Aari Embroidery of Gujarat

Aari embroidery of Gujarat, as the name suggests is done with an ari i.e. a needle with a hook on fabric stretched on frame/ adda. This style was earlier practiced by the Mochi community on the leather where the artisans worked with a hook-like needle without conceptualizing the design. Later women of the house started practicing it on fabric. Thus,  Aari embroidery is also known as mochi embroidery. Embroidery is done with continuous fine chain stitches created by ari. Ari is plied from the top and the silk thread is fed from below thus creating loops that leads to the line of chain stitches. The intricacy and the use of beads lend an added appeal to the embroidery.