All the Inspiration you Need for Frock Designs

Pishwas, kalidars, Anarkali suits, gowns all are the different names of frock designs. Frocks are flowy, breezy silhouettes that can be floor-length or ankle-length or even as short as torso-length. Usually it has a fitted bodice and comes in a variety of fabrics such as chiffon, georgette, lawn, cotton, or any lightweight fabric you like. Anarkali frocks have been around for so long, they were the signature dress of the Mughal era, and this cut goes back to Victorian times when gowns were a common costume.

In addition to being designed for weddings or formal events, frocks are incredibly versatile. For summers you can opt for a breezy printed fabric up to ankle length, for weddings you can opt for a fancy fabric such as royal silk and add body to it by layering it with a can-can. Similarly, they look the cutest on little girls as well. Usually they are worn with a churidar, but you can also wear them with a lehenga, sharara, or a trouser.

We have compiled some frock inspirations for you.

Long Frock Designs

Long Frock Designs

Frocks are the most drool-worthy, vintage, and modest fashion trend. They can make you look princess-pretty while wearing the classic cut. While a short bodice is the most overdone style, a long bodice with a big flare can give the dress a Victorian and princess vibe. The embellishments and embroidery depend mostly on the function and the look you want to achieve. If you want a pishwas for a wedding, use heavy embellishments and thread-work while if you want the look to be casual, go with light embroidery and heavy printing.

If you keep the pishwas short with a little bit of churidar showing, it can look very flattering as well, but if you pair it with a lehenga or sharara, you can keep it slightly shorter. You can choose from the following frock designs for long length.

• Anarkali Dress

• Tail Frock

• Umbrella Frock

• Kalidars

• Pishwas

1. Anarkali Dress

 1.Anarkali Dress

Anarkali frock with a fitted bodice, floor-length and churidar pajama is a gift from our Mughal heritage. This style can be seen everywhere in coming-of-age films of the 70s and the 80s. They are usually made by fabrics of chiffon, georgette, or any flowy material and have a big flare. Usually, the embellishments are focused on the bodice and the skirt is kept simple with a little detailing on the borders. The neckline could be a flattering round neck or a square neck, sometimes a sweetheart neckline can give out an extravagant look as well like in the Faiza Saqlain’s dress worn by Neha Rajpoot.

The bodice can be a heavily embellished little coti as well. Seemab’s “Mehfil-e-Deed” Anarkali frock design features a gold embroidered coat bodice on a hot pink color palette. Similarly, you can make the neckline angrakha style as well. You can rely on Faiza Saqlain’s collections for amazing Anarkali dress inspiration.

2. Tail Frock

 2.Tail Frock

Who doesn’t love a little bit of drama with glitz and glamour at their wedding? If you’re someone who loves a western-inspired wedding gown silhouette with an eastern twist, tail frocks are just the right thing for you. Tail frock designs are mostly fitted gowns with a long train and heavy detailing all over the dress. They bring all the spotlight to you and your long train but make sure your dress is event appropriate as they don’t look nice on a casual event.  Reign’s latest launch “reignassance” is all about dramatic and over-the-top gowns with the longest tails insight and we are loving the whole vibe of it.

3. Umbrella Frock

 3. Umbrella Frock

As the name suggests umbrella frocks have a voluminous body with a most breezy fun fabric. They are layered with 5 to 6 panels on each side to give them the most twirl-worthy feel. Sometimes umbrella frocks have a bodice sometimes they don’t, and they are usually paired with shararas or a lehenga. Faiza Saqlain’s collection “Yaar-e-Man” article Ahlah is the perfect umbrella dress. With its ice blue color and silver intricate detailing, this dress will give you all the desi Cinderella vibes and is a perfect outfit to wear at a nikkah or walima. Naimal Khawar wore this dress at her sister’s wedding and looked like a vision in it. Another Faiza’s ensemble for her latest collection “Khurshid” featuring Mahira Khan made rounds on the internet. The ivory long umbrella frock with a lehenga and golden Zari embroidery made every bride-to-be save it in the mood board for their wedding.

So, wear these alluring and extravagant dresses in the upcoming wedding season and don’t forget to make twirling boomerangs. 😉

4. Kalidars

 4.Kalidaars

Ansab Jahangir’s signature kalidars with a fabric of chikankari, Korean raw silk, or cotton is every celebrity and influencer’s favorite and was trending all over Instagram during Eid. Kalidars don’t usually have a bodice, or a loose fit bodice and the panels usually start from the top. They are usually worn on semi-casual events, but you can jazz them up as you like. One of our favorite kalidars by Ansab Jahangir is SAK from their collection Avin which is a watermelon pink kalidar with lace detailing on the sleeves paired with an organza dupatta, this dress gave us all the fairytale vibes.

You can incorporate trends in your kalidars as well. Tabassum offers tie and dye kalidars paired with shararas which are the perfect blend of the ethnic silhouette with modern trends. If you’re looking for something subtle yet extravagant go for Farah Talib Aziz’s blue kalidar with white embroidery.

5. Pishwas

 5.Pishwas

Though pishwas has been around for a decade now the trend recently surfaced again in 2021 and 2022 and is seen everywhere. This is one of the most loved ethnic wear trends in Pakistan and India. Pishwas were usually a commonly worn bridal outfit by Muslim and Hyderabadi brides during the 80s and the 90s, but this design has recently been seen at casual and formal events alike. Designers like Mohsin Naveed Ranjha, Faiza Saqlain, and Hussain Rehar have given a new life to the age-old trend, and we loved each one of their pieces. Hussain Rehar has provided his signature twist to the vintage silhouette and gives a modern feel to it by cutting the length of the full-length pishwas and exposing the churidar a little.

Faiza Saqlain’s ubiquitous pishwas is what they are known for. The feminine cuts, gota, or Zari embroidery on a sequinced or Mukesh fabric are what you need to wear at a sangeet function. Mohsin Naveed Ranjha’s collection “Nizampur ki Raniya” showcased vibrant-hued pishwas with chata pati or gota embroidery. Sahiba and Nazgul were the best sellers of this collection.

 Short Frock Designs

Frocks are commonly worn at a floor length or ankle length but if you’re bored with seeing those long frocks everywhere then you can always cut the length short and give the classic traditional silhouette a modern twist. Short frocks are the perfect fusion of eastern and western fashion and can make you look toned and put together but make sure you pair the right bottoms with it as the bottoms will also be the main focus of the outfit. Mostly shararas and boot cut pants look the best with it but a lehenga can also make you look stand out.

Short frocks not only are for casual wear, but we have seen some extravagant designer short frocks paired with lehengas and shararas. They can have a fitted bodice, or no bodice as well just depends upon the cut and the length, the length can go as short as torso length. Here are a few short frocks designs you can go for.

• Peplum

• Summer Dress

1. Peplum

 1. Peplum

Inspired from the western origin, this little frock style is flattering on every body type and looks the best with well-tailored boot-cut style pants. They make you look like a fashion diva. For casual wear, you can design your peplum tops on a basic fabric with edgy and bold cuts and pair them well-tailored cigarette pants or flared trousers. Mannat has a wide range of peplum tops. For a formal event keep the fabric a bit fancy such as pure raw silk or organza and pair it with a statement button and keep the embellishments minimal.

If you’re a bride and you’re tired of the overdone lehenga choli and want to give an edgy look to the classic choli, go for a peplum. Mohsin Naveed Ranjha has some of the most reminiscent peplum bridal outfits to choose from such as Nousha from the “Preet Laari” collection. It is a white torso-length peplum with a square neckline and golden and pink embroidery. It is paired with a lehenga which makes it perfect for a nikkah bridal. Ronaq Jahan from the Ghar Nari collection is a sky-blue outfit with contrasting maroon, pink, and golden detailing made for mehndi and sangeet brides.

2. Summer Dresses

 2. Summer Dresses

Who doesn’t love a little black or white dress? When the summer breezes arrives and the warm weather welcome us, you need to ditch the stiff fabrics and go for a flowy, light-weighted, and breezy dress with a floral or fresh print. The summer dress can be knee or ankle length and looks best when fitted on the waist with a belt. You can always add a little personality to your look with some gold accessories and statement-cute, puffy sleeves.

Frocks are the most versatile silhouette and we have seen a thousand variations of it over the years and we can’t decide which one we love the most. Whether you’re going to a wedding or just want to spend the holiday at the beach, there is a frock design for it. So, take some inspiration from our above-mentioned designs and buy the prettiest frocks at LAAM for any event.

- by Fatima Farooq

Fatima Farooq