Evening abayas with beadwork, sequins and zari

Beadwork, sequins and zari compared

All three can be worked on an abaya, but they suit different moods and different amounts of wear. Which one suits your fabric, design and placement is confirmed in the quote; the notes below are how they generally behave.

• Beadwork: small beads sewn on one at a time or in short strings. Each bead throws back a point of light, giving a soft glitter that shows most at close range, across a dinner table or in a handshake. Beads add real weight in a dense border and are the most likely of the three to catch on a bag strap or a scarf pin. Along an edge they hold up well; packed over a large area they drag a light cloth out of shape.
• Sequins: flat discs stitched so they overlap or run in lines. They flash as you move rather than glittering when you stand still, which is why they read so clearly in photographs and in a dim hall. They weigh less than beads for the area they cover, but their edges can scratch the inner arm, and an iron pressed straight onto them can curl or cloud them.
• Zari: metallic thread, stitched as embroidery. It gives a warm sheen along the lines of a motif instead of separate sparkles, which makes it the quietest of the three and the easiest to wear for hours. It lies flat and suits scrollwork, borders and outlines, though very dense zari can feel stiff at a cuff. Our article on what zari is explains the real and imitation kinds.

The fabric has to carry the weight

Beads and dense sequins pull downwards, and a fabric that cannot take the load puckers around the work or sags at the shoulders. Of the three abaya fabrics we use, crepe is usually the steadiest base for heavier work, because it has more body and a fine grain that holds stitches firmly. Our crepe abaya guide describes how it hangs.

Chiffon is light and floaty, so it suits lighter work: a fine zari outline, scattered sequins or a narrow beaded edge. It is slightly sheer, and a lining or an inner dress beneath it gives the work something to sit against; see chiffon and georgette abayas. Nida sits between the two: it takes zari and moderate beading, but a dense beaded border can pucker its thin surface. For your own abaya, the answer depends on the fabric, construction, density and placement, and we confirm it in the written quote.

Balancing it with the scarf and the inner dress

An embellished abaya looks calmer when only one layer shines. If the abaya has beadwork down the front edges, keep the inner dress plain; if the inner dress is the dressy piece, a zari edge on the abaya is plenty. Our guide to an abaya with a matching inner dress explains how to measure both layers.

The scarf follows the same rule. Every design in our collection comes with a matching scarf, and if you would like a touch of the abaya’s work on it, ask for it at the ends only, away from your face and earrings; we confirm it in the quote. See also the abaya with a matching scarf.

Dinners, engagement parties, Eid nights and weddings

The same embellishment reads differently from one evening to the next, mostly because of how long you sit, how bright the room is and how many photographs are taken.

• Formal dinners: you are seated for most of the night, so put the work where the table does not hide it: the yoke, the shoulders and the cuffs. A cape shape such as the Arabesque cape abaya, burgundy with gold scrollwork, keeps the detail at shoulder height.
• Engagement parties: a mix of standing, greeting and photographs, often in a hall with strong lights. Sequins at the front edges show up well in pictures; keep the back light if you expect to sit for long.
• Eid nights: after a day of visits, comfort comes first, so a zari border on crepe or nida is easier late in the evening than heavy beads. The Palm Arc pleated abaya, chocolate brown with gold and bronze fronds, suits a cooler Eid. Our Eid abaya ideas cover the rest of the day.
• Weddings as a guest: the dressiest of the four, but still a guest’s outfit. Our wedding guest abaya guide covers colour and length, and the wedding guest abayas collection gathers fourteen designs picked for guests. If the wedding is your own, our bridal abaya planning guide covers the extra decisions.

What an evening abaya costs

In our collection, the cape and pleated shapes and the large-motif designs sit in the statement tier, which costs £120 with a matching scarf, in nida, crepe or chiffon, in sizes S to XL or made to your measurements for the same price. The cape abayas collection shows the cape designs side by side. These are launch prices until 31 October. From 1 November the same three tiers cost £99, £125 and £150.

Those designs are embroidered in thread, by hand, by machine or a mix of the two, at the same price. Adding beadwork, sequins or extra zari to one of them, or planning embellishment of your own from a photo, is custom work and is quoted individually. The written quote shows the full cost, including delivery and any import duties and fees, so nothing is due when the parcel arrives.

Pearls and crystals are not something we can promise. If a pearl look is what you have in mind, send a photo and we confirm in the quote what is possible.

To begin, pick a design and list your changes on the customise form, or send a photo of an evening abaya you like through the design quote. Our abaya pages for the UK and the UAE explain currency and delivery.

Caring for beads, sequins and zari

Spot clean small marks rather than washing the whole piece. When it does need a wash, keep the water cool, never wring it, and dry it flat out of direct sun; many people take heavily beaded pieces to a dry cleaner instead. Never put an iron straight onto sequins or beads: lay the worked area face down on a folded towel and press lightly from the reverse with a cloth between. Put perfume on before you dress, since it can dull metallic thread.

A heavily beaded abaya left on a thin hanger for months stretches at the shoulders, so fold it loosely with tissue between the layers, or use a broad padded hanger if the work is light. Wrap it in cotton rather than plastic, which traps damp. Our pressing and storing guide has the settings for each fabric.