LET IT OUT

While trawling through Carter's for getting the long awaited blog shoot, landed at an event 'Art by the Sea' by Le Sutra where artists displayed their work and were also painting their creations in-person by the sea.

Inspired by the art....

On my wrist - Cartier Roadster Watch, Hermes Clic-Clac H Bracelet , Lily Cluster by Harry Winston Bracelet

Jacket by River Island, Diesel Jeans, Tee, Shoes and Bag from Zara

There are always those pieces loitering in the back of (everyone's?) wardrobe, all spruced up with butter paper wraps and uncut price tags boasting their virginity, and longing to be taken out for a ride. That's been pretty much the story of my online endeavored jacket, I ordered from River Island ages ago, and the spiky studded heels from Zara that was an impulse buy for the sheer beauty of it (just for the record, Zara has some of the most uncomfortable heels, these shoes sure look fabulous, but they are equally uncomfortable in the functionality department).

We sometimes just keep things locked up inside, waiting for that right occasion or moment to LET IT OUT (which somehow never comes) only to realise how much have we piled up and complicated it, just like our wardrobes. We buy new things but keep it locked in to realise there's so much piled up inside and disorganised just because most of it has not been out. Here are three ways to ensure that we don't stress ourselves up whether it's life or wardrobe:

1. Organize: Seek order, don't let things pile up. The more often we organize the happier life gets.

2. Try New Things: Finding new ways of having fun, thinking out of the box or finally doing what you've long been thinking off (But actually never did) is a great way to reduce tension. Similarly, trying new looks, taking out those statement pieces that we've been procrastinating to wear for the 'right occasion' even if its just for a cup of coffee.

3. Use a support system: An expensive stylist (or psychiatrist) is not necessary to resolve the troubles. Your friends, family or any other support system will help you solve problem and reduce stress. Talking it out will resolve half the problems and you never know one of them will come up with a clever idea that'll just vanish all troubles in a jiffy (or atleast be there for you so you don't have to face it all alone). So instead of piling it up, call up your friends or sister and play dress up. You'll discover a new you (all that dress up will help you style your wardrobe in a way you never thought would work for you) and get rid of the unrequired and make the maximum of what was left locked up or undiscovered.

How do you plan to LET IT OUT?

Spr-IN-g The Mood

When you do not have the budget to shop, a wishlist always comes in handy. While rummaging through my closet I discovered the lack of Spring pieces in it and immediately switched on my computer to for some online shopping.

Zara Tee, Skirt, Blazer and Shoes were instant love for springing the closet. These basic pieces are perfect for 'this season' and can be easily recycled to other seasons. The white bag is from Stella McCartney (I can imagine tonnes of outfits I can carry it with). BTW I totally love Stella for the fact that she proved that you don't have to take life of someone for luxury. These Vita Fede bracelets have been on my lust list for a while now and they're perfect with this look. And how can you not buy a new pair of sunglasses for Spring? It would be a crime not to, and hence to save myself from a criminal offense I had to pic these beauties from Prada (cat eyed Sunglasses). To complement the spring yellow the lips had to stand out with the bright passionate neon orange.

So what are you in mood for?

Pick and Choose - Indian Designers

While I always complaint about the fit and cut of western clothes by Indian designers (somehow most fail to impress me with their visually appealing but unflattering creations) but after browsing through collections of some designers in-person, on runway and off runway, I am inordinately pleased (in fact elated, absolutely-elated) that Indian designers are finally coming up with wearable silhouettes and defined cuts in their Western collections.

Clothes from Nikhil Thampi, Nupur Kanoi and Cue by Rohit Gandhi and Rahul Khannaare on top of  my wishlist.  In fact this very moment I am working out ways on how to route some pieces to make its way to my wardrobe.

Nupur Kanoi - Jackets and Trousers

Let the sunshine out to let your metallics shine. Defying the commonplace notions that anything blingy must come out in the night, Nupur Kanoi brings a twist to summerwear (you could wear your bling from day to night).

Metallic infusion in day's clothing, smart jackets and pants in pastels and whites with metallic accents and feminity played up with androgyny is surely on my lust list now. Nupur Kanoi may not be a name that you would have heard of (if you're a highheelconfidential addict, ignore the former statement), but a look at her collection and it would be a name you'd never want to forget. After a fabulous last season, Kanoi continues to dazzle with her recent collection. Crisp white tunic and pants are just that crisp and white but not without a delicious topping of a droolworthy metallic jacket. Versatility, luxe and wearability with an element of awe and surprise is the winning formula in Kanoi's collection.

 

Nupur Kanoi Summer 2013 Resortwear

    

Nupur Kanoi (Image Source)

Neha Dhupia in Nupur Kanoi Jacket  

 Nupur Kanoi A/W 2012

Nikhil Thampi - Smart yet sultry

The structured silhouette and androgyny from Thampi's creations is just what my wardrobe needs at the moment. Structured dress with surprise sheer detailing, pant suit with unexpected open back and  an interesting colour blocking with yellow, white and gold. His controlled and tenacious attitude towards silhouette is what is making his creations beautiful and unconventional.

Nikhil Thampi Source and Source

Cue by Rohit Gandhi and Rahul Khanna - Sequin Kings

I've always loved the sequin kings', Rohit Gandhi and Rahul Khanna, label Cue (have been their loyal customer since 2001 when they retailed at 1 MG Road, Delhi and although its been almost a decade it still sucks that the mighty place{it was the Emproio Mall of those times} was demolished). The designer duo's recent collection has only upped thousand notches since then (so have their prices) with interesting jackets, colour infusion and dresses that would sure make heads turn. Detailing, detailing, detailing. Fresh silhouettes and bright hues are evoking a sense that the brand's trying to revamp while sticking to their roots of mix of modern and luxury.

Sequinned shirts are my favourite from their collection but I still have a minor gripe about how their dress falls on me (not very flattering), however it does look great on everyone I spotted, and considering they do make to order I am definitely craving for one.

   

Image Source

Freida Pinto in Cue by Rohit Gandhi Rahul Khanna'

Who's your favourite Indian designer (not for Indianwear)?

Quattro - Best Vegetarian Restaurant in Mumbai

Quattro, Mumbai

The wall I was sitting adjacent to, love it

Torta Formaggio 

(Spiced cheese cups filled with cheese mousse with grilled asparagus, olive and cherry tomatoes)

An interesting Baked Spaghetti

That's what you call a good presentation and a delectable Risotto (clicked it from my phone)

Cheesecake (except me everyone else liked it) (another phone click)

Tres Leches (Mexican Dessert) - tasted like heaven

Oh yes it is a fashion blog, yet you find food peering-in every now and then, causing ripples of confusion - WHAT IS FOOD DOING HERE? I wouldn't call myself a foodie {I like food, but I am not one of those who'd dream chocolate mousses or paneer tikka in the night}. However finding a tasteful (tasteful in the sense of fashion and not taste) vegetarian restaurant is just as hard as putting together a tasteful look. So for the benefit of the society at large, it's pivotal to steer away the fashion route for the moment to discuss one of the treasured places in the world of stomach (and in the city of Mumbai) - the fine dining Mexican and Italian vegetarian restaurant 'Quattro' {holy moly am I calling a restaurant treasured and yet denying myself as being a foodie? Oh yes I am. You ought to call it 'treasured' because once you start hunting for vegetarian restaurants anywhere in the world you'd soon discover that the terms veg and fine dine are nearly oxymoron}.

One of the first things you'll notice when you walk in the restaurant is their dessert counter. The counter is filled with delicious and equally appealing sponge cakes, pies, cheese cakes and mousse. So whatever you have never overdose yourself to risk skipping the dessert. High chair table for two, sofa seating and art deco table overlooking the open kitchen, there are a variety of seating options to choose from.

What to order:  pesto Bruchetta would make for a good start, two tortillas sandwiched with beans, jalapenos and cheese in the name of Mexicano Pizza is one of my favourites, for an experiment try baked spaghetti, any of their {Italian} pizzas, and always leave the room for Tres Leches, (a Mexican dessert that literally means three milks cake). You'll love me forever. It is finger licking good and a delightful break from all the chocolate dessert overdose (really where's the creativity, everything good in dessert is nowadays chocolate?). Unfortunately they stopped doing Apple Struddle sometime back that tasted heaven.

Quattro is definitely my favourite restaurant in Mumbai with its good service, unfussy elegant décor and amazing vegetarian food. I think now even the staff knows me well, thanks to my frequent visits.

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Oh and where's what I wore... (this is how I finally styled the skirt {remember One skirt 3 ways?}) for shopping at Zara, Palladium and a dinner at Quattro across the street ... To translate the look from day to night and to evoke a certain feeling that befits Quattro's tasteful food, its dim lights and interesting decor I wore a shimmery vest and a pretty necklace (picked from Causeway Colaba) with the nude lacey skirt.

(not exactly the top I am wearing below)

H&M Skirt, Nine West Shoes, Vegetarian Love Moschino Bag, Mango Vest, Necklace from Causeway Colaba

Photo Credit: Meghna Saraogi Photography

P.S. Quattro is located in Lower Parel, opposite Phoenix Mills Mall, Mumbai (02267496444)

SHOPBOPPING

A couple of weeks ago I unexpectedly landed on shopbop.com (I've seen their online store a couple of times earlier) and thought I'd dish up a bit for some window shopping and the seemingly harmless browsing ended up in an indulgence (towards the end of the month when the bank balance was already not hitting the right notes).

Marie Claire Spain

Now before you start raising your brow, in my defense I am really bored of my wardrobe and it needs some serious overhaul. So when I spotted this Tibi emerald green top with (what looked like) subtle bling and unstructured cut, it suddenly became a 'must buy'. I mean how could it not? Besides while browsing online I came across this spread (of Olivia above) and it inspired me into buying the emerald green bling.

Since I was already buying something, I had to buy a basic tee (seriously I barely have them, I always loathed tee but lately a sudden discovery of their practicality compelled me to reconsider their existence {no-existence actually} in my wardrobe). The tee didn't fit as I'd expected, but a teeny-weeny alteration should fix that.

I couldn't resist taking it out from the wardrobe and putting it on, so here I am smugly coffee-ing around in my new buy.

  

Tibi Top, Zara Shoes, Bershka Jeans, Nine West Bag

Now about Shopbopping, my online shopping has become a never-ending obsession. Latest find www.shopbop.com (great store to quench your designer fetish) - its wonderful place to shop and find all cool stuff that is otherwise unavailable in your country (their sale period is the best time to get some great bargains).

The shopping experience at shopbop.com - wonderful, easy to navigate, multiple filters to choose from the right selection and a quick checkout together made it a great place to shop. Their free international express shipping tempted me to buy, and it indeed was quick. I received my stuff within 5 days delivered to my doorstep directly from UK (and they had all taxes including customs already added in the checkout that made life a lot easier).

Share your online shopping experience, would love to know about new places to shop from ;)

Tomorrow is Monday, the morning blues are already daunting 

P.S. in case you're wondering, this is not a sponsored post. I dread it though, I think I ought to be paid for it, don't you think?

Unchartered discovery - Bombay Paperie in Peplum

Intriguing snippet of how the paper is made from cotton waste in Daulatabad

 

One afternoon while passing through the Dalal Street, after an official meeting, a store caught my attention and my curious self followed my instinct and opened the door of store that called itself Bombay Paperie. What I first discovered was beautiful colourful papers neatly stacked in piles and piles across a huge store and I immediately  hopped in to check it out. Besides, a cheery colourful store bang opposite the hustle and bustle of Bombay Stock Exchange definitely made it all the more interesting.

A few minutes into the store and I was completely glued by the sheer beauty of the papers and more importantly its history. The paper at Paperie not any ordinary paper, its history dates back to the time of Emperor Jehangir. All the paper in the store is handmade and made 'not from trees' but cotton waste. The pictures displayed in the store giving a brief on how the paper in made by hands is quite fascinating. The cotton waste is soaked in water for days and then beaten slowly into pulp which is then made into sheets of paper with marvelous texture. Intriguing, art and environmental friendly.

Paperie had its inception with the noble cause of saving this age old tradition of making paper by restoring the paper-making center in Daulatabad (one of the last such centers left in India).

I never imagined that I could be so moved by paper.

The Paperie sells cards, notepads, paper lamps (can you imagine? and they're beautiful), pen stand, flowers, sculptures, gift boxes, gift bags (all made from paper) and other paper baubles that totally hooked me for good one hour.

And I could not leave the store without buying myself one of the goodies from the store {I am not the one to give hand written cards, but had to buy something}, which indeed was difficult considering I loved pretty much everything there. I finally settled for this beautiful folder with handpaper envelopes and small block printed cards in pink and green.

After visiting the store I have tonnes of ideas for using this paper art on the walls of my room that I am planning to redecorate.

Ahhh, and right after this amazing discovery I headed off to grab some coffee at the Fort Starbucks bubbling with enthusiasm and new found love in paper (btw you ought to visit the Fort Starbucks, by far its the best I encountered among hundreds I visited on all my travels across the world).

Zara Shoes and Peplum Top, 7 for All Mankind Jeans, Fendi Bag, Cartier Watch

{in case you're wondering why is my pic hazy, its clicked from phone}