Saree draping with pleated pallu styles is the most versatile style in saree styles. A Pleated Pallu saree draping looks from nivi style to new trending styles of cowls and wraps around are popular for all occasions from Indian weddings, parties or indo western saree styles.
New styles of sarees draping ways which are still trending are as follows:
Saree Draping Pallu Styles – How to Wear
The pleated palla can be useful for adding the illusion of vertical lines that can show a slimming look, lines also make your torso look taller for shorter women. The pleats can also add a covering effect or a more dominant effect for women who want to cover the top torso and are much more useful ways for a pleated pallu saree look.
Nivi Pleated Palla Look
The basic drape of the saree with pleats on the left shoulder is an evergreen style. Can be easily draped and worn on any occasion or looks great on any body shape. Caring for the pleats in a medium width or wearing bigger pleats over the shoulder as per your comfort.
How to Drape the Nivi Pleat Palla Saree:
- Start with the left side of the saree, and drape from right to left, draping it around the waist. Stop at the front center side, to make pleats here.
- A normal nivi style has pleats that open on the left side. New styles have different steps here.
- Take one more tuck from front to back and again to front. Make 3inch pleats or broader as per your requirement. Then drape on the left shoulder. Adjust the pleats on bossom and left waistline to make it appear neat.
- For detail style, watch the video on draping a normal saree perfectly with pleats.
South Indian Wedding Pleated Saree Pallu
A normal nivi drape look. But here the pleated palla appears to have an escalating pleated look from shoulder to front torso. Each and every pleat is evenly adjusted and smaller pleats are taken for a more piled pleated effect on the torso. For this style, a Silk saree is needed like south silk sarees, kanjivaram saree, or any other wedding silk saree.
- The pallu pleats are even which are hanging from the shoulder to the back.
- The pleats at the shoulder are spreaded apart to create the pleated look, here some pleats are redone, and not exactly evenly pleated, some shorter at the edge so more pleats are visible at the torso.
- The spreaded style gives a perfect saree look and also adds lines, hence an illusion of lines creating a slimming effect. So heavy-busted women can also try this style.
- A waist belt is also included, to hold pleats at the waist or for a more enhanced look.
The Spreaded pleat palla Style
Another easy style that trends on silk sarees or heavy wedding sarees. The palla that’s heavily made, may have pleats at the border stacked evenly. While the inside saree edge is then spreaded across the bust and the pleats are automatically spreaded across. The style does not have so many pleats at the bust, but 5-6 pleats spreaded apart.
Sidha pallu saree draping
The pleated palla comes on the front side, instead of the backside. Most Gujarati women wear the seedha palla saree style. The pallu can spread apart from the front to the back or can also be evenly spreaded with some pins in the side waistline. A silk patola saree, bandhani saree, soft silk saree, and lucknowi saree are some which would look great in this style.
- The draping style also has lower skirt pleats opening on the right side instead of the left side.
- The pleats on the shoulder may be broader than the usual 3 inches border width.
Narrow Pleated Palla Draping
Just like a normal nivi drape, the borders are stacked over well, without spreading apart from the entire front torso. Is also a style that works great for party wear saree or also silk sarees.
- The pleats are stacked over and held together by small pins keeping them aligned.
- The pleats are pinned to the front lower hip line, so they appear all together at the front side.
Neck wrap pleated pallu drape style
For a fancy saree draping style, the pleats that are aligned together, from front to side shoulder drape, are not pinned at the shoulder but draped around the neck in one wrap-around look. This look is great with soft sarees as they hold the look together. A fancy saree blouse and a saree with a small border can be easily styled in this look.
Elongated Pleats palla draping
Looking for a semi-formal saree draping style, then this one here is in a loose saree pleated style. Where pleats are aligned roughly and draped from the backside to the front side in a lower cowl drape. Works great for cotton, cotton silk, and linen sarees.
The style also works the same for pant style saree draping or dhoti saree draping style.
Small creased pleat pallu draping
A creased palla look can be achieved with a soft saree like chiffon or georgette. These can be easily gathered up at the shoulder and maybe knotted up instead of using a pin; a knot is tied at shoulder level to hold them in pleats. Then these pleats can be kept roughly aligned as they are or can spread across the bosom and an edge can be pinned on the left front waistline to hold the drape in place.
Reverse Pleated Palla Draping Style
A trending pleated pallu style, where pleats that are made, are not draped with a wrap-around, but from the lower skirt drape. Pleats are made on palla, and draped from here, on the left front shoulder to the back side. Watch the video on New ways of draping silk saree in reverse style.
- The style also has variations, like the loose end of pleats hanging behind can be brought to the front side and draped again on the shoulder.
- Or maybe tucked on the right hipline covering the front hip area.
Rajasthani Pleated Palla saree draping
The pleats are worn in the same way as nivi drapes. But the pleats are held stacked properly on the shoulder and also pinned together for another 6 inches below the saree blouse. Now from here, they are spread across the bust line.
Another variation is by holding the pleats aligned to the waistline and pinned here at the front center waistline., and from here then draped around the waistline. There is no open drape on the top torso, and the below waistline has a clean border look, where the pleats open up at the lower hipline only.
Twisted Lower skirt pleat saree draping style
For party wear saree looks and trendy styles of palla and pleats of saree, the Yeh Jawani hai Diwani saree style is worth a try. Choose a flowy fabric saree for the look. And a small lace trim not more than 1 inch in width works best.
- Wear the saree in basic drape till the lower skirt pleats. Once tucked in the waist. Take the lower end of the saree, and lift it up here.
- Twist it around and turn it upside down, and tuck in the rest fabric in the waistline, keeping only 8-10 inches hanging from the waistline. Shows the border. Then drape it around in pleats aligned properly.
- Drape around once and pin them at the shoulder. The saree at the left hip will need adjustment where the border is draped around the hipline.
Draped Cape Saree Draping Indo Western Style
Wearing your saree as a draped cape look with the same saree is also a trendy indo western style to try. Wear pants and a crop top or Peplum and dhoti pants or sharara for this look.
- Start by joining the width-wise side of both ends of the saree. Use a pin or tie a knot. This will create cowls and drape this through your arm or shoulder, on both sides do the same.
- When you wear the shoulder drape through, make sure the entire saree is on your backside and not the front side.
- Now take the back side of the saree, hold the top side edge and make 3-4 pleats and tuck in the center back side.
- The remaining fabric will be there on both sides, take one side of it from the top edge and make pleats in front and tuck in the front side waistline. Do the same on the other side too. Don’t pleat too much, keep the cowl drape comfortable on the arms.
There are many more ways of wearing a pleated palla saree look. Let us know your favorite style from the above saree draping styles. See more saree draping styles for Traditional Occasions or Party wear Occasions on our Blog.