HOW TO STITCH ANARKALI SUIT WITH PANELS

Anarkali suits have always remained in fashion. They are usually worn with gathering pants or churidhars. There are different patterns of anarkali depending on their cut and design. I have already done posts on how to stitch a basic anarkali suit , how to stitch anarkali suit with layers and in this post the method of stitching anarkali suit with panels is discussed. In this type of anarkali suit, mono color or multicolor panels are stitched just below the waist.

For the upper part

Construction

0 to 2 – 1/6 chest +1"

2 to 3 – 1/4 chest + 1" or 1 ¼ " or 1 ½”

0 to 4 – half shoulder

4 to 5 – 1/2"

0 to 6 – 1/6 round neck + 1/2”

0 to 7 - Back Neck depth (standard = 3”)

6 to 8 - Front Neck depth (standard = 6”)

0 to 9 – Waist length minus 2” (since anarkali has a high waist)

9 to 10- ¼ waist + 1” or 1 ¼” or 1 ½”

Method

For stitching the anarkali suit, take two fabrics one main cloth and one lining cloth. The main cloth can be chiffon, georgette, silk or cotton. The lining cloth should always be of the same colur as the main cloth.

Since the lower part has panels or kallis, the upper part and lower part of the main cloth have to be cut separately and then stitched together in the end. The lining cloth can be cut as an  A line kameez, 

First begin by measuring and noting down the body measurements. Then prepare a draft for the upper part on paper using the construction given above and cut on the marked lines. Keep the draft ready.

Now take the cloth, fold it in the reverse such that the two selve edges of the cloth are on top of each other. Then fold again such that the two ends are on top of each other. Now you will have 4 layers. Make sure that you are seeing the reverse part.

 

Place the draft on top of the cloth and mark the outline on the cloth using a chalk. Then leaving 1” extra cloth along the sides and ½” extra cloth along the neck, shoulder and armhole, cut the cloth. The front and back necks and arm holes have to be cut separately because their curves are different. Hence take care while cutting it. The shoulder line of all the four layers must be equal. For more details refer How to stitch a kameez.

After cutting the cloth for the upper part, the cloth for the lower part have to be cut. For this, thin pieces of cloth or kallis have to be cut and stitched to one another and finally stitched to the upper part.

For cutting the kallis or panels, first measure the total length of the dress and subtract the 0 to 9 measurement. Now you will get the length of each panel or kalli.

For example, if you want the length of the anarkali suit to be = 50” and 0 to 9 measurement = 12”, then length of each panel = 38”. You can have four or six panels for the front and back (i.e. total 8 or 12).

Here I will be discussing anarkali suit with 4 panels in front and back (total 8 panels)

For calculating the upper breadth and lower breadth of each kalli (panel), the following procedure has to be followed.

Upper breadth = waist/ (2 x 4)

Lower breadth = 3 x Upper breadth

For example, if waist = 24”, then each panel or kalli will have upper breadth = 3” and lower breadth = 9”.

Using this measurement cut 8 kallis (4 for the front and four for the back ) and leave ½” extra cloth on all sides for stitching allowance.

The best method of cutting the pieces is given below.

Once all the kallis are cut and ready, stitch them together and make sure to fold and stitch the extra cloth properly in the reverse such that the threads don’t come out. Give a stitch on top as well so that the kallis stand in place.

Stitch 4 kallis together and another four together. Stitch one set to the front side of the upper part and the other set to the back side of the upper part. 

Once done, you will have 2 main pieces, one for the front and another for the back. Then using the construction and method of the A line kameez, cut the lining cloth. Make sure that the total length of the lining cloth is same as that of the length of your anarkali top.

Now you will have in total 4 pieces, two for the front (main cloth and lining cloth) and two pieces for the back (main cloth and lining cloth). Stitch the two front pieces together at the shoulder line and the two back pieces at the shoulder line. Then stitch all the 4 pieces along the shoulder line and finish the neck . You can stitch a normal neck or a collar as shown in the image above. For this refer Stitching the neck for normal neck or how to stitch a collar for a neck with collar. Next attach the sleeves to the arm holes. Refer the construction for long sleeves for more details.

Once the sleeves are attached, start stitching the sides from the sleeve end. Stop till you reach the 10 measurement. The lower part has to be stitched separately at the sides since the lining cloth has A line pattern and the main cloth has panels or kallis. Once the sides are stitched, double fold the lining cloth 2” or 3" and stitch. The main cloth can be double folded ½” or a picot can be done. Four panel Anarkali suit is now ready. To stitch a churidhar, refer how to stitch a gathering pant or churidhar for its construction.

I have tried to explain the method of stitching this variety of anarkali suit as clearly as possible but making anarkali suit with kallis is quite complicated, hence it is advisable to use your discretion while you stitch. If you are a beginner it is recommended to start with stitching basic kameez or a basic anarkali suit before trying out this one.

The images are just a pictorial representation. Hence it might not be exact.

For more tutorials visit the dress designs page.