Khinkhwab Diaries

A guide to gifting a saree — how to choose the right Banarasi for a mother, sister, bride or friend, whatever the occasion.

A second life for an old saree — gentle, loving ways to revive, restyle and repurpose a Banarasi that has been in the family for years.

Silk first aid — what to do, and what never to do, the moment a saree meets a spill, from tea and turmeric to oil and ink.

How to store silk sarees in a humid climate — keeping zari bright and silk fresh against damp, mildew and monsoon, as we do in Singapore and Banaras.

What the Banarasi GI (Geographical Indication) tag means, why it exists, and how it protects both genuine Varanasi weaving and you as a buyer.

The karkhana, the khil’at and the flowering plant — how the Mughal court turned cloth into government, and gave the Banarasi its buti.

Thai mat mi, Khmer hol and pidan — the silk of Thailand and Cambodia, where the pattern is tied into the thread before weaving, a queen saved a craft, and...

The gul, the madder red and the bride’s camel trappings — the Turkmen carpet, a nomad’s entire household woven by hand, misnamed for a century after the market where it...

Kente, adinkra, adire and mud cloth — the crafts of West Africa, where cloth is woven in narrow strips and every pattern has a name that carries a proverb.

The crafts of Egypt, where the written history of cloth begins — royal linen woven fine as air, Coptic tapestry from the tombs, the inscribed tiraz that carried a ruler’s...

The kani shawl of Kashmir — two years on the loom, a hundred wooden bobbins, and a coded script the weavers chant aloud. How Europe lost its head over it,...

Mughal, Rajput, Nawabi, Deccani, Maratha — every Indian court had a cloth. A map of the kingdoms, and the textiles they left behind.