Kota Doria Dress Material Crimson Red Floral Vine

This unstitched two piece set kurta top and dupatta the translucent square check cotton handwoven in Kaithoon near Kota Rajasthan Over an ivory white ground a delicate crimson red floral creeper runs the length of the top its slender vines and small buds spreading into a light all over jaal the sheer dupatta echoes the red vine in a scattered airier repeat Look first at the weave not the embroidery genuine Kota Doria shows the khat a fine net of tiny woven squares built from alternating fine and thick cotton threads Because each square is set by hand at the loom the grid wanders by a whisker across the width a living irregularity a powerloom can never fake A machine made Kota prints a perfectly square check on flat often synthetic cloth and feels slippery and lifeless the handwoven original is dry crisp breathable and so light it seems to weigh nothing The red flowers are thread embroidered onto the surface the back reveals the stitch paths where a print would show only a flat mirror of the front A GI protected craft Kota Doria has been woven by the weaver community of Kaithoon for generations on simple pit looms Its open see through ground is the whole point it keeps the wearer cool in fierce heat while still draping with a crisp elegant fall Stitched into a straight kurta the red on white creeper reads as fresh and graceful equally at home at office festivities and daytime celebrations The sheer cotton stays cool through summer and the crimson on ivory palette pairs cleanly with gold white or oxidised silver