The fancy sarees have occupied a distinct position in the Indian saree category as the majority of sarees fit this category. In addition, many traditional elements have been incorporated into them. For instance, the styles, techniques and designs of the fine white kosara pudava muslins are now commonly found in the popular Coimbatore sarees.

The fancy sarees are created by mix and match process. Often the designs of the sarees are added in different fabrics like the famous zardousi work is done in chiffon and georgette fabrics instead of silk sarees. Even the cotton yarn is dyed before weaving and the zari replaced by coloured silks but the traditional basic design structure of fancy sarees is still visible in the form of narrow bands of supplementary-warp patterning and satin-weave borders. Today, most of the field patterning is woven in the weft rather than the warp, probably because powerlooms, rather than handlooms, are used. Southern Karnataka also creates sarees for specific regional markets, such as silk bandhanis for western India and silk Jamdanis for Bengal. Although they are technically skilful, their colours are often atypical of the regional sarees they mimic and their designs distinctly modern.

Even the wedding sarees are now designed by following contemporary designs and fabrics. The face and reverse side of the wedding saree are sometimes decked with interlocked-weft `join` of the border and field. This causes a triangular mokku (flower buds) design in the traditional sarees. On the reverse side of the saree, a fresh (red) warp thread is twisted around each field warp, and then the green warp is cut off after the two threads have been woven together. The designer sarees are now in trend, which are made by amalgamating exclusive designs with traditional and ethical motifs and patterns.

The fancy sarees often fuse patch work with embroidery, traditional motifs with the usage of vibrant coloured fabrics. The motifs, patterns and fabrics of different regions are combined to create a stylized version of modern fancy sarees. The brilliant concept of the designers is manifested in their dexterous creations of exclusive sarees. Even the modern brides wear sarees that are designed by the designers, which have a trendy look with the added traditional tint. The designers create exclusive sarees that are extensively filled with zardousi work in chiffon and georgette fabrics and are often embellished with stones, beads, and other decorating materials.

Fashion sarees woven in the Coimbatore, Salem area of western Tamil Nadu display the modern trend with the traditional touch. Most of these sarees are woven on powerlooms. Their supplementary-warp and -weft embellishments are often evocative of the older, white-and-gold, narrow-bordered sarees.