Weaving in the summer

As summer creeps in much earlier than expected, the city is opening its doors to fabric exhibitions that will bring in the much awaited cottons. Happening once again is the largely publicised Weaves, a fabrics exhibition of cotton and silk. With a collection ranging from dress materials to ready-made kurtas and linens like bedsheets, cushion covers and so on, the exhibition has something for everyone. The materials are a mix of silk and cotton besides the usual varieties of silk - Kanchi, Chanderi, Banarasi, Uppada. However, the latest fashion trend seems to be wearing fabric that is sico - a mix of silk and cotton. Besides being light and breezy to wear, the fabric is easy to maintain yet gives that fashionable glint of silk.The stalls house materials from almost every state in the country, which include West Bengal, Orissa, Chandigarh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan among others, besides of course, our own Andhra Pradesh.The designs are a motley mix of brocades, uppada, pochampally, gadwal and maheswari embellished on stoles, sarees, dress materials and kurtas. The sarees begin at `5000 and go up till `20,000, depending on the amount of zari on the saree. In anticipation of the wedding season, many stalls have wedding collections and the general theme of the exhibition are shades of red and pink.There is also a large collection of Benaras brocades ranging from `1350 to close to `4000. Hyderabad’s specialty - the Himroo fabric can also be found. Bedsheets and pillow covers are mostly featured in stalls from Rajasthan and West Bengal. With single pillow covers priced at `100 a piece, the range goes up to `3000 for a double bed, block-printed bed spread.  Weaving is perhaps the oldest form of cottage industry in India. The exhibition Weaves is an effort to promote the handloom. Organised by Revathi Creative Communications, the expo will be on till March 6 at the Imperial Gardens on Sikh Village road, from 11 am to 9 pm.