India Trip Lookbook

I have shared my Good Times I had in India this summer, but I have been meaning to share the outfits, I wore on my trip to India, for a long time now. Though you will notice most of them are Indian outfits/ dresses and that was kind of intentional, well except for this one. I mean it was a freaking HOT summer! So obviously cotton was my go-to fabric of choice. It was almost impossible to wear the denims (colored or regular) in the hot and humid climate of Mumbai, nor leggings (they tend to get clingy with all the humidity around). So good old Punjabi suits were my trusted choice for my day time escapades in the city or around. 

Also, most of the pics below are from my trip to North India (Amritsar - Dalhousie - Dharamshala - Chandigarh). The temps were like 40-50C (which is around 100F) during major parts of my trip. I did wear denims, colored denims, leggings, mostly during night-outs, or day long trips to the mall or blogger meetups/dinners in the evening. But most of time was spent in a comfy and very traditional punjabi suit.

Top and Patiala salwar from Good Things

When in Amritsar, dress in a Patiala (that actually doesn't rhyme much, but you get the drift right?). I mean, wearing this patiala suit just felt absolutely right. We went to see the Golden Temple, Jalianwala Bagh, shopped for jutis and ate chole-bhatura and then ended the day at the Flag Ceremony at the Wagah border (the India-Pakistan border). By the end of the day I was so happy I was wearing this pure-cotton dress, 'cause the North India heat was getting to me by the end of it!

Tunic from a local shop | American Eagle skinny denims

This is a fun tunic that I absolutely dig for its unconventional cut with the side-knotted fancy danglers and the green-piped frill! I have wore it as a dress in the past, and now as a proper tunic with denims. Mind you this was in Dalhousie and the cooler temps made it absolutely bearable necessary to don the denims. I just love the puffed-up short sleeves on the tunic.

Tunic/ Kurta from Gili store | Leggings from Good Things | Dupatta/Scarf from Westside

Did you know that the Gili brand - yes the one with the diamond jewelry stores - now have started stores for Women's apparel too? I didn't know either! I didn't see their stores in every other mall (there was one in Nashik and then another one in a mall in Chandigarh). But I loved their collection and this black and hot-pink kurta/ tunic just caught my fancy. Love how the sleeves are printed. Well, based on my outfit posts, I think you must have guessed that I have a thing for hot-pink ;)

H&M Black top (borrowed from Mum) | Crazy & Co. necklace (seen here) |

The Tribal-print Harem pants are one of my fave purchases during the India trip. I got them for an awesome bargain during street-shopping in Irla, a suburb in Mumbai. They have this exotic print and it's black and white which can be paired with a number of tops and styles. They are on the slim side and not baggy or drop-crotch ones that I absolutely hate; never liked the extra bulk that they add on. There's a little cloth pouch on the side to hold the cell-phone, how cute is that?

Haute Curry Top | Globus capri | Old Navy Earrings

We visited the Rose Garden in Chandigarh and I decide to dress up like one ;) I loved this super-floral and vibrant kurti and I knew I had to have it. It pairs great against the plain denims and the gold piping on the cuffs and neckline gives it a glam-sham look!

Anarkali dress from Kalki in Santacruz, Mumbai

J and I attended a friend's wedding reception and this is what I wore. Anarkali dresses are so in right now, and they have been around for a while actually. But I don't think anybody will tire out of this style. It's so versatile, looks great on any body type, hides the flabs and with the flare you fell like a Indian princess already :) Dangly Kundan earrings, a bracelet and a clutch were my only accessories.

Kurti from Melange, Lifestyle | American Eagle skinny denims | H&M cuff

I wore this to a mehndi/ henna ceremony for my best friend's engagement. The black and gold is a winner combo for any night-out or party. The mega sleeves assured that I didn't have to fold up my sleeves and could adore my hands with mehndi right till my wrist. I wore cute black and gold jhumkas for a more ethnic look.

Left - Tunic from street-shopping at Crawford Market, Mumbai | Leggings from BIBA

Right - Palazzo pants from Hill Road, Bandra | Calvin Klein tee | Leopard-print scarf from NYC street-shopping

These are my off-beat outfits. I wore this neon whimsical-print tunic with leggings to a mother-daughter luncheon and window-shopping session. I had a great time with my mum, her best friend and her daughter. The ladies day out was definitely fun-tastic. Guess this is something I miss doing in the US!
The outfit on the right is what I wore on a drive to Pune. It's one of the comfy-est outfits - Palazzo pants, tee and leopard-print scarf to break the monotone.
Unfortunately, the palazzo pants have shrunk after a washing cycle and obviously I am so bummed that I cannot re-create this look anymore!

Well, hope you enjoyed my India lookbook. Which outfit was your favorite? Do share in the comments below.

Just like back home..

As many of you might know, it was Ganpati celebrations around mid-September and so that's when we headed out to an Indian temple in our neighborhood. The temple trustees had setup traditional decorations, complete with food (modaks, ladoos, kadha-prashad and assorted Indian sweets). We got to attend Ganpati Aartis. Everything was just like the way it is in India, and just all the things I was missing. Festivals don't feel like festivals unless you do all the traditional things, right? All the things that you grew up doing back in India...

Hmmm..badbbudbududba..back to reality (there was a 'nostalgia' moment there). So, well lucky for us we got to experience and take part in the Ganpati celebrations. But wait! there's more.. we did attend the absolute traditional Ganpati celebrations hosted by the Marathi Mandal of Washington, DC. It was just like,  totally like, it is at home - from decorations to the food (yeah, food is a MAJOR factor here). But that's a story for another time (or post shall I say).

I love to wear Indian outfits and I try to wear them every occasion I get. Here's my Outfit-of-the-Day, all complete with bangles (so what they are mismatched :)), bindi, gold-string flats, oh yeah and salwar suit of course. I love the bright colors - purple and pink - how can anyone go wrong with it, right? And the 'chinese' stand collar..dig it BIG time. I tried a different hairstyle here; tied up my hair in a side-ponytail. Some days it just feels right to tie-up your here and get them outta your way. So, what do you think? Hit or a miss..?

Salwar suit from a shop in Thane, Mumbai | Chappals from Catwalk 

| Assorted lack bangles from our trip to Jaipur |

P.S.: Did you notice my nails match my outfit. That almost never happens, you know! So thought I would point it out to you....

How I Styled - Indian Ethinc Wear

Taking a look back, I flaunted my first love - Indian ethnic wear - not so many times as I would have loved to. Nevertheless, all of them are my favorite and now that I am in India, I try to wear more Indian than western clothes. The quintessential punjabi suit is my all time fave, followed by the five-yard sari (black being my color of choice). Thanks to the InFB challenge last year, I put a quirky spin on the regular Indian tunic and styled it like a dress with an ethnic flair :)

Take a look below and choose your pick as to which look you loved the most - sari or suit or tunic?

P.S.: Individual posts are linked to the numbers below.

L-R: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5

P.P.S.: I look so different in Indian wear, don't I? what do you think? :)

LBS - Long Black Sari

I have been MIA (Missing In Action) for quite some time now and I really feel bad for that. Lot of things kept me busy all this while - work, holidays, travel and just life in general! Well, but better late than never right? So here I am back to wish all my readers, well-wishers, blogger friends, sponsors, blog partners a very Happy New Year! May you have a lucky 2013!

And with that sweet and short message I leave you to browse through my LBS aka 'Long Black Sari' pics. I draped this sari for one of the Diwali parties in November 2012. A LBS is absolutely must in a 'Desi' girl's wardrobe for its a knock-out option for special Indian parties. 

Lastly, sorry if some of the pics look blurred - you see, both the photographer and his muse were shivering in the sub-zero temps :)

 

What I am wearing: Sari: Gift from mom (India); Blue pendant and earrings set: street-shopping in Mumbai, India; Flats: street-shopping in Mumbai (India); Silver bangles: Aldo; Ring: Pier 1 Imports; Watch: Fossil (Gift)