GLAMOROUS ACCESSORIES: The White and Gold Jewel Clutch

I love clutch bags like this,with pretty stones and crystals in them and which are striking enough to glam up most outfits. I got this clutch bag from my husband as part of my vari or bari, as his family pronounces it (which is basically the bridal trousseau given to the bride from the groom's family), along with a few outfits, some bangles, shoes and jewellery.

This was one of my favourite things which was given to me - I love the jewelled patterns and the classical pearl white and gold combination, which is perfect for a lot of my outfits. It's also quite solid and heavy, and makes a very pretty accessory - you can't see it, but it's also very, very sparkly which is ideal for me!

I've used this a couple of times already, which I'll be posting about soon - although like most clutch bags, this one doesn't fit a lot of things inside!

East Shopping Centre comes to Green Street!

I happened to go to Green Street today (part work reasons, part grocery shopping, part me being nosey about the latest outfits in the shops!) and was surprised to see that a new shopping mall has arrived in the middle of Green Street, called the East Shopping Centre.

It was actually a bit of a shock to me, because I wasn't aware it was open (I had heard that there was a mall opening soon but didn't realise it was this soon) and didn't realise the scale of the mall. Of course, I took the opportunity to stroll around and look at all the shiny new shops, and loved the range of clothes shops, shoe shops, food places and dessert place I saw!

It was lovely to see a lot of bridal shops, event planning and modest-wear shops in one place, which I think will all be pretty popular for shoppers and brides to be. I was quite excited to see Aab, a hijab and abayah store which I've only seen online up til now (although the store wasn't open yet), and a few other hijab and abayah shops which I wanted to check out.

While this isn't quite the Asian equivalent of Westfield yet, I think this is a nice change from the usual shops I've seen, and I'll be popping in again to see more of the shops when they arrive.

Have you been here yet? What do you think of it?

 

 

Colour of 2015: Marsala

Colour experts, Pantone recently announced the colour of 2015 - Marsala, inspired by the earthy red colour of Marsala wine.

I love how this makes a change from the vibrant colours of the last few years, last year Radiant Orchid was the colour of 2014, the year before that was Emerald, and who can forget Oranges entering our wardrobe palettes only two years before?

I've seen this colour already trending in fashion, beauty and and accessories, and to be honest, it actually is a colour that does appeals to me. I've seen a lot of bloggers and critics who have expressed some doubts on whether this is a wearable colour, and whether it will suit everyone, but I think it is a tone which can actually be worn and gives an elegant style. I'm a big fan of dark reds, maroons and wine shades, and although Marsala is looking to be more earthier and duller in tone, there's room for interpretation and it's a flattering tone on a lot of people (in my opinion).

Below are just a few examples I've seen of this colour in the last month, I've noticed this colour become popular due to the wintry season, dark, vampy lips, red nails and dramatic dark red party dresses have all become quite trendy - I've even picked up a few darker red lipsticks and dresses myself!

I'm curious to see whether this colour will filter into Pakistani and Indian fashion this year, I can imagine that it will become a popular colour with fusion designers and designers who are based in the West. I'll reserve my judgement til I see more, but I have high hopes!

What do you think of this colour? Can you see yourself wearing it this year?

An Indian Take on Disney Brides

You may have already seen this floating around on the internet, but I thought this was a really fun photo shoot and thought I'd repost. Amrit Grewal, of Amrit Photography took the idea of Disney Princesses and re-thought the idea, with really pretty results.

The sets were designed by Universal Decor Events, and the photo-shoot was conceptualised and directed by Jasmine Nijjar, marketing manager for Wellgroomed Designs, which is an Indian couture bridal salon in Vancouver. I love the end-result for this, the photographer captured the dreamy look well and it was nice to see a range of maxi dresses, lenghas, saris and beautiful jewellery and styling.

While not everyone may want to go for a princessy look for their wedding day, I really like the fact that this photo shoot shows it can be done, and that there can be different interpretations to an idea (I liked the fact that for once Jasmine gets to wear a dress and not Ali Baba pants). My favourite is probably the Sleeping Beauty one though, I love the beautiful surrounding flowers, the dreamy setting and the amazingly luxurious dress.

What do you think of this photo series, did you like the costumes?

 Image source

COPYCAT DESIGNS & DRESSES #12: The Pink & Orange Maria B Bridal

It's been ages since I did one of these posts! It's been a while, mainly because I haven't been buying as many new outfits, and also because I was pretty preoccupied with wedding planning and bridal outfits. I thought I'd write about a Copycat (or inspired) outfit, seeing as one of the things I have found over the years which remains consistent over the years of my blogging - is that a lot of people finding inspiration on the catwalk and from higher-end designers when designing their own bridal outfits and party wear.

This was an outfit that I got made during my preperations for my wedding, and which was inspired by a Maria B bridal from her 2012 collection that I've had my eye on for a while. My dress was actually a quick, last minute buy but which I loved because it didn't cost much and didn't take up a lot of time to order. I also was happy enough with the way this outfit ended up looking that I secretly kept it as a back-up for a mehndi outfit in case I couldn't wear my actual mehndi outfit or there were any issues with it (thankfully there weren't).

I ended up wearing this outfit on one of my dholki nights, which I got a lot of compliments for (I also wore it again a few weeks after my wedding to a friend's wedding!). At the time I didn't dress the outfit up too much because of the amount of work on the kameez/top, which I thought was extravagant enough, and didn't need too much extra bling from jewellery as well.

This is the original Maria B bridal design, which I fell in love with when I first saw the collection, and which I thought had a really pretty colour combination of watermelon pink, light orange and sky blue.

This is my outfit, which I ordered online from Pakistan from a seller I found through the ever valuable GupShup website, which has a variety of designers that I've used before. I chose a new seller who I haven't used before, called Rifzah, and who I thought I'd give a try because I liked a few of her designs. I didn't make many changes to the outfit except to ask that the border was made less heavier and also that there was less work on the neckline, which would reduce the price of the outfit and also made it less weighty.

The outfit itself was well-stitched, but the work on it was quite simple and wasn't the best quality. I liked the simpler neckline and the added sequins all over the kameez which gave it a lot of sparkle, but the crystals, beading and stones weren't the most superior quality (although it's also the reason why I got the outfit for a cheaper price!)

This is me wearing it to a friend's wedding a few weeks after I wore it to my dholki nights, for some reason the main colour looks red (dodgy lighting, I know), but the colour is actually a pretty watermelon pink. The duppatta is also very simple with jamawar piping to match the sharara bottoms, which also had velvet piping.

THE GOOD: The outfit was very flattering on my figure, it wasn't too fitted and felt very comfortable on. My favourite part are the sleeves, I love funky colours which stand out. I also liked the sharara bottoms which were not too heavy and easy to walk around in, and also added a pop of blue which contrasted the rest of the outfit. I also loved the swirling design all over the kameez which I've seen in other similar outfits by designers like Nomi Ansari and Sana Safinaz, and it was nice to see a clear swirly design all over the dress which didn't look too much.

THE BAD: As I mentioned before the quality of the embroidery and work was not the best, and I didn't like the fact that it didn't look longlasting. Having said that, the dress had gota work all over it (strips of gold fabric) which added a pretty look to it.

THE UGLY: Tripping over my sharara a few times. Even with my heels on. Yikes.

OVERALL: Overall, I paid about £120 or roundabouts for this suit, so I wasn't expecting something of superior quality, and for what I paid, I received a pretty wearable outfit. The outfit order didn't take long to do, and I received my outfit within four weeks of placing my order. I also liked the fact that I still got a considerable amount of work on my outfit, and that it worked well with the outfit. While I don't think this will be one of my favourite outfits in my wardrobe, it's not one of the worst outfits I've ordered either! I can also see that now shorter hemlines are coming back into fashion, this design looks a little more traditional and formal, which may feel a little too much to wear, although I think I made the most of this outfit for now!

My Blogging Year...A Look back at 2014!

2014 was a very eventful year for me, especially as I had a lot of personal events happening in one go! I wanted to do a quick re-cap of a few things I have blogged about in my year, in case you missed some of them!

I got engaged - I was lucky enough to have my wedding fixed with my husband (at the time, to-be-husband) and started the mad flurry of wedding outfit designing, finding venues, caterers, and looking for all the various wedding things that comes up!

I had two new baby nieces born - to two of my older sisters (and both of them are now smiley little pixies!). They were both a beautiful blessing to their parents and to us, their aunties (and their cousins!), and have spent the last six months making us giggle.

I got married in a beautiful and crazy series of functions which almost passed in a blur! I had an amazing series of events, which made me feel pretty amazing and also gave me an opportunity to not behave so bridezilla-ish, and spend time with my family! Here's some of the outfits I wore during the wedding, I don't have a favourite because I loved them all!

I moved into my new house with my husband, and now have a huge wardrobe. Seriously, it actually fits all of my beautiful Asian clothes. Having said that, the look on my husband's face when he saw them all is something else.

I went on my honeymoon to the amazing Istanbul, and had some amazing food and saw some amazing sights. It's put the travel bug in me already, and I'm sure I'll be going somewhere again very soon!

There were several other things which happened this year, but these were the highlights of the year for me. I don't expect 2015 to be as stressful as 2014 was, but I do hope it's as fun! I've had plenty of dawats (dinners with family, friends' and relatives) which aren't quite done yet, and lots of opportunities to meet some lovely people, and find beautiful clothes, lipsticks and food.

Having said that, I don't really have any new year resolutions, but I am looking forward to the next year because I think it will be a new challenge, and it'll be especially fun to learn new things (like cooking!) and spend time with my husband and my family!

Happy New Year! Welcome 2015!

Just wanted to wish you a Happy New Year, full of new clothes, new friends and lots of blessings for you all! Here's hoping 2015 is an eventful and enjoyable one - anyone have any plans made for this year?