Kanakavalli's August pick for The Beautiful Drape is a classic kanjivaram bringing together some of the craft's most loved geometric and figurative elements. The delightful play on colour emphasises the elegant drama of the layout.
The body of the kanjivaram features checks or kattam woven in an extra warp and extra weft technique. The checks enclose benaras manga, paisleys in a twill-textured weave. The contrast coloured borders are embellished with two rows composed of two types of manga - one woven with wavy neli lines that resemble the traditional toe-ring and the other woven in a benaras twill design. Alongside these paisleys are pearl-like dotted muthu lines, separated by a band of silk and bhugodi moggu (triangle-shaped buds).
The pallu, woven in the laborious benth technique, features bambaram moggu (inspired by the tradition spinning top), muthu lines, benaras manga and neli manga. Between two bands of these classic elements is a silk band featuring annam motifs; the thogai or tail of the bird shaped like a paisley.
This kanjivaram has a beautiful simplicity; it is at once classic with a touch of the contemporary. The sari, available in multiple colourways features zari with a composition of 0.3% gold and 24-26% silver.