How to Wash Embroidered Kurtas and Store Sequins and Zari

To wash an embroidered kurta, turn it inside out and hand wash it briefly in cold water with a mild liquid detergent, pressing rather than scrubbing, then dry it flat in the shade with the work facing down. Heavy zari, sequin and mirror work is safer with a dry cleaner. Store embellished pieces folded with the work facing inward, wrapped in plain cotton, never in plastic or on a thin wire hanger. Most damage to festive clothing happens in storage, not in wear.

Key takeaways

• Wash embroidered kurtas inside out in cold water (under 30°C), for no more than 10–15 minutes, and never wring them.
• Real or metallic zari tarnishes with moisture and friction, so clean it with a dry soft cloth at home and send heavy zari to a dry cleaner.
• Never put a hot iron directly on sequins, mirror work or zari; iron from the reverse on a thick towel at a low to medium setting.
• Store sequin dresses and heavy kurtas folded flat in a cotton or muslin bag, not hung, because the weight stretches the shoulder seams.
• Plastic covers trap humidity, which tarnishes metallic thread and invites mould in the monsoon.
• Treat a stain within a few hours: blot, rinse from the back with cold water and test any remedy on a hidden seam first.

Know the work before you wash it

The base fabric matters, but the embellishment decides the care. Check what is on the garment before it goes anywhere near water.

When the care label says dry clean only, follow it. The label knows things about the dyes and glues that the garment does not show.

How to wash an embroidered kurta

Thread embroidery and light work on cotton, chanderi or silk blend can usually be washed at home. For the base fabric's own rules, our guide on how to wash a cotton kurta without fading covers the basics; the steps below add what embroidery needs.

1. Check the colours. Dab a hidden part of the embroidery with a wet white cloth. If the thread colour transfers, take the kurta to a dry cleaner instead.
2. Turn it inside out. The work rubs less and the threads do not catch.
3. Use cold water and a mild liquid detergent, fully dissolved before the kurta goes in. Powder detergent can lodge in embroidery and leave white marks.
4. Swish and press, do not scrub. Move the kurta gently through the water for a minute or two. Never brush the embroidered area.
5. Keep it short. Ten to fifteen minutes in the water is enough. Long soaks loosen dyes and glue.
6. Rinse in cold water two or three times, until no detergent remains.
7. Roll it in a dry towel to press out water. Do not wring or twist it.
8. Dry it flat in the shade, embroidery side down on a clean towel, and reshape it while damp.

Machine washing is risky for embroidery. If you must, use a mesh laundry bag, the delicate cycle, cold water and the lowest spin, and only for light thread work.

How to clean zari work at home

Zari is metallic thread, traditionally silver or gold wrapped around a silk core, and today usually a metallic polyester or copper-based imitation. Both kinds dull and tarnish with moisture, sweat and friction, so the aim at home is to keep zari dry and clean it gently.

• Brush off dust with a soft, dry cloth or a clean, soft-bristled brush, moving along the direction of the thread.
• Spot clean the fabric around the zari, not the zari itself. Use a cloth barely dampened with cold water and a drop of mild detergent, then blot dry at once.
• Do not soak, scrub or wring a zari garment. Water and friction are what make zari black and brittle.
• Avoid home remedies on the thread. Lemon, vinegar, toothpaste and metal polish can strip the finish or stain the fabric around it.
• Air it after every wear for a few hours in the shade before you put it away, so sweat does not settle into the metal.

If zari has already tarnished, or the garment is a heavy zari saree or lehenga, take it to a dry cleaner who handles festive wear. Our black floral zari saree at ₹2,999 is exactly the kind of piece to keep dry and spot clean only.

How to remove stains from embroidered fabric

The rule for any stain on embroidery is speed and the back of the fabric. Work from the reverse, so you push the stain out of the work rather than into it.

1. Blot, do not rub. Lift as much as you can with a clean white cloth.
2. Rinse from the back with cold water. Hot water sets protein stains such as sweat and food.
3. Dab a little mild liquid detergent on the stain from the reverse, leave it for five minutes and rinse.
4. Test anything stronger on a hidden seam before you use it on the stain.

For common stains:

• Oil and ghee: sprinkle talc or cornflour, leave it for an hour to absorb, brush it off, then dab with a drop of mild dish soap and rinse.
• Haldi (turmeric): rinse in cold water from the back as soon as you can, then dab with mild detergent. On plain white cotton, drying in the sun helps the yellow fade; on coloured or embellished fabric, keep it in the shade.
• Food and gravy: scrape off what you can, rinse cold, then treat with mild detergent.
• Sweat marks: a soak of a few minutes in cold water with a spoon of baking soda, on the fabric only, then a normal gentle wash.

If the stain sits on zari, sequins or stones, do not treat it at home. Point it out to the dry cleaner.

How to store sequin dresses and embroidered kurtas

Embellished clothes are usually worn a handful of times and stored for the rest of their lives. Storage is where they are lost.

Never on a wire hanger

Weight is the enemy. A heavily worked kurta, sequin dress or lehenga hung on a thin hanger pulls at the shoulder seams for months. Fold heavy pieces; hang light ones only on broad, padded hangers.

Fold with the work facing inward

Sequins and metallic thread abrade each other. Folded work-to-work, a garment sands itself every time it is moved. Fold so the embellished face is inside, with a plain cotton cloth or acid-free tissue between the layers.

Cotton, not plastic

A plastic cover traps humidity against metallic thread, which tarnishes it, and against fabric, which grows mould in the monsoon. A breathable cotton or muslin bag is better in every month of the year. Keep a sachet of silica gel in the drawer during humid months.

Spot clean before you store, not after

Sweat and perfume are acidic and go on working long after the evening ends. A garment stored dirty is a garment that will come out marked. Air it, deal with the spots, then put it away.

Refold twice a year

Fabric creases permanently along the same line. Moving the fold takes thirty seconds and decides whether the piece survives a decade.

How to iron embroidery, sequins and zari

Lay the garment face down on a thick, folded towel and iron from the reverse at a low to medium setting. The work sinks into the towel instead of being flattened. Use a thin cotton pressing cloth over zari and gota, and never let the iron touch sequins, which melt, or mirrors, which crack. A garment steamer held a few inches away is gentler still.

Dry clean, and what to tell the cleaner

Take heavily embellished pieces to a dry cleaner and tell them what the work is — sequins, zari, gota, mirror or beading — before they take it. A cleaner who knows will turn the garment inside out and hand finish it. One who does not will press the work flat.

Embellished pieces in stock

Sequins:

• The magenta sequinned silk blend kurta with sharara and dupatta at ₹2,304: store it folded flat with tissue between the layers.
• The lavender sequinned georgette kurta, trousers and dupatta at ₹1,533: hand wash inside out, or dry clean if the work is dense.

Gota patti and mirror work:

• The black gotta patti silk blend kurta with sharara and dupatta at ₹1,530: spot clean and iron from the reverse.
• The pink mirror work dupion silk kurta with trousers and dupatta at ₹5,999: a dry cleaner's piece, padded over the mirrors in storage.

Thread embroidery:

• The white thread work chanderi silk kurta with trousers at ₹1,950: a cold, short hand wash, dried flat.

Browse all kurta sets, or see our Indian wedding guest outfit guide for which pieces suit which function. Shipping is free over ₹799, with 7-day returns.

Related guides

• How to Clean a PU Leather Bag (and Store It So It Won't Peel)
• What to Wear to a Puja at Home or a Temple Visit
• Makar Sankranti and Pongal Outfit Ideas 2027: Region by Region

Frequently asked questions

How to wash embroidered kurta at home?

Turn it inside out and hand wash it in cold water with a mild liquid detergent for no more than 10–15 minutes. Swish and press rather than scrub, rinse well, roll it in a towel to remove water and dry it flat in the shade, embroidery side down.

Can I wash an embroidered kurta in a washing machine?

Only light thread embroidery, and only with care: inside out, in a mesh bag, on a cold delicate cycle with the lowest spin. Kurtas with zari, sequins, mirror work or beads should be hand washed briefly or dry cleaned.

How to store sequin dresses?

Fold sequin dresses flat with the sequins facing inward and acid-free tissue or a cotton cloth between the layers, then keep them in a breathable cotton bag. Do not hang heavy sequin pieces, because the weight stretches the shoulders, and do not store them in plastic.

How to clean zari work at home?

Brush zari gently with a soft, dry cloth and spot clean only the fabric around it with a barely damp cloth and mild detergent, blotting it dry at once. Do not soak or scrub zari, and avoid lemon or metal polish. Take tarnished or heavy zari to a dry cleaner.

How to remove stains from embroidered fabric?

Blot the stain, rinse it from the reverse with cold water and dab on a little mild liquid detergent, then rinse again. Test any stronger remedy on a hidden seam first. Leave stains on zari, sequins or stones to a dry cleaner.

How do you stop zari from turning black?

Keep zari dry and away from humidity, sweat and perfume. Air the garment after each wear, store it wrapped in white cotton rather than plastic, and avoid washing it in water. Tarnishing is caused by moisture and air reaching the metal.