Greyish Brown Handloom Maheshwari Silk Saree with Black Lotus Buti Pallu | Petal

A greyish brown body, scattered sparsely with a small flower buti, runs into a black pallu carried on larger lotus buti. It has a wide golden zari border down one edge, with zari stripes carried across the pallu.

Specification

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  Total length: 6.3–6.5 m, including the attached blouse piece


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  Width: 45–46 inches


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  Blouse piece: 80–90 cm long, 45–46 inches wide, attached and included in the price


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  Weight: 350–360 g, measured in-house


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  GSM: 44–46, measured in-house


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  Body: semi-sheer — wear it over a petticoat


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  Drape: soft, holds its pleats, and stays soft after the first clean


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  Loom: pit loom, weft inserted by hand


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  Patterning: dobby-set on body, border and pallu


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  Material: Maheshwari silk


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  Woven in: Maheshwar, Khargone district, Madhya Pradesh


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  Country of origin: India


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  Net quantity: one saree with attached blouse piece


• 
  Care: dry clean only

What arrives

An unstitched drape with an unstitched blouse piece in contrasting black, attached to the saree and included in the price. Both are unstitched fabric rather than a made-up garment. It arrives finished: pallu tassels (kuchu) tied, selvedge and edges finished, and a pre-dispatch check completed on the piece before it leaves us. Fall, pico and edge finishing are not done before dispatch, but we do them on request.

How it is woven

It is woven on a pit loom, with the weft going in by hand pick by pick, and the buti and the border set on a dobby — body, border and pallu alike. Nothing we sell is machine-woven, and the weaver confirms it piece by piece. It is woven by the master-weaver households of Mominpura, in Maheshwar. The Handloom Mark is held for this cloth, with the registration on record. Where the weave runs a little uneven, that is the hand at work rather than a fault in the cloth.

The bugdi border

The border is a bugdi: the woven border design reads the same on both faces of the cloth. You can turn the edge over and see it for yourself.

How it feels and how it falls

At 350–360 g and 44–46 GSM, both measured here rather than taken from a supplier sheet, it is featherlight in the hand. The body is semi-sheer, so wear it over a petticoat. The drape is soft, holds its pleats through a long day, and does not stiffen or go limp after the first clean.

Wearing it

Made for festivals, festive evenings and formal occasions, and weddings and receptions where you are a guest.

Care and storage

1. Professional dry clean only. Home washing is not recommended.


2. Air-dry in the shade, without wringing.


3. Iron on low to medium heat, inside out, under a cotton press cloth.


4. Store wrapped in breathable cotton or muslin, in a cool dark cupboard.


5. Refold every 3–6 months so the same creases do not set.

Followed as written, this routine is also what looks after the zari border. The cloth is colour fast on wash and rub testing in our range.

Colour

Screens and lighting render colour differently, so the greyish brown you see on this page may not be an exact match for the cloth in hand. If the shade you receive does not match, we will exchange it; the conditions are set out in the FAQ.

Dispatch and delivery

Held in stock rather than made to order. About half of all orders are dispatched the next working day and most within 2–3 days, with delivery in 3–7 days for most orders inside India.

The looms in Maheshwar are pit looms, set into the ground, and this drape came off one of them in Khargone district, Madhya Pradesh. The weft goes in by hand, pick by pick, and a dobby lifts the threads that set the small buti across the greyish brown body and the larger lotus buti over the black pallu.

This is a bugdi border — the woven design reads the same on both faces. Turn the edge back at the pleats and the border still reads as it should. That property belongs to the border, and it is the detail a wearer notices first when the edge turns back.

We weigh these ourselves: 350–360 g, 44–46 GSM. That is what featherlight means in numbers rather than adjectives. Minor irregularities are characteristic of hand weaving and are part of what you are buying, not a defect in it. It is a family tradition, passed along at the loom itself.

Exchange: *Easy exchange is available within 3 days of receiving the product.
*No exchanges on home decor items.
*Unboxing video is required.

Return: *Only for damaged/wrong products.
*Unboxing video required.
Learn More

1. What exactly do I receive?
One handwoven Maheshwari silk saree, 6.3-6.5 m in total length and 45-46 inches wide, with an 80-90 cm blouse piece attached to it and included in the price. Both are unstitched fabric. It arrives finished: pallu tassels (kuchu) tied, selvedge and edges finished, and a pre-dispatch check completed. Net quantity is one saree with attached blouse piece; country of origin India.

2. Is the saree stitched or unstitched?
Unstitched. It is a drape rather than a pre-stitched or pre-draped saree, and the piece that comes with it is unstitched fabric rather than a made-up blouse. Fall, pico and edge finishing are not done before dispatch, but we do them on request.

3. What colour is the blouse fabric on this piece?
It is a contrast piece in black, set against the saree rather than matching it.

4. How do I know it is handwoven?
It is woven on a pit loom with the weft inserted by hand, and the buti and border are dobby-set on body, border and pallu. The Handloom Mark is held with the registration on record, the weaver confirms each piece, and nothing we sell is machine-woven. It is woven by master weaver Aafreen and the master-weaver households of Mominpura, in Maheshwar, Khargone district, Madhya Pradesh.

5. What does bugdi mean?
It describes the border. The woven border design reads the same on both faces of the cloth, so it holds wherever the edge turns back. You can check it yourself by turning the edge over.

6. Is it see-through? What do I wear under it?
The body is semi-sheer, so wear it over a petticoat. That is the trade-off for the weight: 350-360 g at 44-46 GSM, measured in-house rather than estimated, which is what makes the saree light enough to wear through a long evening.

7. Will the colour run?
The cloth is colour fast on wash and rub testing in our range. If a piece ever does disappoint on colour, the exchange route below applies.

8. What if the shade I receive does not match the photograph?
Screens and lighting render colour differently, so the greyish brown on this page may not be an exact match for the cloth in daylight. If the shade you receive does not match, we will exchange it, and the same applies if you are dissatisfied with the quality.

9. What is the return and exchange window?
Returns and exchanges are accepted within 2 days, on the condition that the piece is unused, with tags intact and in its original packaging. The exchange route covers colour mismatch and dissatisfaction with quality within that window.

10. How do I wash and store it?
Professional dry clean only; home washing is not recommended. Air-dry in the shade without wringing, iron on low to medium heat inside out under a cotton press cloth, store it wrapped in breathable cotton or muslin in a cool dark cupboard, and refold it every 3-6 months so the same creases do not set. That storage routine is also what looks after the zari border.

11. Which occasions does it suit?
It is made for festivals, festive evenings and formal occasions, and weddings and receptions where you are a guest.

12. What do buta, buti and zari mean, and what is a lotus buti?
Buta is the larger woven motif and buti the smaller one; you will see them written butta, butti or booti elsewhere, but they are the same motif. A lotus buti is that motif worked in the shape of a lotus. Zari, sometimes written jari, is the metallic-look thread used for the border, the pallu and the motif work. A double design border is two parallel border designs on one edge, and a Ganga Jamuna border is two borders in different colours. On this piece the buti on the greyish brown body is small and sparse, and the lotus buti on the black pallu are larger and closer together.

13. What blouse works with it?
The contrast fabric that comes with the saree takes a plain fitted blouse well, and a boat neck or a three-quarter sleeve keeps the emphasis on the pallu. If you would rather match the body than contrast it, any blouse in the greyish brown family will sit comfortably against the drape.

14. When will it dispatch, and how long will it last?
It is held in stock rather than made to order, so about half of orders are dispatched next day and most within 2-3 days, with delivery in 3-7 days for most orders inside India. Free shipping and Cash on Delivery are available, and we ship worldwide, charged on actuals outside India. Cared for as instructed, the saree is durable enough for repeated wear and to be passed on. Where the weave runs a little uneven, that is the hand at work rather than a fault in the cloth.