Chikankari ( Chikan hand embroidery) is a delicate and artfully done hand embroidery on a variety of textile fabric like muslin, silk, chiffon, organza, net etc. Though it originated as a court craft, today it is a practiced tradition and an important commercial activity. White thread is embroidered on cool, pastel shades of light muslin and cotton garments.Now a days chikan embroidery is also done with coloured and silk threads in different colours to meet the recent fashion trends and keep chikankari trendy with fashion. Lucknow is the heart of the Chikankari industry today (Lucknawi chikan).

Design
A design is conceptualized the designers for the complete piece viz a saree, a top . a sherwani etc. At the time of deciding the design various motifs and their placements are finalized, to get that complete effect on the final apparel.

Engraving
These design patterns is then engraved on a wooden block or at times sketching it manually. There are thousands of pre made blocks / motifs already available and the new ones are designed from time to time to meet the new fashion demands.

Block Printing
Once the block is ready then the printing is done on the fabric. Printing is carried out by the use of wooden blocks dipped in dyes like neel and safeda to make a pattern.

Embroidery
The printed fabric then reaches the craftsmen who get to work with the cloth stretched by a wooden frame or Karchop. They do the enriching embroidery using a variety of stitches. These stitches are done on the same pattern which are engraved on the fabric by block printing.

Washing & finishing
After the embroidery, the fabric reaches the laundry and is thoroughly washed and given the finishing touches. This includes bleaching, acid treatment, stiffening or starching and ironing.

Bead and Sequin work
In recent times a lot of bead and sequin work has also been added as an additional process in making the final apparel The art of chikankari, today is flourishing and enriches both the domestic and export market. It is used in casual as well as elite formal couture dressing