When I got married in Nov 2022, the whole focus was to ensure that my wedding lehenga has to be handloom & Hand embroidered. This not only ensures the life of my lehenga but also the fact that all the people that I work with towards building Sandook, everyone gets involved and becomes a part of my big day. The sheer joy on their face when they saw me at the reception stage was way overwhelming.
The initial ideation process : It started with lots of research and observation. I went to Banaras in June 2022 and spoke to my weavers about this very specific crimson red that I always wanted my lehenga to be. We have usually seen power loom raw silks but we were very much focused to make this fabric in a yarn died raw silk. We then procured the yarn which is certified with silk mark and began on the journey. It took around 25 days start to finish to dye and weave 8.5 meters of Raw silk. When I received it from my unit, I couldn't believe my eyes! Such a perfect red!! And so light weight! I started to drape the fabric around to see the fall and how it was looking on me. I was delighted. And then began the process of ideating the embroidery design.
Lehenga : I was sure of the fact that I wanted a light weight lehenga that doesn't tire me off wearing it. And I wanted our story to be the highlight but at the same time not so much so that all details are seen by everyone. So I decided to go with a heavier blouse that can be definitely reused & paired up with my other saris and skirts as well. I decided to keep the flare at 12 Kalis and not exceed to give a nice silhouette according to my body structure. I and my karigaar head - Mafiz bhai then started to work on every single kali and its design. We procured material and started to sample. Once we were happy, we started with our first kali. All the 12 kalis have small tit-bits of our lovestory - How we met, our favorite eatery, our first date, the day our parents agreed to our union etc!
A total of 8 karigaars worked for 430+ hours using sequins, Zardosi/Dabka and cutwork to ensure we have the most beautiful but lightweight lehenga possible.
Dupatta : And then came our highlight : The dupatta. This dupatta is a handwoven organza with cutwork which actually came to me as a sample for sari in April 2022. Fortunately it was 2.5 m and I absolutely loved it. The color also was a perfect match. It is actually a divine coincidence that how well the lehenga and dupatta complimented each other. I wanted to add little drama to the already stunning dupatta so we went ahead and added single sequins to highlight and scallops to give it that perfect balance.
When I first tried out the lehenga, I was in tears!! We worked on this for 5 months! I wont be exaggerating If I say that this lehenga is probably the best part of my wedding. I plan to reuse and rewear this as much as I can and I am sure that every time I wear it, I am going to be so proud of this creation!
If you would like to wear something so unique and so personalized, please get in touch with us via our Instagram/Fb page or drop us an email at info@sandookcollective.com and I will personally get in touch with you and help you turn your dreams into reality!
Love & light,
Pallavi
