Fashionista 2020

Lucknow Chikan Saree

Chikan is a traditional embroidery style from the State of Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow, India. Believed to have been introduced by Nur Jehan, the wife of Mughal emperor Jahangir.  It is one of Lucknow’s best known textile decoration styles.

Chikan embroidery is mostly done on fabrics like cotton, semi-georgette, pure-georgette, crepe, chiffon, silk and any other fabric which is light and which highlights the embroidery. The fabric cannot be too thick or hard, else the embroidery needle won’t pierce it. The embroiderer stitches the pattern, and the finished piece is carefully washed to remove all traces of the printed pattern. The pattern and effects created depend on the stitches and the thicknesses of the threads used.