts made out of “slinky” acetate-lycra blends (you might be familiar with that kind of fabric if you ever wear stuff from Chico’s). I also use fitted blouses with lycra in them for an almost-choli look that covers my midriff for work.
You can do that, but you may find it more expensive to do so than to buy a sari. One of the reasons peole use them for curtains is that they are almost always less expensive and better quality than fabric sold by the yard.
In addition, cloth designed to be used as a sari has certain attributes that cloth by the yard doesn’t – mostly design elements, but also weight and drape and so on. You certainly can make your own – I did, before I bought my first one, but it is quite a bit harder to drape it.
Unless you’re unusually big – over, say, 400 pounds – an average sari will fit you. You may need to make shallower pleats, or make fewer of them, but that doesn’t seriously affect the finished look. I have to do this anyway with some of my shorter saris. They typically vary from a minimum of about 5 yards up to about 6.5 yards.
In fact, there are even 9-yard saris available, originally designed for use with the more complicated drapes still in use in parts of India – no one on Earth is too fat to use those in a nivi drape.
One of my favorite Priyanka’s clients is a self-described “short dumpy fat lady” who looks stunning in a sari. (She’s also a paleface strawberry blonde, by the way.) The sari by its very nature is incredibly forgiving of all figure types. If you are very concerned about this, you can choose to get a sari “with blouse piece attached” and not cut off the blouse piece, giving you up to an extra yard to play with.
Really, the only women who have trouble finding saris that fit are extraordinarily tall women, say over 6 feet tall. And even they can find saris with extra width if they shop around.
Yes, definitely. If you get a tailored blouse you can always specify the length you want. It’s not at all unusual – lots of sari wearers are conservative Muslims who have the same desire for coverage you do.
Heh! One of the things I like about Indian culture (at least, regular-people culture, not the Bollywood kind) is that the lumpiest of ladies don’t care who sees the glory that is their real-world bellies. Americans are freaks about this, IMHO. I blame Britney Spears.
You’re very welcome!
If you go for something from the folks that had the teal one for sale, I think you won’t be sorry. They are wonderful sellers, very accurate in describing their items.
OK, I did it – I just bought my first genuinesalwar kameez from Indianexotica. If I like what I get, I’m a’gonna go for a sari. Now that I’ve thought about it, I have some other events coming up that would be great for wearing one.
Thanks for lighting the fire under me, everyone! (I especially enjoyed seeing the guys come in here and vote for saris. Nice to know that SOME men notice!)
Wow! Scarlett, that is gorgeous! So that’s what a salwar kameez is!
I am just lapping up this thread. I’ve loved anything Indian for twenty years. I have one sari from a shop near me, but I could not find the petticoat or blouse. Then…
“Slinky” was the magic word and I knew exactly what you meant. I love to travel with slinky combos and have several. Perfect! I don’t know why I didn’t think of it myself!
Emily your wedding pictures are beautiful and the saree looks very natural. Our coloring is almost the same but I’m one of those grammy types that y’all have been so encouraging about.
I live in a multi-cultural neighborhood and have wanted someway to make a “statement” about my appreciation of that. This is a great idea! I think that my granddaughters will like them too.
Just a bit of a hijack, but can any of you recommend good films set in India besides The Jewel in the Crown, A Passage to India, and Heat and Dust?
Namaste to all of you.
Very cool to see so many people who are interested in saris. I haven’t had the nerve yet to wear one here, but I’m promising one to myself as a reward for losing some weight. Thanks for all the info, emilyforce!
[movie hijack]
Zoe, are you interested mostly in all-English movies with an Indian setting, or would you mind stepping (at least partly) into the world of subtitles? Also, would you like to see colonial-era or modern storylines? If you don’t mind subtitles at least part of the time, I would highly recommend Lagaan (the length and style of which will give you a real taste of Bollywood-style movies; colonial-era setting), or else Mira Nair’s Monsoon Wedding (shorter film set in modern Delhi). Another movie not as good, but visually rather stunning, is Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, also directed by Mira Nair (pre-colonial, Mughal-era setting). I can also recommend some others (I’ve been on a real Bollywood kick this summer ), but they would be entirely in Hindi with English subtitles. Let me know if you’re interested and I’ll list some more titles.
[/movie hijack]
Ooh! An Indian movie thread! Anyone? Anyone?
emilyforce, there have been a few Indian movie threads in CS before. Unfortunately, I’m just about to run out for the day… I can start one this evening, unless someone wants to beat me to it!
That outfit is gorgeous.
I saw some episodes of the Mahabarata series, that was very enjoyable.
I think I might try a salwar kameez first, to gauge reactions and see how comfortable I am.
If I lived in an area that was multicultured, I wouldn’t be so hesitant. However, I’m smack in the Bible Belt (Oklahoma) and people here tend to be religious, conservative, white rednecks.