Background
We became intrigued by vintage silk wrap garments during Summer 2008 when we encountered them at a kiosk in a suburban Denver mall. For the next year, we interviewed manufacturers to identify those who could provide a high quality range of styles and sizes at reasonable prices with reliable order fulfillment. We selected Milliana Designs because, in addition to meeting all of our other criteria, their garments are produced in a fair trade relationship. The fair trade social movement and market approach helps developing countries promote sustainability by advocating higher prices for producers who provide fair wages for their workers along with higher social and environmental standards.

Our vintage silk wraps are made from the fabric of recycled Indian silk saris. A sari (or saree) is the traditional garment worn by women of the Indian subcontinent. The garment is a very long strip of unstitched cloth, ranging from four to nine yards in length, which can be draped in a variety of styles. The complexity of Sari fabric ranges from a plain silk to elaborate hand-painted designs embellished with gold, silver, sequins and embroidery.

Styles, Fabrics and Wearing Options
All of our styles are fully reversible. Additional looks can be created by reversing which layer of fabric is on top. By tying our wrap pieces in a variety of ways, you can produce many different looks.

Each silk wrap purchase includes printed instructions for 20+ wearing options. A video is also available for purchase. So when you take just one of our skirts with you on vacation, it's like having many different pieces - skirts, tops and dresses - without the extra luggage. Because pieces are one of a kind and our inventory is constantly changing, some fabric combinations may no longer be available. If you call, we'll be happy to confirm availability and send you pictures of any additional fabric combinations in stock.

Click here to browse our complete gallery of styles, fabrics and wearing options.   

Sizing
We offer two sizes (regular and plus) and four skirt lengths (mini, short, medium and long). Because our silk wrap pieces are individually handmade by different artisans, there is some variation to the dimensions. Not to worry - each item shown on the website includes the dimensions of that specific piece. And the wrap styling easily adjusts the fit to accommodate any variations in dimensions.

The waistband in a regular skirt is 46" to 52" and, depending on how much overlap you like, can typically be worn by women up to size 14 with waists up to 40”. The waistband in a plus skirt is about 56” to 66" and, depending again on how much fabric overlap you desire, typically fits sizes 16 and above with waists up to 50”. But even someone with a waist smaller than 40” may enjoy having a plus size piece with a longer waistband for the additional coverage and styling options it offers. And even women with waists a couple inches larger than 40” may be happy with the fit of some tying options of the Regular size skirts.

Our mini skirts are 14" to 18" long.  Short skirts are 19" to 21". Medium skirts are 25" to 30". Long skirts are 32" to 36".  In addition to making great tops and skirts for adults, our mini and short lengths also work well on most children.

Regular size pants typically fit up to a size 14 with up to a 40” waist and plus size pants typically fit sizes 16 and above with waists up to 50”. Because you are essentially tying the front and back halves of the pants around your waist independently, to get good coverage, you’ll want the total pants waist (sum of front and back halves) to be at least 1.5 times your waist (so that each half provides 75% coverage for good overlap). For example, regular size pants have a total waist of 56” to 68", so they should comfortably fit women with a waist of 40”or less. Plus size pants measure 82” to 86" so they should comfortably fit women with a waist of 50” or less.

The rise in our pants (length of crotch seam from center front waistband to center back waistband is about 25" to 30" in regular size and 30" to 35" in plus size.  Inseams in both sizes run run 26" to 32". The pantlegs can be shortened by opening the hem seams, cutting the fabric to the desired length (plus the seam allowance), folding in the seam allowance, pressing, and re-topstitching the hems. A seamstress or tailor can accomplish this quite easily.  For local clients, we have a seamstress available who can shorten our pants for $10 with a two-week turnaround and $15 for a rush.

Fabric Composition and Care
Milliana Designs’ vintage silk garments are wearable art. Each garment is individually cut and sewn. The unusual combinations of fabric pattern and color are truly one-of-a-kind (we couldn’t get you a duplicate if our lives depended on it). The fabrics are 80% to 100% silk with wrap styling that accommodates flexible sizing. Through artful tying variations, the skirts can actually be worn as many different types of skirts, dresses and tops. And the reversible wrap pants are exquisite.

Vintage silk fabric is delicate and needs to be handled with care. Slight irregularities and variations in weave and colors are characteristic of the fabric and shouldn’t be considered defects. Because the fabric is recycled, you may encounter small stains or discolorations. These can often be removed with a Baby Wipe or Grandma’s Spot Remover (sold at better fabric stores). For overall cleaning, you can wash by hand (never machine) in a rinse free cleaner (like Soak or Eucalan), drip dry, and cool iron. You can also try the Dryel dry cleaning at home system. We find a high quality, environmentally safe dry cleaner is often the best approach, certainly in the case of significant soil or stain removal.