Lace and border work on a made-to-measure suit

Where lace sits well

Lace behaves differently from embroidery: it has its own edge, its own weight and sometimes a little transparency. It tends to work in these places:

• Neckline: lace set along or just inside the edge. Our neckline with lace page shows the idea.
• Sleeve hems: a band of lace at the cuff, or lace forming the lower part of the sleeve. See sleeves with lace.
• Daman: lace along the hem of the kameez, covered on the daman with lace page.
• Trouser hems: a narrow band at the ankle of straight trousers or a shalwar, picking up the kameez.

Borders that tie a suit together

A border is a continuous band, embroidered, woven or printed, that runs along an edge. In a three-piece suit, borders do their best work when they repeat: the same band, or a narrower version of it, at the kameez hem, the sleeve ends, the dupatta edges and the trouser cuffs. That repetition is what makes an outfit look designed rather than assembled.

If your unstitched suit already includes border strips, tell us how you would like them used. Our guide to using neckline pieces and borders from a pack explains the usual options, and they often need no added work at all.

Weight, width and washing

Wide lace or a heavy border on a light fabric can drag the edge down and make it ripple. On chiffon, georgette and fine lawn, narrower lace usually hangs better; on cambric, linen or winter fabrics, wider bands sit comfortably.

Cotton lace and cotton fabric can shrink at slightly different rates, and some trims do not like a hot wash. If you are sending your own lace with your fabric, pre-washing both is worth considering. Our pre-wash guide explains when it matters.

Colour matching

Tone-on-tone lace looks soft and expensive; contrast lace looks lively and slightly playful. A useful rule is to match the lace to one colour already in the fabric, rather than introducing a new one. On a printed kameez, picking a background colour usually works better than picking the brightest colour in the print.

Colours can look slightly different on screens and in photos, so describe the shade in words as well, for example warm ivory or cool white. If you are unsure whether to go tonal or contrast, ask for a suggestion in your notes; we will propose a shade that sits with the fabric, and you can change it before approving the quote.

Asking for lace and borders

On the stitching quote form, choose a level and list where you want lace or borders and roughly how wide. Lace and borders belong to outfits we stitch; on a piece you send us on its own, our custom embroidery service covers embroidery only. If you are sending fabric, Stitching Only is explained on the UK stitching page; with Fabric + Stitching, we can suggest lace and borders that suit the fabric we supply, as described on the Fabric + Stitching page. Everything is confirmed in writing before cutting.