Style problems Indian girls face

Anvita

Hi Everyone,

I thought I would start a thread to discuss the most common dressing issues Indian women face. Listing out some of mine:

1. When i wear a sleeveless kurti, the arm holes are so big that my straps, band and cups show... its really difficult to conceal as even a cami doesnt help.

2. I can never keep the saree pleats together for long periods of time. Wearing it is like a constant nip and tuck every 30 mins. Arrrghhhh!

3. Wearing low neck tops or kurtis means having to take a dupatta. So frustrating! I am at a loss in handling it.

Would love to hear some tips on the above and some of your problems too!

8 years ago

Dressing

23 replies

Latest reply was from Ankita

catgirl

Veteran

Mine is tying my drawstring tight enough to keep my pants up! No matter how much I cinch they always get too loose. Same with a petticoat unless I cut off my circulation.

Also for me blouse sleeves are always too tight and no tailor can understand I want a little give so I can move my arms!

8 years ago

Ankita

(website)

Active Member

Haha...This is an interesting post!
@Anvita I can understand where you're coming from....somehow sleeveless clothes give me the same trouble, the arm holes are either too large or so small that it bites into the skin.
I usually take my tops to a tailor and ask him to cinch in cloth at the shoulder seam (for clothes where the arm holes are big) and that fixes the problem. The length will perhaps shorten by an inch, but you no longer will have anything peeping out of the kurti.... I suggest you give it a try once
For #2, i ALWAYS hold saree pleats together with a big pin (baby nappy pins are GREAT for this) and that ensures that the pleats never come undone! When you tuck pleats in, pin them from the inside, so that ways it won't show
Once again, with low neck tops i find that though they are the most flattering on me, sometimes when I bend you can pretty much see everything I've got! For that I'll usually either wear a pretty bra-let inside or once again have my tailor take it up an inch at the shoulder to solve the problem.

Hope this helps!

@alaskagirl: your comment made me laugh! My mum always taught me to do a double knot/tie for drawstrings and petticoats and it does help keep them from falling off, but i know what you mean by 'cutting-off-circulation'!

8 years ago

Anvita

Active Member

@alaskagirl: I hear you sister! I hate those drawstring petticoats! I ask my tailor to make them with elastic.. like leggings.. SOOOO much more comfy.

@Ankita: Thanks for sharing your views! Quite useful i must say your tips are. I will try them out. Your point regarding bending was a bit to risque for me! :-P... I prefer to hide my cleavage rather than show it (I am an A cup.. So not much to show..:-P).. But will look around for some sexy bra-lets or the shoulder idea!

To both of you: I have a peculiar issue. No matter what i wear I cannot get rid of those ugly VPLs in my trousers to work (I like fitting trousers). Any suggestions?

8 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

VERY interesting. I loved hearing about the challenges with the Indian clothes. Fun thread.

My challenges are finding comfy and fab looking footwear, and cuts that are narrow enough to fit my slight frame with sufficient length. But with a little perseverance and patience, I do just fine. I'm not complaining.

8 years ago

Joy

Veteran

Anvita, about the pesky VPLs; you could wear sized up thigh length Spanx or go Commando

8 years ago

Anvita

Active Member

@Angie: Dont even get me started on footwear... I wear a size 7 Indian... Not very common for women here.. its a nightmare finding footwear in the styles i like!

@Joy: Commando sound interesting.. Never tried it with trousers but ill give a whirl!

On another point, I recently got my first pair of stick on bras! Wow what freedom they are!

8 years ago

elpgal

Veteran

I never wear sarees for exactly this reason. I am curious - do those pre-stitched sarees work for anyone?

8 years ago

JAileen

Veteran

For ties that get too loose, I read somewhere to loop the laces twice initially, instead of just once, and that helps lock the laces. In the picture, the shoe on the left has one loop, which is the usual way, and the one on the right has two loops. After this, tie as usual. They won't come untied as easily. BTW, these are my husband's shoes - my Salomons have a quick laces! I have done this before and it works.

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8 years ago

gradfashionista

(website)

Veteran

Pre-stitched saris, they work! You can still get a partially stitched one, if you want more flexibility in how you fold the pleats.
For lower cut tops, you could try a cami bra underneath. I think Natori makes one in neutral lace colors.

8 years ago

elpgal

Veteran

GF, Interesting!

I can't visualize how they are put together. Is it just a saree with the pleats stitched together on top of a petticoat? Do you wear it like a skirt with the front pallu attached? Can it accomodate changes in weight around the waist?

8 years ago

deb

Veteran

Such an interesting conversation. I need pictures though because I do not understand what garment piece is called what. Love learning stuff like this.

8 years ago

catgirl

Veteran

My prestitched sari works but doesn't look particularly good quality. The waist is elastic and the pleats are stitched down at the top. The pallu is loose to arrange as wished - sort of like its attached to a sari skirt. I may have one of my own saris made into a prestitched one.

8 years ago

Nebraskim

Veteran

Slightly off track but are you offended when non-Indian women wear Indian clothing? Is it cultural misappropriation? I can see how some ways of wearing sari, etc., could be almost considered mocking the culture, sort of like how some Asian people get really worked up over Katy Perry wearing a kimono or non Native Americans appropriating Navajo patterns. But if the garments are worn respectfully, is it OK or always offensive? To me, it would be offensive to wear them as Halloween costumes or with mocking make-up. Sorry if even my question is offensive. I think saris are beautiful.

8 years ago

catgirl

Veteran

I am not offended at all - I have lent several friends salwar kameez and saris for occasions. I don't think it's appropriate as a Halloween costume, but as a substitute for a dress or gown, absolutely! I do get annoyed with people like Madonna who appropriate everything in sight, which gets tiresome.

8 years ago

elpgal

Veteran

Una, thanks for the info. I will have to look into this more. I have several sarees sitting unused for the past several years. I take it that the conversion from regular to pre-stitched will work only for the finer fabrics and not the heavier silks?

Nebraskakim, I take no offense at others wearing sarees. I have bought several friends sarees from India. Mad props to anyone who can manage all those pleats!

8 years ago

Anvita

Active Member

Although I have issues when I wear a saree, i dont like the shape that comes with the prestitched saree. I feel my shape is better looking in hte one I wrap myself!

@Nebraskim: No way! Why would we be offended? My personal opinion is that the saree is one the most beautiful garments any woman could wear. Its sensual and non-provocative at the same time. The more the merrier! :-).. Hopwever as a holloween costume, it would be in bad taste. Also the so called Indian porn that they shoot in the US (yes I have seen it.. *gasp*).. That could be offensive too!

@GF: I researched the cami bra you suggested. Looks like it might suit my purpose!

8 years ago

Nebraskim

Veteran

Thanks for your kind answers. I think saris are gorgeous but would hesitate to wear them because I'm not Indian and I would not want to be disrespectful of the beautiful cultural significance of those garments. I'm actually half Japanese (and the other half is Scots-Irish) so my clothing heritage would be a tartan kimono.

8 years ago

Anvita

Active Member

@kim: Half Japanese? That is so awesome! I stayed in Japan for a year.. Loved the place! Japan is the fashion capital of the world i would say. So many gorgeous women in even more gorgeous clothes!

8 years ago

Roxanna

Veteran

My fashion gripe with Indian clothes is slightly different...I wear them mostly for weddings and to mosque on big days, so they have to be pretty dressy, which can run me in the $500-600 range. But because I live in Canada, my Indian clothes wear is generally limited to June - October, so my cost per wear skyrockets. I have mitigated the problem to buying very few new pieces and wearing them to every occasion I can, but truth be told I wear more western pieces now as they are more versatile. Anyone else have this problem?

8 years ago

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

I adore Indian clothes. If we had to pick one type to wear forever more that would be my choice. I feel like there are millions of options far as fabric, tops and bottoms combinations, and really, so comfortable despite the issues pointed out here! I've worn my anarkali with a denim jacket and ballet flats.

8 years ago

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

Ok, but I'll concede the dupatta requires a certain flair. You have to channel your inner Baliwood starlet.

8 years ago

Anvita

Active Member

@Roxanna: Not in India we dont since we wear a lot of Indian clothes. .. But I can understand your issue.

@Jenava: Dupattas are fail!

@All: Any embarrassing clothing moments anyone want to share?

8 years ago

Ankita

(website)

Active Member

I noticed Deb in the comments said she'd like to learn more but doesn't know what garment piece is called what or what it looks like...hope this images help you Deb!

#1 is a saree.
#2 you can see the same saree, and the blouse/top peeking through in the image on the extreme right.
#3 is what we call a petticoat. It's basically like a floor length skirt that you tie using a drawstring around your waist (really tightly) and this is what holds the saree pleats together. You drape the saree around this and then tuck the pleats in. See #4
#4 these are how pleats are made at the front of a saree. The part that looks like a curtain (for the lack of a better word!) is the pleat.
#5 is a suit or salwar kameez. So there's a kurti/kameez (the top), the salwar (the bottom or what we also call slacks or leggings) and then the dupatta, which is the long stole kind of thing over her shoulder in the pic.

Hope this helped you understand a bit

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8 years ago

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