Pure linen saris start at Rs.8,500, and khadi and linen twisted yarn saris start at Rs.9,500

Linen 

 

Mumbai-based Anavila Misra graduated in knitwear design from Nift, New Delhi, in 2000 and started working on linen saris in 2009. “I was always keen to work with the linen yarn. I tried to work with weavers in Bengal to make a linen sari but it did not work. Then I sought out some weavers near Varanasi who were willing to experiment.” Misra explains that if linen yarn is loosely woven, it gives the fabric better drape and also has fewer wrinkles, making it a good material for saris. “Of course, we also do enzyme washes and use fabric softeners on the sari after it is woven.” It was only by the end of 2011 that the first linen sari really worked out in accordance with Misra’s specifications. “By October this year, my first collection of pure linen saris was showcased at the Sarees 2012 exhibition.” Currently, she is working on silk-linen saris, with a warp of silk yarn and a weft of linen yarn, and saris made from khadi and linen yarns twisted together.

 

Pure linen saris start at Rs.8,500, and khadi and linen twisted yarn saris start at Rs.9,500. Contact Misra at anavilamisra@gmail.com.