Currently Trending: Winter Blues

One of the strongest colours seen on the fall runways (especially New York and London) was blue. From cobalt to navy to baby - for this winter, be sure to incorporate varying shades of blue in your closet! Apart from the fact that the colour is trending, there's just something about blue that has some sort of a calming effect don't you think? Kind of reminds of the Mediterranean ocean and makes me want to go on a beach vacation! Anyways, here are some of this season's must haves.

1. Zara Long Double Breasted Handmade Coat - Masculine/oversized coats are so hot for this winter, and if it's handmade, even better! Pair it with skinny pants and some funky trainers to look bang on trend. Check it out at your local Zara boutique.

2. Nike Internationalist Suede & Nylon Sneakers - As I get bigger and bigger in my pregnancy, my eyes are immediately drawn to funky trainers. In varying shades of blue and a dash of pink, these pretty trainers are not limited to the gym. Skirts, cropped leather pants or a mini dress; these shoes are versatile and cool enough to be paired with a lot outfits. Click here to purchase.

3. Popinjay Baracoa Zip Clutch - Entirely handmade, this clutch features silk thread embroidery (that takes 72 hours to complete) in a pattern inspired by Art Nouveau tiles. Not to mention, all products sold on Indelust are ethically sourced and manufactured. Click here to purchase.

4. Moschino Quilted Denim Hat - Hop on the logomania express with this Jeremy Scott for Moschino hat. Bold, flashy and trendy, this hat is one of the coolest accessory of the season. Click here to purchase.

5. Mansur Gavriel Bucket Bag - I've been obsessed with these Mansur Gavriel bags and am really trying hard to get my hands on one! Isn't this blue version just to die for? Unfortunately it is out of stock, but the good news is the website will be restocking them in December. Click here to stay informed about availability.

6. Illesteva Leonard Round Framed Glasses - Don't these sunnies have the funkiest shape? I love how the frame is made from black acetate and the bold blue lenses really ensure you stand out. Oh and it's made in Italy. A really unique pair! Click here to purchase.

L-R: Matthew Williamson, Peter Pilotto, Roksanda Ilincic, Temperley London

 

Wills India Fashion Week Round Up - Samant Chauhan

Samant Chauhan SS15

A collection consisting primarily of whites and ivory with pops of colourful embroidery, Samant Chauhan had a very pretty line up for SS15. It was the first time Samant introduced colour in his outfits. What surprised me was the reaction of some people from the fashion flock who gave me a funny look (and raised eyebrows) when I came out of the show talking about how much I enjoyed it. What was there not to like? An array of clothes created from gorgeous hand woven fabric and that are eco-friendly? A combination of machine and intricate hand embroidery? Fun indo-western clothes? I didn't get it. Maybe I'm way off with my what's fashionable radar.

Moving on, silhouettes were leaning towards the Western side, with a few Indian looks in between too. Cotton silk seemed to dominate the runway with light and breezy skirts, tunics, easy to wear gowns and dresses, most of them boasting some lovely light, silk thread embroidery.Whereas Indian ensembles like a lehenga choli were heavily embellished with silk and zari work. My favourites included the transparent white trousers with shorts underneath and the bagalpur silk saree, so casually draped over the corset. Whilst I wasn't a fan of the show stopper outfit, I was amazed to learn that it was crafted out of discarded fabric and that the appliqued bows were hand made and individually applied on to the dress. As I mentioned, above, I'm not sure what there isn't to like about the collection. I for one am making a grab for those tunics, which by the way are available on www.exclusively.in .

A closer look inside the stalls

A closer look inside the stalls



A closer look inside the stalls

 

Wills India Fashion Week Round Up - Payal Singhal

Payal Singhal SS15

One of my favourite shows from WIFW was without a doubt Payal Singhal. Although, slightly mature, Payal presented some simple, yet beautifully crafted clothes for next spring. The designer was inspired by Gulmarg valley, which explains the recurring pine cone motif in the collection. Silhouettes were a modern interpretation of Indian clothing and included silk cigarette pants, soft dhoti skirts, various long-short cholis, kurtas and tunics, traditional sari with a pine cone print and shirt dresses amongst others. The long-short looks were a fun twist on the traditional Indian silhouette. In fact, I think the choli would look equally amazing when paired with skinny jeans. However, I'm sure if you know me by now, you'll know that I am most definitely eyeing the dhoti & tunic combo along with the very relaxed fit silk jacket!

As I was chatting to Payal's mum at their stall, she explained to me that some of the silk they used had like a mal mal feel to it, which indeed it did when you felt a few of the clothes. Whilst watching the show, I thought there was extensive use of gota patti, however I later discovered, the designer used leather embroidery. How cool was the second last look where the lehenga had a massive gold leather border? In addition, the collection also featured hand embroidered zardozi as was seen the last few looks.

P.S - You can shop the runway collection on www.payalsinghal.com.

At the stalls

A closer look at the zardozi and leather details

Leather detailing on the tie-back

I've got my eye on you!! My favourite look

 

Wills India Fashion Week Round Up - ATSU, Alpana & Neeraj

Atsu SS15

ATSU - At Atsu, it was all about pastels, light embellishments, plumage and architectural silhouettes. The designer was having fun mixing textures and shapes. He was inspired by his travels to the far east which explains how some of the looks were reminiscent of traditional Japanese clothing. Case in point: a light purple zip dress with sleeves like that on a geisha's gown and a peach number featuring sculptural, rounded sleeves like that on a samurai's armour. The collection mainly comprised of dresses - some were romantic and full skirted, some were mid thigh with very sculptural sleeves and some that were in between with very lovely embroidery. On the whole, Atsu didn't use very heavy embroidery (minus the cape that closed the show)which gave the clothes an element of lightness. My most favourite look was a flowy gown (kind of like a night gown), held together with a bow tied on the waist, featuring beautiful ostrich feathers on one side paired with cropped pants.

Alpana & Neeraj - Top marks to the duo for being brave enough to experiment with such crazy clothes and doing a great job at it. This was yet another Japanese inspired collection but not based on the usual geisha and samurai style clothes. More like the country's obsession with stuff like Hello Kitty, Anime, Manja and Harajuku. Silhouettes were very sculptural here too with giant bows, scalloped hems and embroidered floral patches adding a dramatic flair. Although it was great to see such fun creativity on the runway, I couldn't help but wonder how many of them would actually make it into real life. The pants and the full skirted ball gown style dress - yes, I can see those but most of them had way too much going on and seemed a little restrictive for my liking. A massive bow right across the bust on one dress could hardly be functional and the part bronze, part white dress with a bow right above the knees made me feel the model will fall any minute. Designers do need to constantly experiment, but one shouldn't forget that a collection needs to also be commercially viable. Lets hope next time Alpana & Neeraj strike a good balance between the two.

Alpana & Neeraj SS15

 

Bag Review - Bvlgari Serpenti Forever Medium Flap Bag With Two Gussets

For the last few months I was determined. Determined NOT to buy anything but another Chanel 2.55 that I've been attempting to save up for since the summer. I was more than halfway with my savings till I walked into Harvey Nichols in Dubai a few days ago and there it was, the serpent's head, staring right at me. Remember Kaa the snake from jungle book who goes around hypnotising everyone? Well, that's exactly what this bag did to me! Okay I know I'm being a little dramatic, but the truth was that I had admired the Serpenti Forever bag for a few months now, but for some reason never checked it out at a Bulgari boutique.  This time we just happened to cross paths when strolling through the department store and I'm ever so thankful for that interaction. I played around with it a bit then spent the rest of the evening followed by a sleepless night contemplating emptying all my Chanel savings on this purse.

As a bag lover, I often fall in love with a lot of bags, but every now and then there's that one special piece, that takes your breath away and sweeps you off your feet. Almost like finding THE ONE (except in the bag world, there are multiple the one's). 4pm the next day, I was inside the Bvlgari boutique at Dubai Mall, husband and BFF in tow, paying for a classic black in a medium size. I couldn't have been happier. I was in love. I had after all found the one. Well, for the rest of this year at least!

Moving on to the actual review after all the incessant blabbing! Inspired by the iconic wraparound watch, the bag features a stunning serpent's head closure made from enamel (black & white in my case) with either malachite or jade eyes. The shoulder straps or chain handles are gold and made to resemble a snake's body. I love the purse's minimalist silhouette and the gorgeous detailing of the lines of top stitching on the body. Because of its formal nature, I chose to buy this in a medium size simply because if I'm spending 180,000 INR, I need it to have enough space for me to carry it around during the day as well. The dimensions are 12"width x8.7" height and it can comfortably fit my wallet, sunglasses along with other basic essentials. The double gussets on this model gives it a little more room to expand.

Various internal pockets make it easy to organise your things and the middle zip compartment also has a serpent's head closure. It comes with a cute Bvlgari mirror and even a raincoat that fits the bag like a glove. Honestly, the raincoat is such a smart accessory. I cant tell you how frustrating it is when it starts pouring on that expensive leather. Now the only thing missing is an external pocket for added convenience. Finally, the leather scratches really easily, so please avoid using it roughly (I need to tell myself that more often).

If you happen to be interested in buying this model, the closest country you can purchase it from is Dubai. Unless someone can order it from the states from the Bvlgari website itself. There is merely a 100 dollar difference between the price in Dubai and the US (the American price doesn't include taxes). Click here to check out various models, prices and availability and click here to check out the making.

And on that note, I shall go back to staring at my new love (see photos below). Till the next time..

XOXO
Crazy bag lady

My Baby!

The back of the bag

Double Gussets

Serpent's head on the zip closure

Raincoat and Mirror :)

 

Wills India Fashion Week Round Up - Tarun Tahiliani

There's a reason why Tarun Tahiliani has remained one of the greatest designers of our country. It's not only because he's extremely creative, but he's a great businessman and most importantly, evolves with the times. For SS 15, gone were the heavily embellished, crystal laden lehengas and saris. Instead, miniature paintings by the very talented Singh twins were digitally printed on light and airy clothes. Various versions of the sari were seen. A bright blue one of a midi length that Carol Gracias wore cinched at the waist with and Indianised version of an obi-belt, and a colourful, striped dhoti style sari paired with a massive turban for a bohemian feel stood out.

The designer created clothes that could be so easily incorporated into daily wear wardrobes. Lungis, dhotis, kaftans and skirts printed with the artists' works were made from light fabrics and were extremely wearable. Most of these will be flying off the shelves. There was also a lehenga towards the end where digitally printed scarves (they replaced the traditional chunni) decorated varying hemlines of tulle. Instead of a choli, it was paired with tight fitted top and a turban. What a fun outfit right? There were signature Tarun looks too, but I was too fascinated with everything else the designer offered to pay attention to those.

For me, Tarun's clothes have always been about weddings and special occasions. Not anymore though. Come 2015, I know where I'll be buying clothes for my summer wardrobe. All in all, a truly wonderful blend of India and contemporary fashion.

P.S - I am attaching photos of my favourite looks taken from my phone below because either I get like 10 photos from the show or they're such awful photos I don't want to use them!

 

Brands To Know - Mansur Gavriel

I've been wanting to talk about this super cool brand for a few months now, but somehow it just kept getting side lined with the reviews and the travelling and the god knows what! Anyways, Mansur Gavriel is a hip, new, New York city based label founded by two friends, Rachel Mansur & Floriana Gavriel who design handbags that are currently the biggest rage amongst the fashion flock. Everyone from Karlie Kloss to Sussie Bubble to Eva Chen have been spotted with a Mansur Gavriel.

The bags come in three main shapes - tote, bucket and backpack and are pretty much sold out everywhere especially the bucket bags. The silhouettes are relatively simple and minimalist with a teeny tiny logo in gold. The black models come with the contrast coloured interiors and are so just so beautiful to look at. What I also love is the price factor. It's very rare to find a bag made from superior quality Italian leather and made in Italy that too to have such an affordable price tag. No, it doesn't have to set you back over one lac rupees. Try a range of 40,000 - 80,000 INR depending on the model. 

Bags that are made in Italy, highly coveted and affordable; it's a no brainer why these babies are sold out! Oh by the way, there's a stunning white bucket bag still available on net-a-porter. That was just an FYI :) I've put myself on the wishlist for the red one and am really keeping my fingers crossed!