The craft

Chikankari is white cotton thread worked into the cloth by hand. Mukesh - also called mukaish or badla - is a flattened metal strip pushed through the fabric and twisted flat with a fingernail, one point at a time. Our pieces carry both.

Because the strip is metal rather than thread, it does not shine evenly. It flickers. A single dupatta can carry several thousand points, and no two catch the light at the same moment.

Our work is made in Bahawalpur, with the families who have kept the technique alive there. A shirt panel takes days of handwork. There is no machine substitute for either stitch.

Wash cold by hand, or dry clean. Do not wring the mukesh. Store folded with the metalwork facing in.