Valentine’s Day Outfits

Jan29

Hello Readers,

Hope you all are having great year so far. Almost a month of new year is done, make sure your goals are on track. As promised in my Latest Saree Trends post will share our Sankranti looks/celebrations in next post. Since Valentine’s day is very soon thought I would share few of my picks. Is valentine’s day a big deal for you? ok without further due let’s get started.

Starting with Tops

Tops

Links are in the order of numbering

  1. Sweater – If you are looking something to twin with your daughter, this is a good option. Giving links for both Adult and lilone
  2. Sequin crop top I personally like it as it goes well with sarees too.
  3. Peplum Mesh Sleeves top , goes well with pencil skirts too
  4. Pull over knit top , perfect for outings in winter.

Red color dresses

Dresses

Links in the order of numbering, all are my favorites but love #3

  1. Mock Neck Midi Dress
  2. Hearts Midi Dress
  3. Button Trim Shift Dress
  4. Twist at front Sheath Dress

Pinks and More

pinks and more

Links in the ordering of numbering, I personally love flares and knee length dresses. I added couple of short dresses if you like to see more options for short and fitted dresses do let me know in comments will consider them next time

  1. Cut work Maxi Dress
  2. Crochet Mini Dress
  3. Floral Print Maxi Dress
  4. Ruffled Long Sleeve Dress
  5. Pink Floral Dress

Jump Suits

Body Suit

Links in the order of numbering

  1. Jersey Jump Suit
  2. Lace Jump Suit – This is off shoulder but can be styled with a scarf or shrug like this
  3. Mock Neck Jump Suit

Finally PJ

If you are following my insta you would probably know I love PJs. Found this cute sleepwear perfect for valentine’s day on Amazon thought of sharing

PJ

Hope you like my picks and choose from them. See you next time. Until then take care of yourself and each other.

This entry was posted on January 29, 2022, in Dress, Fashion.

Happy New Year

Jan1

Hello All,

I am back for a quick blog on casual outfits for New Year get together at work or with your friends.  Few of them are reused and restyled. Take a look at the pictures to get an idea

Animal Print Sweater and a black Skirt, Fur coat from Shein
Pleated Skirt and White Sweater. Skirt @amazon
Dress @asos
Dress @Shein
Kurta Styled with Oxidized Silver, Kurta @Bunaai

With 2021 coming to an end, I just want to say I am thankful for the year and grateful for all the opportunities it provided. We had some stress when my dad was hospitalized due to Covid back in India but thank God he recovered. I want to welcome New year with New Hope, New Spirits, More Happiness, Health and Achievements.

What are your New Year resolutions? Well, I usually don’t have any resolutions for the fear of not keeping them but this time I want to improve my public speaking skills. Last month I was invited for a fire side chat about my role at work, for few of the questions I felt I could have articulated them well. Hence want to get better at public speaking.

Signing off for now. Hope you all will have a wonderful year ahead and wish you all a very Happy New Year 2022.

See you all with new post in 2022. Until then Stay Safe, Take Care of you and each other.

Merry Christmas

Dec31

Hello ladies,

Hope you all had nice holiday. We certainly did. This is the first blog where I am sharing my lifestyle and how we celebrated Christmas. Without further due let’s get started.

Hmm where should I start? First let’s talk about Christmas Tree, if you are following me on Instagram, I shared my thoughts on setting up Christmas Tree. Sharing the same here, growing up we never set up Christmas tree because of the traditions we follow.  I never thought I would set up a tree in my house, not that I am against to it. I love to celebrate each and every festival given I know the process and reason behind celebrations. But once my kid started going to daycare, she used to get handmade ornaments with her cute pictures inside them and I thought it is good to have a tree so I can hang all those handmade ornaments and cherish the moments every year. Also made a promise that I will use only handmade ornaments to fill up the tree over the years.

With our Tree – Saree @adhya.creations

On Christmas Eve afternoon my 7 yr old wanted to bake Vegan Sugar cookies, she searched up the recipe on internet.  We baked and frosted the cookies. They turned out good. Below are our pictures and also has the recipe link if you want to try it out.

Sugar Cookies

Later we went on drive to checkout holiday lights. Came back quickly had dinner and changed into our family matching pajamas (pjs). I have seen pictures of other families with matching pjs but never occurred to me that our family should try it out until my 7 yr. old suggested it. Part of the reason is because I assumed my husband might not like to wear colorful pjs, he was totally fine when my 7-year-old asked. On that note we should communicate clearly what we want than assuming for any relationship to work. Never be passive aggressive.

Pjs @amazon

On Christmas, we start the day with hot cocoa it became a tradition to us and then kids open Gifts. Coming to Gifts, As I said before we didn’t have tradition to celebrate Christmas, so I have these questions about giving Gifts to kids. Am I spoiling them? Should we even start this tradition of giving gifts? Will I be able to continue this? But I made peace with these answers, Dec 25th is also our marriage anniversary so Gifts to kids is part of celebrating “us and love”. Also thought once kids go back to school after holidays, they might talk about gifts they received and why should I take away that conversation as the saying goes when you are in Rome be like a roman. Also, as kids grow up, we should talk about budget on Gifts, giving to others and why it is important to choose budget/eco-friendly gifts. Hope this makes sense.

Hot cocoa and Avocado Toast
Anniversary special

Usually, we got to Temple on the occasion of our marriage Anniversary but as Covid cases are raising again we didn’t go anywhere this time.  Afternoon spent time with family, playing some games and singing songs, for dinner we had tacos.

Tacos for dinner.

We ended the day by watching ‘The 48 Christmas wishes’ movie on Netflix. It is a kid’s movie.

Hope you liked this post. Do comment and let me know. See you in next post.

Budget Lehenga – First and Last post of 2019

Dec31

Hello Fashionistas,

Hope you all are busy celebrating and welcoming the New Year. I realized that I have not posted anything in 2019. 2019 started with lot of work related travel in the first half and later some personal changes that are yet to unfold and keeping me away from focusing on blogging. I am glad to be back now.  Coming to the main topic, I wanted to post about this last year January for a South Indian festival “Sankranti”. But as they say better late than never here I come…

I like to wear something traditional for any Indian festivals. It could be a Saree or Lehenga also called Ghagra Choli , I feel it is a slight variation of half saree which is popular in south India. Sarees are quite common in my family when it comes to traditional wear for women, but for a change I prefer Lehenga’s occasionally.  Now a day’s buying lehenga without being heavy on pocket is very rare. The more intricate work the more costlier. If you are looking for lehenga’s under 15k or 10k Indian currency you should definitely checkout 6YCollective. They have some beautiful lehengas and Sarees with modern twist and pastel colors. Even though it’s an online order , stitching is on point provided you gave right measurements . Below is the lehenga which I got from them . Details are give at the bottom of the pictures.

Lehenga
Lehenga
Lehenga

What’s late ? Go checkout 6Y Collective and order now.  If you want your lehenga to be more flare , choose Tulle Netting . I ordered mine without Tulle but still looks great.

Have a more creative 2020. Happy New Year.

See you all in my next post.

Latest Saree Trends

Dec19

Hello ladies,


How is it going? What are your plans for holidays? We don’t have any travel plans but planning to do art work and cooking with my 7 yr old, as usual photo shoot to treasure memories and movie nights. Today’s blog post is about few trending sarees. Are you not sure which saree to buy for upcoming festival Sankranti? Then you are at right place. You can try below varieties which are more popular now a days. I shared few pictures from my closet for reference.


Patola Saree – A double Ikat weave, These are so colorful with different geometric shapes and best part is you can style them with any color blouse as the saree has different colors in it. Do you know that one Patola saree can take six months to one year to make?  Take a look below to see how I styled Patola saree with different blouses. These sarees start from $200 based on the material of the saree.


Paithani Saree – Usually identified with oblique square design and peacocks in borders. They come in different materials. Most trending are pure silk Paithani and Bandhni Paithani sarees. Pure Paithani silk or Bandhini sarees are expensive starting from $400


Kalamkari Saree – A hand painted or digital printed Kalamkari art on saree which can be identified by big motifs all over the saree. Hand painted kalamkari sarees are heavy on pocket than digital kalamkari prints. If you are not into big motifs look for Ajrakh sarees. I bought one kalamkari and will style it on Sankranti. Do check out this space in January.

Here are my pictures how I styled black Patalo saree which I bought from DesignsByVastraLLC Insta handle using different style and color blouses . Do let me know which style did you like the most. 🙂

White Blouse and Black Patola Saree
Red Blouse
Sleeveless Yellow Blouse
Black crop top bought from Zara
Paithani Saree from SitaraCreations.in
Handpaintained Kalamkari Saree with Banaras boarder from Six Yards Of Weave By Keka

Hope you liked the post. Until next time bye bye. Take care of yourself and each other.

Thanks Giving and Fall Fashion

Nov29

Hello Ladies,


Wow can’t believe it’s been two years I touched this space. How have you all been in these uncertain and stressful times? Hope you are keeping good health and staying safe.

2020 February, a month after my delivery Covid lock down started in US. First half of 2020 was definitely rough on me, the fear of uncertainty, anxiety added to post-partum blues. Luckily didn’t had post-partum depression. Thanks to my 6 year old who kept me active and Mr. P (My hubby) for his humorousness , somehow I survived post-partum blues. If we had family near by, situation would have been much better. We didn’t invite our parents for my deliver as we thought of calling them after winter but then Covid lockdown started. We hired baby sitter for morning and a doula at night, They took good care of baby and me which really helped me to recover fast from my c-section. When lock down started we had to let go our baby sitter and doula as we didn’t want to take risk during Covid times.  Mr.P and me managed all the work of a new born and my 6 yr old who was super helpful and understanding in those tough times. I went back to work once baby turned 4 months as we thought managing work and 4 month old is better and I can utilize parental leave once she is 11 months and more active . It all worked out well as I was able to work when she was sleeping and not moving much.  Once my new born was 6 months things seemed better. On bright side, I think for new moms lock down and WFH are better options 🙂 .  Ok enough of my story going right into my post

How did you all celebrate Thanksgiving? Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday in USA.  A day dedicated to express your gratitude. How cool is it? Seriously , how often do we get to express gratitude? A small thanks and expressing gratitude can go long way so don’t forget to show your gratitude to your loved ones especially to your immediate family members Mom, Dad, Siblings , Kids, Partner and don’t take them for granted.  From the time I came to USA we used to have thanksgiving dinner with family, Mr.P’s cousins used to live nearby. Now we have a small feast at home, eat together and talk about what we are thankful for, best and not so good things that happened that year. I think these are the things kids remember when they grow up.


Here are few fall outfits that I put together from my closet.  I love layering multiple pieces which keeps warm and stylish. 

First one with black top and black faux leather pant which I got from spanx.  If you love wearing pants that hugs your body and gives nice shape to your legs, then you should definitely try this.  Added Green Moto jacket which enhanced the whole look. Finished the look with gold small hoop earrings.


Next is my regular and white and blue jeans with a long sweater. I personally love long sweaters when I go to work. They are light , comfortable and keeps you warm when you are inside. accessorized with belt.

Next is sweater dress which I styled with a scarf and white boots which I got from amazon couldn’t find the link.


On the day of thanksgiving I wore a Boho dress which has fall color leaves and flowers so apt for a Thanksgiving dinner, layered with fuzzy fleece Jacket , added boots and coin chain from Gorjana

Last a Saree with sweater blouse from amazon. Why not?

I used a inskirt bought at Tiabhuva.com which gives nice shape when you drape a saree

Looks like most of my products are from Amazon haha , surely not a promotional post. I think Amazon has great selections. Also I don;t feel like providing card details everywhere. I wish there is a something like oauth or something that is tighter than oauth for payments which is unique and accepts global payments instead of providing card details on each and every ecommerce site. Do you feel the same? Let me know in comments section.

Our ThanksGiving Menu: Spicy Garlic Tofu, Baked Paste and Broccoli,Kung pao chickpeas and rice, stuffed spinach and paneer in phyllosheets and Baked veggies. Didn’t make any pie as we had lot of desserts from our recent costco trip 🙂

Hope you enjoyed reading my post. See you soon, until then bye.

Stay safe and take care of each other.

Toast to 2019 in Style

Dec31

Hello Ladies,

I can’t believe its already time to bid adieu to 2018 and welcome 2019. Have you made any plans for New year’s eve (NYE) ? Whether you are staying in or going out you can dress up in style for NYE . NYE is of course the glam and glitz night where every you go.  I am glad to see fashion bloggers are choosing other trends over sequins. We will come to my outfit choices a bit later.  But first, what was your favorite 2018 fashion trend?

 Mine was Ruffle sarees, Crop tops , Chokers, Overlays. Though I didn’t try out crop tops,  I feel that they look super cool either on a skirt or any kind of pants.  I am sure the Over lays will continue in 2019 as well.  What trends do you think will reign in 2019? I am sure that they will be more variations in sarees. Other than Sarees I don’t have much opinion other than watching and trying what goes in trend.

A part from trends, I can think or wish that Sustainability, Handlooms and Technology should play a key role in fashion industry.  I can already see argumented reality and virtual reality is adopted by various clothing and cosmetic brands.  Sustainability,  I will be happier to see ecofriendly and recyclable cloths and not feel guilty about fast fashion. 🙂

Below are my picks which are suitable right from staying in or to a party at work place or to a night party with friends.

  1. First outfit – Mint Tulle Skirt from amazon.com and Cream top. You can add a moto or denim jacket. I just added Coral Sandals for that extra drama . Coral Sandals @Target online
  2. Second outfit – Burgundy ruffle top which was from my stichfix box,  you can refer to my stichfix post to know the top details. I paired it with off white lace skirt. Lace Skirt @dillards
  3. Third outfit – One Shoulder Ruffle Midi BodyCon Dress in blush color from ASOS
  4. Fourth outfit –  Calvin klein shimmer top @Macy’s. I paired with black leggings and some silver accessories.

I want to end 2018 with a thank you note for all my well wishers. Looking forward for 2019.

Wish you all a Very Happy New Year.

See you all in my next blog.

Navaratri outfits for Dandiya

Oct13

It is so unlike me to post another blog with in a week . As Navaratri celebrations has already started, with few days already behind I wanted to give some outfit ideas for Dandiya nights. You can use your basic traditional outfits and pair them with accessories to look outstanding. Have you read my previous blog about wedding shopping? if not please make a note to read it once you are done with this blog.

Navaratri is an Indian Hindu Festival which is celebrated in autumn every year. Navaratri literally means nine nights. Goddess Durga is worshiped for nine days and on last day it is celebrated as Vijaya Dasami or Dusherra, the day of victory. Each state of India celebrates this festival in its own way but the main theme is victory of good over evil.

In southern parts of India where I grew up, Goddess Durga is decorated and worshipped in nine different forms starting from Baala (child form) on first day, Skandamata on Second day, Annapoorna (3), Maha lakshmi(4), Gayatri(5), Saraswathi(6),Lalitha,Durga(7), mahishasura mardini(8) and Raja Rajeshwari(9).  People worship Goddess Durga with great reverence by chanting prayers , special offerings (naivedyam) , gollu (Dolls display) etc. In some parts it is celebrated as Bathukamma.  Bathukamma is prepared by arranging different flowers. Women from neighborhood join to sing and dance praising Bathukamma. In west Bengal is it celebrated as Durga pooja. In Gujarat, Navaratri is one of the biggest festivals. Dandiya which is now a days played almost every where during Navaratri is originally from Gujarat. I don’t know much details about why it is played but Garba raas and Dandiya raas are two dances that are usually performed wearing chaniya choli and kediyu which is worn by men.

If you are planning to attend Dandiya then what to wear is a big question if you are not familiar with that culture. To me you don’t have to have chaniya choli, Any traditional outfit with vibrant colors will do and if it has mirror work it goes well with the Guajarati traditional outfits. My ideas with basic outfits:

  1. Choose a multi-colored saree and tie it in Guajarati style ( The pallu pleats which usually run backward over the shoulder should come front . Make sure pleats won’t come done your knees). If you know how to tie regular style saree, Gujarati style is pretty easy. YouTube has tons of videos on how to tie Gujarati saree.
  2. Any lehenga will work. You could wear in regular style or use dupatta to drape it in Gujarati style
  3. Long Skirts which has that traditional touch . You could wear with a crop top by adding contrast dupatta. If you are not comfortable dancing in a crop top and dupatta you can choose wearing a regular shirt or top and add in some black metal or oxidized silver to bring in glam
  4. You could also pair palazzo pants and kurti , to add a chic look you could add in a scarf or mirror /embroidered jacket .

Below are my pictures with above styles. I don’t have a matching top for skirt so as they say when in doubt wear black I used two variations of black tops and paired with some oxidized silver accessories and scarf. Instead of palazzo, I revamped by old Patiala pant .

  • Outfit deets: Saree and lehenga:  Old ones which I reused
  • Pink skirt: Purchased it from a handloom vendor in Hyderabad
  • Oxidized silver: Few from my jewelry collection and few from amazon.com


 

Happy Navaratri to you all. See you all in my next blog.

South Indian brides shopping ideas

Oct7

With so many of my cousins (girls) getting married thought of jotting down my views on bridal shopping to ease shopping experience and few basic tips for south Indian brides.  Of course these suggestions are also useful for girls who are planning to attend the wedding.

Which girl doesn’t want that fairy princess look on their dreamy day? With today’s endless choices it can be quite challenging to be with in your estimated budget. Here I am with few suggestions that are both budget friendly and few designer boutiques where you can find Classic and Outstanding outfits.  To set the expectations,  My suggestions doesn’t include bridal wear guru Sabyasachi or high end designers like Sanjay Garg’s raw mango  or It doesn’t include all minute details that a bride needs.  Well its not that we buy expensive designer wears in our daily events so you might consider those high end designers as well.   Continue reading →

August Ensemble’s

Sep27

Wow are we already in last week of September?? I  was planning to update this blog since last month but somehow got delayed , finally got time to update . Hope you all had a great month of August .  August is my favorite month for so many reasons.  In USA, As it is summer, city comes to live with so many local and state fairs. In India, shravana masam (month)  which usually comes in the month of August is considered very auspicious.  In south India Hindu girls and married women perform Varalakshmi vratham, Mangala Gowri vratham during this month for the well being of family, especially Husband.  Varalakshmi vratham is observed by most of the hindu women in south India.  This is usually performed on Friday that comes before the full moon day.  But it can be observed on any Friday of Shravana masam.  Varalakshmi means the goddesses of boon. On Varalakshmi Vratham women will worship goddess Lakshmi. Once the Vratham is performed  with utmost faith and devotion,  in the evening  ladies are invited to the house to take tamboolam .  Tamboolam  is a gift which consists of betel leaf and other things, In American terms its like a party favor . I think Varalakshmi vratham is south Indian version of Karwa chauth which is observed in North India.  I love to do this Vratham as there is some satisfaction and peace that comes with it.   Coming  to the blog,  I want to tell about the outfits that I wore for two Fridays in Shravana masam.

First one is Orange raw silk saree which I bought it for last year Varalakshmi vratham from Chennai Shopping mall, Hyderabad.  the uniqueness of this saree is that the boarded is lace and has polki stones. I think you don’t need a boutique to get that unique  collection unless you have some custom variation that you want to get it designed. Most of the Saree retail shops now a days are having designer wears meaning they will have one or two pieces in that design. Next time you go to any retail shop like South India Shopping mall, RS bros etc ask them to show you designer pieces. You can get a good Saree in less than 10k.  I paired the saree with contrast green beads Jewelry.  The highlight of this Ensemble is the beads layered chain which I got it from https://www.facebook.com/thesparkleboxbymanognyaraojalagam/ or insta page https://www.instagram.com/manognyaraojalagamofficial/

Second one is from moms collection, which she gifted  me as I liked it very much. This is a bottle green uppada  saree with burgundy shade in it. I am sure you can find this saree any where. I opted for cold shoulder blouse with burgundy thread work and paired it with burgundy accessories and burgundy lip color for that extra drama. Most of the silk sarees will have double shade and we can use that for choosing different blouse or jewelry of that shade to make it unique.

Below are the pictures:

 

Did anyone think if there is something similar like Varalaksmi vratam and Karwa chauth which men can observe for the prosperity of wife’s?  Hahaha..

May the goddess Varalaksmi bestow happiness upon everyone.

See you all in next post..