Anarkali suits seem to be everyone’s favourite for the festive and wedding season. From celebrities wearing designer anarkali dresses to lay women like us, none of us can get enough of this opulent trend. While Anarkalis come in several designs and patterns, the ones with borders are timeless and quite a hit. If you’re planning to wear an anarkali this Diwali, here’s how you can choose the perfect anarkali border to make a dazzling outfit.
Why use an anarkali border?
While you can opt for embroidery, lace and other adornment to enhance your anarkali suits, borders are the latest and most enhancing trend. Designer Aditi Holani says, “Borders enhance the otherwise tonal kalis joined together.”
“Borders add an interesting twist to your anarkali outfit. They highlight the hem and provide visual and physical weight to the overwhelming flounced silhouette of the anarkali,” says designer Aniket Satam elaborating on the use of borders. He adds, “Borders also function as a height lengthening element in the design and gives a break from the monotony of extra long flounce and flare.”
Things to keep in mind while choosing an anarkali border
The border you choose can make or break a design as it can overpower and kill the look if you go wrong with it. Things like length, fabric and design of the anarkali play an important role while choosing the right border for your outfit.
Aniket says, “Maintaining the rhythmic balance of an outfit is an essential factor. Calf length anarkali should be finished with simple mirco borders. For floor length anarkalis, dress it up using different borders which are eight to 10 inches broad.”
“If your anarkali’s flare starts from the shoulder, you can opt for a heavy border,” says Aditi.
Designer Pawan Sachdeva explains how to use borders on different fabrics and colours. He says, “If the fabric of your anarkali is very delicate (such as chiffon), then stay away from heavily embroidered borders.” He adds, “If your outfit has too much work on it, opt for thin and delicate borders. Lastly, if the colour of the suit is too jazzy and vibrant, use a border that is subtle and vice versa.”
Borders according to your body type
Just like there are different patterns of Anarkalis for different body types, one border doesn’t work for all. Aniket tells us what border you should choose for your body type –
Petite: Women with a petite frame should sport bright and sleek styles. Avoid bold and broad anarkali borders as they will overpower the entire look. Pretty and dainty patterns, delicate cutwork and feminine textures work best for the petite body type.
Tall: Tall women are blessed as this is the best body type to sport an anarkali. A tall frame permits you to experiment with bold and broad borders. You can also fabric block and colour block your anarkali with interesting borders using graphic geometrics and bright Indian patterns such as gota, Kutch work and bright brocades.
Slim: If your body type is slim, avoid anything too fragile and delicate. Borders used in gradation and geometric pattern work well for this body type. Use similar borders on your sleeves as well.
Plump: Anarkalis are not a good option for women who are plump. But, if you still want to wear them, experiment with asymmetrical hems and uneven flare as it add lightness to the design. Avoid under bust cut and opt for the shoulder panel variety.
Trends in anarkali border designs
“Traditional South Indian karvat style woven varieties are quite haute this season”, says Aniket. Authentic Paithani and Karnataki temple borders also look great. Rose gold and copper finished borders are trendy this season, more than the regular gold and silver. “Borders in neon and bright colours such as orange, red, green, gold and silver with zari embroidery, kundan work and thread work are quite a hit this season,” concludes Sachdeva.
What to avoid
You can sometimes go terribly wrong with borders. Hence, it’s important that you avoid making certain mistakes. Holani says, “You need to keep in mind your body type before picking borders. Shorter frames should never opt for over-the-top or broad borders.” Borders can horizontally break the outfit into lengths and make one look shorter and larger. Aniket says, “Play with textures of the same tonal colour family and don’t be afraid to mix gold with silver, black with brown and shine with matt.” “Avoid pairing extremely contrasting colour borders with your suit,” says Sachdeva.
Courtesy: Idiva.com
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