Preserving Silk Sarees- Suggestions Please

Hi there, can anyone give me tips preserving silk sarees . how can i make it last for many years without the zari getting darkened? and kindly give me suggestion to maintain it.

Hello sharonkavi,
In Cennai we have shops which do zari polishing & cold press. It is not harmful to the silk, but makes an old saree, liteally glitter. I can P M you the shop near Music Academy, if you P M me.
Love,
Chithra.

Hi

I live in US and i dont use my silk sarees here. whatever i bought for my marriage is sleeping in my cupboard in india, my mom used to say if we dont use silk sarees, then it will be spoiled as days passby esp in th folded area, so she used to tell me that even though u dont use it, just open the saree and fold it differently.

so wat to do if i am not using it, any other opinion.

thanks
san

Hi San,

I am just telling my experience about 'silk sarees'. I too struggled like you by keeping my 'pattu sarees' in my amma's house. After 18 years, (I never used them because we lived in North India for many years )my husband asked me to use those sarees in a different way.

Yes, he asked me to convert them as salvar and nighty. And he did when I was in India and sent it to me. Really it is a super idea and I asked him why you have not told this before.

Now I am wearing all my old pattu sarees, but in the form of salvar. It looks rich and in US also you can wear for small parties. In Saudi our Pakistani tailor made many models with those sarees.

I hope you can do if you want. Other wise, as your mother said refold the saree once in a while and just put them under fan. After some time keep them in the shelf.

Using 'soap seeds' is the best way to wash silk sarees.

Dear Krishnamma,

That's very good idea to convert saree into salwar. I never thought about it..I have so many pattu sarees keep thinking one day i can wear them but looks like that day will never come b'coz for any family big functions anyway end up buying new ones. I would like to know is a saree in enough for whole salwar including duppata.. if you have any models could you display it ...could you give me the idea where we can put the zari and what about rich pallu..
Thanks

Hi Tulasi,

Thanks ya, you liked my idea. One saree is enough for full salwar inclucing duppatta. I don’t know about you. I am fat and I am 5' 6" height. And my tailor stitched me with duppatta making some adjustment. Like small duppatta, small means width wise small. Lenth wise equal to other duppattas only.

Well, let me explain how to use 'pallu' if it is difficult to understand, let me try to put my salwars photo. OK?

1. Use the rich 'pallu' as duppatta by cutting it into two and joining one after one. Let me explain. Cut the pallu from the saree. It will be almost like rectangle. Say 52' by 72' and so on. you ask your tailor to cut the 52" into half and ask him to attach it with another piece. So half width of your saree will be the width of your duppatta and nearly 150" will be the length of your duppatta. Ok?
2. Now for 'salwar kameez' , that is tops of the set. you can ask your tailor to fix the zari bottom of the saree, on the end of your tops, hands, neck and of course for your pant bottom.
3. You can ask him to stitch your tops, by stitching the 'zari bottom of the saree' like a straight line from the neck to bottom of the top. It will be very nice and rich to see. When you are doing like that don’t put zari border on the bottom of the top. Just double the border of the saree and ask him to fix it from the top to bottom of your salwar's top. At this time have ' ப' neck. So that the border of the saree can be used with out waste.
4. Another type, ask the tailor to keep the border from shoulder to hand like a band.
5. Ask him to keep the full ‘pallu’ as front portion if you are having any design on that. So that you can display the design with out any strain. When we wear saree generally the ‘pallu’ design will go back. If we wear the saree like ‘Gujarat’s’, we can see and enjoy the design. Correct? so here you can ask him to keep the pallu as front portion of your tops.
6. If you want you can stitch, short tops and pant. For that you can see my another thread in Fashion forum, ‘Biggest collection of dress and jewellery for ladies’ you will get some ideas to make like pant and tops, out of your sarees. (including old ‘shiffon’ and binny silk sarees.)
7. I stitched 2 nighties with my plain pattu saree with out zari.
8. If your saree border is big, ask him to keep as it is for your hands.
9. You can make ‘pavadai and tops’ for small children and for teen agers, you can make ‘pavadi and blouse’ with same colour ‘davani’

I think this will help you. If you want any help more than this, just drop a mail.

Dear Krishnamma,
Thank you so much for your tips. will be waiting to see your salwar photos..

Hi Thulasi,

Then you have to wait for more than 2 months. Because they are in Madras, so I will post them after I reach India.

Hey Krishnaamma,
Can you please explain what is soap seeds?
Thanks

how do you get rid of a bad memory? Can someone tell me the easiest way. Also would like to know :1.how to keep silk sarees from splitting esp when you cant be airing all sarees? 2. what can be done to prevent small insects from eating the sarees?