Something Blue...

I love seeing cakes that are a little different from the norm and still look beautiful, and it's always great seeing the beautiful ideas out there. I loved this blue and white wonder by Pretty Sweet Cakes by Savera, which really appeals to the artistic side of me, and looks incredibly dreamy. It's something which would be a real eye-catching piece at a wedding ceremony, and would set a blue-and-white theme beautifully and simply.

For the dreamers in us, eh?

Pics belong to Pretty Sweet Cakes by Savera

KAPRAY SHAPRAY: Neha Dhupia in Striking Blue Manish Malhotra

I love this simple, yet very striking Manish Malhotra outfit worn by Bollywood starlet Neha Dhupia, who carried the dress beautifully, worn last year alongside several other beautiful outfits by the same designer and worn by celebrities.

I love the rich colours of this outfit, and the full skirt which looks incredibly fun to wear (and swish!), with a lovely combination of blues, dull gold and a red border. Although it's not really a practical outfit for a lot of brides to wear, or consumers looking for party wear for various occaisons, it's still something to draw inspiration from :)

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GLAMOROUS ACCESSORIES: Huge Green & Gold Kundan Ring

Yep, another huge kundan ring! Saw these lovelies in a shop called Ramsha (in Ilford, East London) which I really liked, there were a couple of colours, bright blue, amber browny-gold and these two, a lovely pink and a teal-y green. I was quite torn between these two as both looked really pretty in their own colours, and they would go well with a lot of my outfits; the pink looks really pretty and girly and the green is just a really lovely shade of colour which really appealed to me.

So yep, I went with the green. I was quite pleased with the choice too, it's a nice,rich green which goes well with the white stones and the gold metal.
The ring itself is quite huge, but looks very well made and fits very securely on my hand :)

 

And here's an idea of just how big it is on my hand (it seriously looks like a battle armour shield for my hand!), and how much of a statment piece it is.

I managed to snap this up for just £12, and last I checked there were still a couple of rings left in case you wanted one! I think these make really nice, traditional pieces which can really jazz up an outfit, and I've seen these worn on mehndi nights which look great when you want a minimal jewellery-look.

What do you think of it? Think I should have gone for the pink?

BOLLYWOOD ISHTYLE: Karishma Kapoor's Bridal Red

There's a few outfits which I think look pretty enough and striking enough to look good at any time of the year, whether it's due to good tailoring, beautiful colours or well-put together design.

I love this long red outfit by Manav Gangwani showcased at HDIL India Couture Week in Mumbai from a few years back, which is an example of this - although it may be a bit heavy for some, it makes a beautiful alternative for a bridal dress. Karishma Kapooor looks beautiful in her iconic fitted churidar pants and long kameez, which she was often seen wearing in her films of the 90s, and it's something which would look great today (also, my sister had something extraordinarily similar to this about a decade ago!)

I'm a big fan of velvet when it's used well, and I think it looks pretty here, with the beautifully fitted ling sleeves and dramatic neckline. If only we could all pull it off like Karishma though, eh?

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OUTFIT Of The Day: Red & Gold Anarkali and Glittery Shoes!

Went to a lovely Morroccan wedding yesterday, saw some seriously beautiful outfits (more about this later!), and enjoyed seeing a lot of singing, dancing, and some fabulously bling shoes. Oh, and the food was lovely, of course.

I chose to wear this dress as I thought it would look nice and sparkly with some golden pumps and a chocolate brown scarf, matched with one of my more extravagant hijab pins. I was pretty pleased with it all in the end (although my feet were a bit worn out by the end of the night!)
Here's a picture of the outfit I put together:

And this is me wearing the dress and a flash of the shoes too, in all it's swishy glory (sorry for the dodgy lighting!):

I've worn this dress before and I love how comfy it is, and how sparkly it looks. It's very easy to wear, doesn't need much accessorising, and has a great shape to it. I also like the fact that it's quite a classic shape, so will still be wearable even with the long dresses trend at the moment.

This was an outfit that a friend kindly ordered from India for me, and it's in brilliant shape for the last year and half that I've had it, the quality of the work, stitching and material has lasted beautifully, and looks very flattering (not to mention purse friendly!) This suit has been one which I always get compliments on, and I can imagine a few future occasions I'll be wearing it to :)

DESIGNER MODE: Designs by Saree Swarg

There are a lot of companies forming online which sell more affordable pieces which are inspired from outfits in Bollywood, designers in India and Pakistan, and sourced from a lot of shops in these places. I find that there are a few places which have had some good reviews, with prices either matching the high street or even being cheaper. I haven't tried any of these online shops myself so I can't recommend any (yet!), but I have seen a variety of pretty dresses and saris which are a great alternative for those of you looking for cheaper outfits or different designs.

One example of these is Saree Swarg, which has outfits from around £60 and upwards, and look quite affordable and similar to the prices on the high street, and has a fair good range of designs. I've posted a few pictures of their designs here to get an idea, they're not extravagant designs, but pretty, colourful and very wearable. My favourite design which has caught my eye is the first one, which is around £80 for the suit. Although this dress doesn't have a lot of embellishment, I love the colours used and the rich fabrics, and I can imagine this would make great party piece and the fact that it looks so dressy without needing much effort.

There are a lot of the more simpler designs and more classic designs, which suggest value for money, but this may not appeal to everyone who may want something more fashionable. In any case, have a browse, if anything, it may be a source of inspiration!

 Images belong to Saree Swarg

LOVELY HIJAB: Scarves from Phulkari

Here's a scarf my sister got recently from the lovely shop Phulkari in East London, which were selling some BEAUTIFUL, soft cotton scarves which were nice and light, and perfect for the summer heat.

There were a few different designs, but this is the one she liked in the end, and I think the colours look really fab. I may have to steal it soon...

MAKE-UP REVIEW: Elegant Eye-Liner Flicks

I love my eyeliner. Out of everything I wear, my eyeliner is my staple, go-to, magic make-up product which has the ability to turn me from zombie-licious to, well, a girl. I love my flicks too, especially because I really find that it elongates the eye and really gives some shape to it which looks really elegant.

I'm always on the lookout for more ideas, and thought these would be amazing to try, especially as they all vary in terms of dramatic to subtle, and there's something to suit everyone! Also, it's a good way to practise, especially as I find some people are better at using either pencil or liquid liner than the other - and these are great for inspiration.

I think I'll try the fourth one down tomorrow (Retro style), although maybe without the falsies!

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KAPRAY SHAPRAY: Sultry Sabyasaachi

Here's some Sabyasaachi love again! This time courtesy of Pakistan's Sunday Times, with some beautiful sultry beauties on their cover dressed in beautiful Sabyasaachi, and some very interesting jewellery accessories. I love the fact that these aren't typically fair models used (although I suspect they've just been over-bronzed) and the fact that they look very traditionally Indian, yet also very simply dressed, with an emphasis on beautiful, rich fabrics.
Maybe a beautiful, tanned look for the summer? Either way, it's classic Sabyasaachi, I love all three outfits and they look classic, well-made and absolutely lovely.

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MEHNDI NIGHTS: Colourful Khusay as Mehndi Decor AND Favours

I LOVE this idea by this blogger at 'My Shaadi Obssession', who suggests the idea of using these traditional shoes or khusay as mehndi decor for a very colourful, boho-chic look. Apparently these were used for a real mehndi/sangeet even, in which the couple gave them away as favours to the guests - what a memorable idea!

Image via Shaadi Obssession tumblr

DESIGNER MODE: Rohit Bal

Following on from my post about pretty jackets, I thought I'd carry on the theme and look at Indian designer Rohit Bal's beautiful designs. A lot of his outfits on the catwalk has really caught my eye with some of his beautiful, flowy designs, with rich use of colour and some seriously beautiful fusion of traditional Indian styles with the twenty-first century daring styles. I like the fact that there is quite an 'Indian' feel to his clothes, yet they're also very stylish and very wearable. I've noticed that he's started leaning towards flowy designs more recently, and I love what he's come up with, with various combinations of jackets and skirts, or very gorgeously designed saris and maxi dresses.

These are a few of his designs from his Kaarigari collection at Lakme Fashion Week only a couple on months ago. My favourite design is the first (although it did remind me slightly of these outfits, especially the last one) because of the contrast in the black and gold and the lovely work on it, but I do love the tailoring and the beautifully put-together colours of all of these - I'll certainly be looking out for more of Bal's designs in future.

Images from Rohit Bal FB group

QUIRKY FASHION: Patrotic Khusay by Unze

In the spirit of the Olympic (I think anyways!) retailers Unze have designed various khusay with countries' flags on them. Not sure how popular these will be but they did make me chuckle when I saw them. I'm still deciding which country I'd be likely to wear though (probably none). My sisters may be getting one of these though!

BRIDE COUTURE: Soha Ali Khan Photo shoot for Verve Magazine

I came across this photoshoot a while back which Soha Ali Khan did last year for Verve Magazine , and thought it was very traditional and pretty. I love the use of spring colours and beautiful embellishment, with simply-done hair styles and pretty accessories. There's an appealing, old-fashioned style to these which are very well put together, and there's certainly a lot of inspiration to be had from these!

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