November 28, 2016

Traveller, Twice




Lately I have been finding myself going to most places I have travelled to, twice.
Some travels to places are by serendipity, some by design. The feeling that these travels evoke, are always distinct, and interesting. They range anywhere from renewed wonder to glassy eyed boredom. But almost always, they evoke a reflection of your self - of what you were like when you last went there, and what has changed. You can see a distinct difference in the way you looked at things, and how life, as it is, has changed you.

As a feeling, I love the way Nostalgia makes me feel. I love remembering good things fondly, and travels, which always affect me in a good way, are no exception to this! Because of this trait, I am always excited to do things over again, given a chance! It's not like I don't like to try the new things - but I have been guilty, on multiple occasions, of picking out a book that made me feel contemplative when I read it before - or of picking out a movie that I have watched before, knowing the exact reactions that I would have, or of frequenting the same cafe, listening to the same music, and so on.

I love looking at these things with new eyes, and yet sinking into the familiar feeling that they give me. Thankfully this habit of repetition does not extend to my outfits - I DO NOT like wearing an outfit in the same way twice, and hence, since four years, this fashion blog thrives.

As an extension to this, I have made a mental note to not travel to the same place twice, not on purpose atleast. There is so much to be seen,  heard and experienced- and so little time!

Posting some pictures of my most recent travel to Cochi, Kerela. The last time I visited, I wrote this post.  I visited this time again, to attend a wedding, though the experience was quite different :)
I ended up visiting the close friend who got married last time I visited, and visited familiar temples and walked some streets, once again!

Sharing some pictures now!

Stalls decked up in preparation of the upcoming temple festival.


Me, and some retail therepy. The variety and variations of the simple white saree were mind-blowing! Ended up crushing on quite a few and even getting myself one!

Around the street of the familiar temple - got to see the elephant processions again! Though I apparently missed the big temple festival that was about to happen next week!

The demonitization move has affected  everyone quite badly - From arranging for change, to drop in sales of some goods, the effects have been multifold. People do accept  old currency - Our cab drivers took old 500s and 1000s gladly - along with the new notes. 
More Stalls alongside the Temple Road



Spent some time at the Hill Palace, saw some deer in the park, ate some ice-cream - It was like childhood revisited :)


And this is the simple outfit that I wore to the wedding! 
A photograph from last time, the same temple, the same elephant, and the same me.
But not quite.



Writing this travelogue, because I will probably love reading it later on. I hope you will like it, too!

Love,
Shubhi

November 03, 2016

Print Parade: Part I







Art, Styling, Creative Direction: Shubhi
Photos: Mom!<3

Well, Diwali is upon us and holiday-dressing is something I always get on to at the very last minute! Mostly, its about raiding my mom's closet. But this year, with my mom's closet far away, I needed to come up with something from my meagre resources. And viola!

This look is so unlike me, for various reasons.  While I grew as a blogger, I developed a niche that fitted very naturally with my theme- dreamy, fairy-tale like, romantic fashion. I still love the theme, though I'm pretty much over the big bows everywhere and ruffles blossoming at every curve. (Suddenly, Henry Higgins'  'Weeds here, weeds there' My Fair Lady reference comes to mind XD)
Secondly, I never ever felt like wearing glasses, until I found these beauties at Colaba last year.

So there you go. This amazing double-sided block-printed trench-kurta-jacket thing is so awesome, I got it from Jaipur's Nehru bazaar streets a month back! The chequered skirt I got online - And the earrings are flee-market shopped as well.(The only new item I got this Diwali.)
Trusty platform shoes are from Mochi.

Part II of this look is coming up verrryy soon! Because, guess what, this jacket has superpowers, and can be reversed and there are amazing things waiting on the other side :P
See you there!

Love,
Shubhi.





November 01, 2016

Print Parade: Part II

 




So as promised, bringing to you the part II of my Diwali look! You can find Part I of this reversible jacket, replayed with a cool chic vibe, in my previous post here.

This yellow silk skirt is just so bright, so crinkly and so darn beautiful! I absolutely love to wear it on special occasions! I had got it for my friends wedding, about a year back.

Sporting:
The other side of my double-sided jacket,
Silk skirt from BIBA
Silver purse-neckpiece, a gift from a friend
Platform shoes from Mochi
Earrings: Flee Market shopped

Im posting this as I'm travelling, and I will be posting some travel pictures here soon! Still thinking of a great way to visually document my travel. Oh yes, and did I mention I'm in Seattle, USA currently? So excited! The trees are clothed in their fall beauty, the streets are littered with brightly hued leave of every description, and the air is a cool 16 degrees. There is soo much to see, learn, and do in this world. I feel immensely grateful and privileged to have a chance to travel, whenever I do.


Love,
Shubhi.