Category: Fabindia

Block-printed textiles

Cold Cream 'n' Roses

The June-July 2006 issue of Domino had a feature on creating cushions and pillows with Indian block printed textiles. Its palette of white with pops of red used fabrics from Kerry Cassill and Les Indiennes.

The process of block printing, from creating the designs to transferring the design onto wood to carving the wood blocks to printing, is shown in a photo essay on the eSamskriti web site.

I have a duvet cover and reversible coverlet (the back side is a striped fabric) from John Robshaw in brown and blue on a natural background. It’s pricey, and my husband, who is a native of India, didn’t want to tell his mother how much he paid for it – she’d argue that he could get it much cheaper in India.


Block printed textiles from Pomegranates,
featured with Jaipur blue pottery
Visit the photo essay on Jaipur blue pottery making on esamskrati

Other sources for Indian block printed textiles include FabIndia (mentioned previously), Anokhi, and Pomegranates, a store located in Warrenton, Virginia, outside of Washington, DC. Wendy, who owns Pomegranates, sources her bedding and curtain panels directly from India; in addition, she sells select items from John Robshaw (including crib sets) and select apparel from Anokhi.

Peter Dunham is an LA-based interior designer who also sources blockprinted textiles from India. See his work for Jennifer Garner’s home in the fall/winter 2007 issue of Vogue Living.

Links for Kerry Cassill, John Robshaw, and FabIndia may be found on our Textiles page. Links for Les Indiennes, Anokhi, Pomegranates, and Peter Dunham may be found via My Web.

Clothes Shopping in India

Cold Cream 'n' Roses4 Comments

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I have twice (1, 2) made reference to our layover at Heathrow Airport. My husband and I were en route from India, where we visited his family.

While the sari is the dress most commonly associated with India, younger women are opting for the salwar kameez, which allows for greater mobility. A salwar kameez outfit consists of the kameez, a tunic; the salwar, a pair of loose pants (almost like a harem pant); and a dupatta, a long scarf or shawl. Sometimes, a tight-fitting pant called a churidar is substituted for the salwar.


Salwar kameez

More recently, young women in India have taken to wearing a kurta or short kameez over jeans or other western-style pants. As my niece noted, this outfit has become the working woman’s uniform.

Salwar kameez are typically sold as an entire outfit; however, department stores in India such as Pantaloons and Westside sell the individual pieces as separates. As I was frustrated in my search for simple cotton kurtas in the U.S., I picked up a couple of kurtas at Westside.

According to my niece, tailors can sew custom kurtas at a nominal price. At the upper end of the price scale is Fabindia, which does ship outside of India.