Chikankari, explained

Chikankari is a hand-embroidery tradition from Lucknow, several centuries old, worked traditionally in untwisted white thread on fine white cotton or muslin. You will also see it written as chikan work, and pieces described as lakhnavi — all the same tradition, named for the city.

For an Ottawa summer it is genuinely the best thing in the wardrobe. It is formal enough for a daytime wedding function and light enough to sit through one, which is a combination almost nothing else manages.

The stitches

Chikankari is not one stitch but a vocabulary of them, and a good piece uses several together. A few worth being able to recognise:

• Bakhiya — the shadow work, and the most characteristic of all. Worked on the reverse of the fabric so the thread shows through as a soft shadow from the front. If you turn a piece inside out and the back is more densely worked than the front, that is bakhiya, and it is a good sign.
• Phanda — tiny knotted dots, usually forming flower centres. Slow to work, and a marker of quality.
• Murri — a longer, rice-grain shaped version of phanda. Among the most labour-intensive stitches in the repertoire.
• Jaali — the net effect. Threads are teased apart with the needle rather than cut, creating a mesh. Genuine jaali has no cut threads on the reverse.
• Tepchi — a simple running stitch used to outline and fill. Fast, and what you see most of on inexpensive pieces.

A piece that is almost entirely tepchi is machine-friendly and cheap to produce. A piece with phanda, murri and real jaali took someone weeks.

Hand versus machine — how to actually tell

Most chikankari sold today is at least partly machine-embroidered, and there is nothing wrong with that as long as you know what you are buying and are not paying hand prices for it. Four checks, none of which require expertise:

Turn it over. This is the single most reliable test. Hand work has a reverse that is untidy but purposeful — knots, thread carried between motifs, and in the case of bakhiya, a denser back than front. Machine work has a flat, uniform reverse, often with a visible bobbin thread running in straight lines.

Look for variation. Compare the same motif in three places on the garment. Hand work varies slightly — a petal a fraction larger, a knot marginally off-centre. Machine work is identical every time. Perfect repetition is the tell.

Check the jaali. Real jaali is made by pushing warp and weft apart with the needle. Machine "jaali" is usually punched or cut, so you will see cut thread ends around the holes and the fabric feels weaker there.

Feel the weight of the ground fabric. Fine chikankari is worked on genuinely fine cotton, muslin or georgette because the shadow work depends on translucency. Heavy, opaque fabric with white embroidery on it is not really chikankari, whatever the label says.

For men

A white or cream chikankari kurta is the most underrated garment in men's Indian wear. It is unmistakably formal, it photographs far better than plain cotton because the texture catches light, and it is cool enough for a July function in a crowded hall — which is exactly where a silk kurta becomes a long evening.

Pair it with a churidar for a wedding function or a straight pajama for daytime. Tonal work — white on white, or cream on cream — reads more sophisticated than contrast thread. And the same fit rules apply as any kurta: the shoulder seam sits on the corner of the shoulder, and nothing else matters as much.

Looking after it

Chikankari is more robust than it looks, but it dislikes exactly three things: agitation, wringing, and strong detergent.

• Hand wash in cool water with a mild detergent. No machine, no matter how gentle the cycle.
• Never wring. Press the water out between your palms, or roll it in a towel.
• Dry flat in shade. Direct sun yellows white cotton over time.
• Iron on the reverse, slightly damp, on a medium setting. Ironing the face flattens the shadow work and it never quite recovers.
• Store folded with tissue rather than on a hanger — the weight of the embroidery pulls a garment out of shape over a season.

Treated that way, a good piece lasts a decade and softens as it ages, which is part of why people become attached to them.

What to look for when buying

Turn it inside out before anything else. Check three copies of the same motif for variation. Hold it up to the light and see whether the shadow work actually reads as shadow. And be clear with yourself about whether you are buying hand work or a machine piece — both are legitimate purchases, but only one is worth a hand price.