Shopping for Kanjivaram silk sarees online. A quick and helpful guide.

Shopping online for Kanjivaram silk sarees is no easy task. Apart from having to choose from the many options available and picking the one you like, it is also challenging to verify the authenticity of the product without being able to touch and feel the fabric. However, we have come up with some tips which could help you make sure you are buying an authentic Kanjivaram silk saree.

Why is this important?

There are numerous sarees branded and sold as Kanjivaram silk sarees online. Most of them aren't made in Kanjivaram and a good number of them aren't even made up of pure silk. Hence knowing a good deal about what makes a genuine Kanjivaram silk saree is important if you are planning to buy one online. Here are quick ways you can verify if the saree that is listed as a Kanjivaram silk saree is actually genuine.

  1. Price:

    An original Kanjivaram silk saree is completely hand-woven and can take up to 10 days to weave. As you can imagine there is skilled labor involved which, along with the price of the high-quality silk and zari, increases the cost of the sari. If you see a Kanjivaram silk saree sold for an absurdly low price (say Rs 600, for example), you can be sure it is not an authentic product. The range for pure silk Kanjivarams made with pure zari starts from around Rs 8000/-.

    The range for Kanjivaram silk sarees made with artificial zari starts from around Rs 4000/-.

  2. Zari quality

    If the saree is branded as a pure zari silk saree, then it means that the zari should contain actual silver and gold. This again affects the price of the product as mentioned above. Pure zari is a silver wire twisted with silk and coated with gold. Try to get some information from the seller on the quality of zari to make sure that the money you spend is worth the product you are spending on

  3. Silk quality

    A Kanjivaram silk saree is always made out of 100 percent pure silk threads. If the saree is blended and not pure silk, it must be mentioned by the seller. Look for third-party certificates that exist to protect consumers. The one we suggest strongly is the “silk mark “run by the Silk Mark Organization of India. Authorized members are allowed to use pure silk labels for their pure silk sarees. You can always check to see if the seller is an authorized user of the silk mark by looking for the silk mark logo on the website or by asking the seller directly.

  4. Quality of weave

    Kanjivaram silk sarees are woven entirely by hand and have a high-quality weave and finish. Look at the detailed photos of the sari to make sure it is free from weaving defects. If detailed photos are not listed, ask the seller to provide them so you can make sure you are buying a defect-free silk saree.

  5. Paloo blouse attachment

    Most Kanjivaram silk sarees have the blouse attached to the paloo by means of threads. This is how the saree is when it arrives fresh from the loom.  Look for this in the photos of the saree as it signifies that the saree is fresh and hasn’t been tampered with.

  6. The fabric color

    A big portion of what makes a Kanjivaram silk saree is the color of the fabric. While the color can be conveyed to a certain extent through the photos, you can also use the description of the saree to make sure that the color you see in the pictures is the original color of the silk saree. Feel free to ask the seller to send you additional pictures in different lights to make sure the color is of your liking.