One of my most adorable reader, Shai of Bows, Hearts & Everything Cute asked me for some tips on the latest trends in Indian suits. You can check out her blog here.
There have been some very versatile designs of suits that I have seen around lately. Though the basics remain mostly the same, the craftsmanship differs across different styles, cuts and details.

Color: Orange / Red Orange/ Coral – whatever you want to call it – is the hottest color of the season. Period. If you don’t have anything of this color in your closet yet, it is time to buy one☺. Some other hot colors are pastels, deep greens and blues or the color blocking (as on Sonam Kapoor). Almost half your job is done if you get the right color.

Style: From what I see, the ultra long anarkalis (those that touch the ground) are out. The suits or kurtas that are more in style right now are slightly shorter in length and hit at your ankle.

You can also change the regular A lines or kali style by wearing a brocade jacket on top of your suit. I see these jackets everywhere – on suits, sarees and lehengas. And, once you have the jacket, you hardly need a dupatta with the suit.

The bottoms vary from churidars, Patialas or straight –cropped trousers. The most in thing seems to be long sleeves, but they would depend a lot of the overall design of the outfit.

Fabrics: Winters are best for silk, raw silk and brocades. Crepes and chiffons with heavy embroidery also do well.

A few other tips:
- Pay attention to your dupatta. I personally like the stole style dupattas. Add variety by using contrasting borders around the dupatta.
- Deep back and broad front necklines work really WELL with long sleeves.
- If you want to add a brocade/ raw silk jacket, keep the inner suit simple (sans any heavy embellishments) and let the jacket take the center stage.

Hope you all find this helpful ☺

Sometime ago Not just a pretty dress asked me to do a post on traditional Indian jewelry. Most of my posts earlier this year have been on modern jewelry designs, but nothing better than plain solid gold, right? Specially if you consider the returns that gold investment have given :)

These are from Tanishq’s not so recent collection. I love how they have modern accents to them, while skillfully preserving the traditional heritage of gold. Perfect for weddings!

Indian ramps are dominated by women fashion, but lately some designers have also started experimenting with different outfits for guys. While the traditional sherwani still dominates most of the Indian weddings and festivals, there is a breath of fresh air with jodhpuris, short kurtas and loose bottoms for guys.

One option is to go with for a more traditional touch and experiment with cuts and lengths for versatility. The fabric used (brocade, raw silk) as well as the work (gold zari, stoles, buttons etc) give a classic look. Don’t forget to pay special attention to footwear – the kolhapuri jutis with intricate work on them will best complement this look.

IF you want to experiment a little more but stay in the Indian Spirit, the outfits below are perfect. The fabric used is much lighter and the colors are subtler. The cuts again make a big difference – these designs are more fitted and kurtas are shorter in length. A dupatta or stole can easily add an Indian touch while the footwear hint towards a more contemporary look. My personal favorite is the last one that has jodhpuri style pants.

A couple of things in this post. First, here are some pictures that were clicked recently.

Dress - F21, Shoes - Miss Sixty, Bracelets - India

Next, sweet Vertu of Vivaciuosblog17 passed the " Kreativ Blogger Award" to me in which I have to disclose 7 interesting things about me.

Here we go:

- I am strong willed, impulsive, adaptive, very selective, impatient, sensitive and hyper active. If some of these clash, don't worry - I am Gemini :)

- I am in finance field by profession.

- I firmly believe that A is A and I love Ayn Rand.

- I don't have any OCD's (not even shopping. I can exercise reasonable self restraint).

- I can not eat hot and spicy food (even a little bit spicy). Not surprisingly, lot of my classmates therefore think I am pseudo Indian.

- You don't want to sit next to me while watching horror movies or on a dangerous ride; I shout my guts out.

- I have a name which doesn't have ANY meaning. Now, being an Indian and having lived 25 years in India, you can imagine how unusual this is and how amusing it can be for people to keep asking and/or guessing the meaning of my name. And, how difficult it was for me to explain to them that my name is just a name..please don't find any meaning in it :)).

P.S: I will pass on the award to some of my favorite bloggers next time. In a bit of rush right now.First, a few photos that were clicked recently.

Lastly, have an awesome weekend, everyone!

"Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes... the ones who see things differently -- they're not fond of rules... You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things... they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do”.



"You cannot connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards. You have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in to your future”.

"Sometimes life is going to hit in your head with a brick. Don’t lose faith.

“You got to find what you love and it is as true for work as it is for your lovers. Work is going to fill a large part of your life and only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work”.

“If you live each day as it is your last someday you will certainly be right”.

"Almost everything--all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure--these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart".

Tradition of wearing anklets goes back many many years ago. In India, traditionally they were worn by married women. But, nowadays it is a popular fashion statement and women/girls of any age can be seen wearing them. Anklets can be of gold or silver or even leather, plastic etc. When investing in them, try to pick the ones that are long lasting and designs that can be worn with both Indian and Western wear.

Just one tip for this: Make sure you have got your pedicure done beforehand :)

Velvet, a luxurious fabric that dates back thousands of years, is widely used in Indian dresses. Velvet has kind of rich and sensual appeal to it, and it perfect to glam your night parties or attend a wedding / function. Since the fabric is heavy (in weight) and soft (in texture) it immediately gives a dressed-up feeling.

You can either go full velvet (as in 1,2,3 above) on your attire or use it as in some places in your outfit, just as a highlighter. A velvet blouse (4) , dupatta, or as border for your saree or suit (5). The idea is not to overdo and kill the look of it. You would want to carry the fabric with grace and not drowning in it.

Another good this about velvet is, like silk, it can support very heavy embroideries and the hand work that are on most of the Indian dresses. Deep blues, greens and reds are my favorite colors in velvet; black not so much. I am not sure whether velvet is used very heavilt in western dresses as well. I have not seen much of it and don’t own any western piece in this fabric.

Anyone has any western outfit in velvet?