Edit No. 02 · Aligarh

The Aligarh Edit

Patti ka kaam — appliqué, cut and hemmed by hand

12 pieces · The craft behind the Edit

Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh

Patti ka kaam — the art of the cut

In Aligarh, embroidery is not always made with thread alone. In patti ka kaam — appliqué — the motif is cut from cloth: a petal, a leaf, a curl of vine, each shaped by hand with scissors and judged by eye.

The raw edge of every piece is turned under and hemmed onto the base fabric with stitches so small they almost disappear. What remains reads like a drawing in fabric: crisp silhouettes, soft layers, and the slight relief of cloth laid on cloth.

Where Chikankari works in shadow, patti work works in shape. The two crafts sit side by side in Uttar Pradesh, and in this Edit they sit side by side in ours.

— The Aligarh Edit

The Craft

Four steps, every petal

Patti work is made one piece at a time. Open a card to see what each step asks of the hand.

The cutEach motif is cut from cloth by hand.

Petals, leaves and geometric pieces are cut individually, often in batches folded together so a repeat stays true. The quality of the finished piece is decided here: a clumsy cut cannot be rescued by fine stitching.

Difficulty
Precision
The turnRaw edges are folded under with the needle's tip.

Before it is stitched down, the edge of every piece is tucked under so no fraying edge shows. On tight curves this is done a few millimetres at a time, which is where the craft is slowest.

Difficulty
Advanced
The hemTiny stitches hold each piece without being seen.

The motif is hemmed onto the base with small, closely spaced stitches worked into the fold. Done well, you see the shape and not the thread holding it.

Difficulty
Advanced
The layerCloth on cloth, for depth no print can give.

Pieces are layered over one another, or set onto sheer fabric so light passes through the ground but not the motif. Tonal work — white on white, blue on white — is where the layering is most visible.

Difficulty
Master

The Hands

Our Aligarh collective

Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh

Our Aligarh pieces are cut, turned and hemmed by a small collective of patti workers. We will introduce each of them by name as they choose to be — until then, their work speaks first.

Meet all our artisans →

Also from the house

The other Edits

The Lucknow Edit

Chikankari

Shadow work in white on white — the sister craft to patti work, from the same state.

  • Bakhiya
  • Phanda
  • Murri
  • Jali
Explore Collection →
Coming Soon

The Jaipur Edit

Hand-block printing

Carved teak blocks and natural dye. Join the waitlist and we will write once, when it opens.

  • Hand-block
  • Natural dye
Join the Waitlist →