Steps of wearing a sari

Special features of sari

• Sari is a long piece of unstitched fabric that is wrapped around the waist and then draped over the shoulder. A typical sari can be up to nine yards (about eight meters) in length and may be made from a variety of materials, from plain cotton to silk embroidered with metallic gold.
• Saris are worn over a petticoat (called lehnga/ghagra in northern India and pavada/pavadai in the south), with a tight-fitting blouse called a choli, another staple of Indian apparel. Cholis are cropped and have a low neck, revealing the midriff and upper chest. The cropped design of the choli is just as well, for the voluminous folds of the sari can be stifling in the sultry South Asian weather. Because the traditional choli is worn without a bra, many come with padding or a soft, sewn-in brassiere for support. Office dress codes, however, prohibit cropped, sleeveless cholis; similarly, women in the armed forces, when wearing a sari uniform, don a half-sleeve shirt tucked in at the waist.
• The Sari, like so many other textiles, gives the lie to the hierarchical distinction made between fine arts and crafts. The approximate size of a sari is 47 by 216 inches. Although it is an untailored length of cloth, the fabric is highly structured and its design vocabulary very sophisticated. The main field of the sari is framed on three sides by a decorative frieze of flowering plants, figurative images or abstract symbols. The design, whether woven, embroidered, painted or block-printed, needs to maintain the proportion and balance between the actual field of the sari, the borders and the pallav. The pattern creates its own rhythm. For instance, the scattering of spot weft gold dots increase in the pallav for a denser, richer pattern and gradually and softly decrease on the actual ground of the sari.
• Jewelry is a big part of Indian apparel. Forehead ornaments, earrings, nose rings, and ankle bracelets are common for all women, while married women also wear toe rings.

Sari

The history of Sari

Sari (also spelled saree) is the traditional garment worn by many women in the Indian subcontinent. In India, women usually wear sari, even though there are also other options. There is ample evidence of the sari in the earliest examples of Indian art. Sculptures from the Gandhara, Mathura and Gupta schools (1st- 6th century AD), suggest that the sari in its earlier form was a briefer garment, with a veil, and usually no discernable bodice. Ancient Tamil poetry, such as the Silappadhikaram and the Kadambari by Banabhatta, describes women in exquisite drapery.

A charming folktale explains the origin of the Sari as follows: "The Sari, it is said, was born on the loom of a fanciful weaver. He dreamt of Woman. The shimmer of her tears. The drape of her tumbling hair. The colors of her many moods. The softness of her touch. All these he wove together. He couldn't stop. He wove for many yards. And when he was done, the story goes, he sat back and smiled and smiled and smiled". Indian myths often use weaving as a metaphor for the creation of the universe. The sutra or spun thread was the foundation, while the sutradhara (weaver) or holder of the thread was viewed as the architect or creator of the universe. The etymology of the word sari is from the Sanskrit word 'sati', which means strip of cloth. This evolved into the Prakrit 'sadi' and was later anglicised into sari. One ancient statue shows a man in a draped robe which some sari researchers believe to be a precursor of the sari.

A shiro-maku

This is a wedding kimono. It is called shiro-maku, shiro meaning white and maku meaning pure.

The functions and representations of kimono

Kimono is worn for both formal and informal occasions

• Often worn in weddings, graduations, festivals and the age ceremonies. Wrap the right side of the kimono over the body, then overlap it with the left side. Right on top of the left is only used to dress a corpse for burial.
• Its fabric reflects its formality: silk being formal and cotton being casual.
• Today, a Japanese woman usually owns only one kimono typically a furosode kimono which is worn for the coming of age ceremony on her 19th birthday. Women wear kimono when they attend traditional arts, such as a tea ceremony or ikebana class. For weddings, the complete bridal kimono and kimono apparel is usually rented. For funerals, both men and women wear plain black kimono. Kimono are also very rarely worn as every day clothing anymore. Occasionally, if you go to a small rural town in Japan or one of small islands like Okinawa, you will see the traditional every day kimono worn by elders.

Kimono reflects the marital status

• Similar to the hanbok, kimonos also reflects the marital staus of women. Young unmarried women wear kimono with long sleeves called furisode. The sleeve length can vary from slightly long to very long reaching the ankle. Young women's kimono are very vibrant, colorful and rich with patterns. Older women or those who have married, wear a kimono with short sleeves called tomesode. The kimono designs are smaller or solid and the colors are more subdued.

It embodies the culture and the image of the nation

• The kimono has had a long history in Japan and the kimono has changed over time to reflect the society and culture of that period. The Japanese word kimono means "something one wears" and they are the traditional garments of Japan. Originally, the word kimono was used for all types of clothing, but eventually, it came to refer specifically to the full-length garment also known as the naga-gi, meaning "long-wear", that is still worn today on special occasions by women, men, and children. It is often known as wafuku which means "Japanese clothes". Traditionally, the art of putting on a kimono was passed from mother to daughter. It reflects its culture of passing valuable things to the next generation. The image of the nation is also reflected in its national costume. Similar to hanbok, kimono also displays beauty, gracefulness and modesty. It is still highly valued and appreciated in the Japanese society.
  

The different parts of a kimono

Examples of kimonos

These are two young ladies wearing kimonos. Pay attention to the sleeves. They can be long to the wrist (the left one) or even to the ankle (the right one). The colours are often more vibrant.

This is a married woman wearing a kimono with shorter sleeves and more subdued colour.
















This is a pair of geta sandals.