Maheshwari Muse : Handloom Kurta Fabric with Dupatta — Ivory & Charcoal

An unstitched two-piece set woven on the handlooms of Maheshwar, on the banks of the Narmada.

The kurta fabric is a soft ivory ground, lit through with a fine silk grid and scattered with small zari and charcoal butis placed by hand at the loom. It closes with a wide charcoal and gold zari border — the deep checked pattern that has been Maheshwar's signature since the looms were first set up here in the eighteenth century.

The dupatta carries the same story in a quieter register: a striped charcoal and zari border at either end, finished with hand-knotted tassels, and the barely-there texture of cotton and silk crossing each other.

Details

• Craft · Maheshwari handloom, pit-loom woven
• Origin · Maheshwar, Madhya Pradesh
  
• Supplied · Unstitched, ready to tailor
  
• Kurta fabric · 2.5 m
• Dupatta · 2.17

Wash care

First wash · Dry-clean recommended for the first wash to set the zari and stabilise the weave.
Thereafter · Hand wash separately in cold water with a mild liquid detergent. Do not soak beyond 5 minutes. Do not machine wash, bleach, or wring.
Zari · Keep perfume, deodorant, and hair spray off the zari — alcohol tarnishes it. Never scrub over the zari band.
Drying · Dry flat or on a padded line in the shade. Direct sun will dull the beige and yellow the ivory.
Ironing · Medium heat on the reverse side, with a cotton cloth over the zari.
Storage · Wrap in muslin, refold along a different line every few months so the zari does not crease along one point. Do not store in plastic.