Dramatic Bohemian Earrings Sari Silk, Leather and African Tribal Beads

Sari Silk

The word “sari” or “saree” is believed to be derived from a Sanskrit word meaning “strip of cloth”. It originally formed part of a three-piece costume consisting of a piece of cloth draped as a lower garment, a chest band, and another piece of cloth worn over the shoulder and used to cover the head.

Sculptured reliefs from the 2nd century BC show men and women with unclothed upper bodies wearing the sari wrapped around their hips and drawn between the legs in such a fashion as to form a series of folds down the front.

There was no major change in the costume until the 12th century, when the Muslims conquered north and central India and insisted that the body be covered. Hindu women wear the sari over a short blouse and a petticoat into which it is folded and tucked at the waist to form a long skirt.

Nowadays sari is the women’s outerwear of the Indian subcontinent.

Saris are worn on a daily basis in India, usually in especial occasions. There are Sunday sarees, party sarees, wedding sarees, funeral sarees, etc.  Girls typically start wearing a sari when they are at least 16 years old or older.

Sari silk then, is a fabric made in India from recycled hand-spun silk leftover from sari making process. Rather than throwing out the extra scraps of the beautiful unused silk, sari manufactures have started sending their production “waste” to co-ops who hand-spin the raw silk into new spools of colorful yarn.

The recycled sari silk consists in a piece of often brightly colored, frequently embroidered, silk, cotton, or, in recent years, synthetic cloth five to seven yards long or 100 grams of yarn.  The colorful material is used for endless crafting possibilities from rugs and clothing to jewelry.