Thank you for the Shopping, the Joy it’s Bringing

♫♪Thank you for the Shopping, the Joy it’s Bringing ♪♫

By Penny & Pound

By now, you might have guessed our interest in fashion stems from a greater interest in shopping! Yes, we are confessed shopaholics and we’re sure that if you follow our blog, you must love shopping as well. So this feature is a tribute to our favourite shopping haunts: those places we love to spend our money at, where we can bravely bear feet blisters and aching backs and pouring rain and mucky streets, all for the joy of shopping! J

And we’d also like to hear from you about your favourite places as well: share the love and the shopping secrets, is what we say!

So, off with the list -

1.    Colaba Causeway, Mumbai

Mumbaiites are spoilt for choice in the form of Bandra Linking Road, Hill Road, Fashion street etc., but Colaba makes it to our list simply because we love it!

For one, it is a narrow street cramped with stalls of clothes, jewellery, footwear and other knick-knacks, meaning you can get everything within a 2-kilometre radius. Secondly, there are the lovely cafes (recommended: Leopold, Mondegar) that you can always barge into for a much-needed coffee and snacks whenever you feel your legs giving way.

Our best purchases have been:
·   Multiprint top – Rs. 150 

·   Colourful Kolhapuris at Rs. 180

 

·   Junk jewellery - Drop earrings at Rs. 30 a pair & Long chain at Rs. 80

  

 2.   Commercial Street, Bangalore

Now Bangaloreans also have a lot of shopping options in the famous MG Road and Brigade Road stretch, but we love Commercial Street and its lovely narrow by-lanes for picking up some really nice buys.

And here too you can always take a breather with some nice fresh fruit juice at Woody’s, or pay a visit to the CCD further down the road.

Our favourite shopping here includes:

     ·     Shopping at ‘The Wearhouse’, for really good deals on jackets, capris, tops.

     ·    Sandals, especially the cane ones, in the stalls on the by-lanes

·     Formal shirts and tops at Infiniti – the best ever! (but now this store has shifted to Mantri Mall, we believe)

·    We’ve also done some great lingerie shopping at a tiny store in one of the by-lanes! The store owner is a very knowledgeable lady who’ll really help you with your choices.

3.    Sarojini Nagar, Delhi

Which right minded Delhiite has not shopped here! The shops are great and the stuff is cheap and amazing! If you know where to go and how to bargain, it’s a great place to pick up bags, clothes, jewellery, and shoes…be mindful of the fact that the it usually is very crowded on weekends esp. the evening time so plan your trip so that you beat the rush hour crowd…and do remember to wear sensible shoes to save you the trouble of painful blisters.!

-    Head to the narrow lanes of Babu market for great discounts on cosmetics (psst – we know for sure that you can get at least 10% discount in some of the shops there).

-    For more of the street side shopping, head to the export surplus market where you can pick up great deals and if you are lucky enough, can buy an entire look for as low as Rs. 800 complete with shoes, bag and accessory! Make sure you step into the little shops for better deals and stuff and never ever forget to bargain!

Few of our best buys from here have been:

-        Denim Capris Rs. 75

-        White frilly top Rs. 150

-        Jhola bag Rs. 250

4.   Goa flea market

Well the Anjuna flea market is a paradise for shopaholics like us because not only you get a myriad of items, but because you can get away with a great bargain – only if you bargain well! J

You can shop for brand look-alikes, to cheap branded merchandise; items range from cool summer wear like frocks, tops, dresses, shorts etc to handmade leather shoes, fake branded watches, jewellery and a lot of other knick knacks.

Well, we have had harrowing experiences of trying to negotiate with the vendors but most often than not, they usually do give in (this happens more so when the flea market draws to a close around evening time so you can add that to your strategy)!

Our best buys from here have been

-    Red watch for Rs 700

  -     Psychedelic print Harem pants Rs 150

  -     Spaghetti top Rs 50

  5.  Reading & Slough, England!

Yes….you read right - England, coz we also love shopping abroad J, and if you’re ever planning to tour there, you must take our tips for shopping at the UK…..one of our all-time favourite places to shop, and it’s not so expensive either, believe us! Our must-shop places are:

·    Marks & Spencers – but of course! - for shoes and clothes. We picked up a pair of really good wedges for 25 Pounds.

·    Primark – for clothes & jewellery. Jeans for as low as 10 Pounds!

·    Tesco, Asda, Superdrug – for cosmetics.  Get lipsticks for around 2-3 Pounds, shampoos around the same, hand and body lotions too!

You could also check out Tesco and Asda for clothes, shoes and watches, but we  suggest you really check them out well. If you are buying these, buy well-known brands.
We bought these denim clogs at Asda for 12 Pounds.

  ·    Argos – for watches and electronic items. This is a catalogue store, so research on the net and decide on the exact model before you go there. 

 
6.    Chatuchak market, Thailand

Well this market is for the athletic kinds since it’s so big, even we haven’t explored all of it yet! And you can find anything under the sun here – from exotic pets to colorful dresses to brand fakes!

Just make sure you grab a map (available from the shops) of the market and attack based on your list of priorities since the market is laid out in sections classified as apparel, shoes, jewellery etc.

Our best buys have been

-        Sporty watch 100 Baht

-        Halter neck formal dress 100 Baht

-        Local designer brand – dress 150 Baht

We’d love to hear from you about your favourite places to shop as well: share the love and the shopping secrets, is what we say!

In For a Penny, In For a Pound

♫  In For a Penny, In For a Pound  ♪♫

By Penny & Pound

So we would all be having those best friends that we turn to for fashion advice and for opinions on whether we’re looking all right, and if our bra straps are showing, or if our mascara is running, or if that shade of green suits our complexion….phew, the list goes on! Well, now you can ask us such questions too!

In this post, we’ve compiled a few queries that have come our way recently, and our take on how to tackle them….AND, we’re also introducing “In For a Penny, In For a Pound” ……where you can ask us anything under the fashion sun! J {Check out our latest tab on the right}…..and please, do not call us agony aunts…though we can understand the agony bit!!

1.    Dear Penny & Pound – I have a nice tight-fitting black top which I absolutely lovhh! But off late I have developed a slight paunch that just does NOT seem to go away!! Please help – can you give me some creative ideas on how to still wear it and not be self conscious about my paunch?

Hi, Ms. Conscious. Well first of all, it is absolutely normal to have a little meat on your tummy area and second off all, it’s not an uncommon problem for most Indian ladies.

Since, you have not completely described your black top in detail, we have assumed that it’s a neat & no-fuss design that shows off your curves nicely and clings just at the right places in the right amount.

To camouflage your tum area, here are a few top-of-the-mind ideas:

Try donning a Broad belt on top of your top (if it’s slightly long and flared) or tuck in your top and add the belt on to your skirt/jeans. The broad belt will give an illusion of a narrower waist and will take away attention from what you don’t want to be seen.

In case the top can be worn with formals, try tucking the top into either high-waisted trousers or skirts.

The other easy way out is to opt for a stylish jacket, try nice bright colors to bring out the color contrast – think sunny yellow or even white! Make sure the jacket is well fitted though and does not add additional bulk!

If you can, try searching for thise tight slimming slips that are available now that can smotthen out any bulges and give you a svelte look. They are available in most lingerie shops and should be easy enough to find.

Well, in case you want to stylize your little black top, try shopping for dungarees! Try the dresses or the shorts/pants style and add a splash of color through nice bright scarves or handbagsJ 

2.   I have a pale pink dupatta with dark blue phulkari work on it that I adore since I got it from my Mom but can’t seem to decide what to do with it since I don’t wear salwar kameezes; can you help me with what to do with this piece of fabric?

We can understand that you would really like to keep this dupatta as it was your Mum’s, and we personally find phulkari work exquisite. Since salwar suits are out of the question for you, try and reinvent it in any of these ways:

·         Kaftan-like top: Get hold of a good tailor and get him to make a nice Kaftan top for you. It retains most of the original fabric, so you won’t feel bad about having changed it up; and you can wear it with jeans or even well-fitted satin / raw silk trousers for a formal look.

      ·     A layered skirt: Grab the good tailor again and make yourself a nice tiered skirt. The length of the skirt depends on you completely, but we like knee-length the best. Mix up the different layers with the original dupatta, followed by pink fabric, dupatta again, blue fabric (matching of course!) for a nice mosaic look.

     ·    A nice saree-blouse:  Buy a nice chiffon / georgette saree in the pale pink of the dupatta and turn the dupatta into a classy blouse for a lovely contrast effect. Have longer sleeves: either till the elbows, or 3/4ths to best show off the blue phulkari work.

3.    I have a pair of bright pink coloured wedges – what would be the right colors to wear it with?

It’s really nice that you have hot pink footwear…and in wedges, no less! Coz we love them both J and we also believe in having statement footwear that can totally make your look.

So, to best show off your heels the number one tip is to go monochrome – and for pink, make it an all white / cream or all black outfit. This will ensure they really stand out and catch everyone’s eyes.

If you’re not too comfy to let the shoes take all the attention, another way is to match your heels with a top, and wear it with deep blue jeans. Make them dark blue, as it goes well with hot pink than lighter shades.

And since they are wedges, we’d also advice you to pair them up with khaki shorts as wedges look really fab with shorts. Pair the shorts with pastel shades of pink or yellow and you will totally work a “cute girl” look.

Wedges also pair very well with skirts and short dresses (knee-length’s aceeptable) and since they’re in bright pink, go for nice bright floral prints. It would be preferable if the floral print had some pink flowers on it….but that’s just us being too prescriptive! This look is ideal for spring / summer.

    4.   I like the idea of wearing maxi dresses but don’t know how to carry them off? Help

Well, we personally think Maxi dresses are oooh so cool and award you brownie points for your excellent fashion sense!

To carry Maxi dresses off stylishly, we recommend you pair them with:

    ·          An eye catching Scarf/stole - this is a sure shot way to add some class to your maxi dress. You can try bright eye popping colors like neon pink, canary yellow or candy orange!

    ·         A good jacket or a shrug that goes along with the prints and the fabric – denim usually works best so opt for a well fitted denim one.

    ·         Try statement neck pieces or chunky bangles and big rings! Think gothic when it comes to dressing up your maxi dress - you can even choose to wear “unmatched” pieces of jewelry to add a unique look to your attire.

    ·         We love pairing maxi dresses with jhola bags in bright colors and flats, strappy chappals or kolhapuris  - they complement maxi dresses oh so well and add to the gypsy look…To add an extra touch – try doing up your hair in soft braids, or side swept hair with a loose bun! YUM!

·         Do make sure that your dress doesn’t swallow you whole with its overwhelming prints – opt for softer smaller prints and make sure your maxi is the right length for you (meaning it should not sweep the floor and drag behind you – it should end just a little below your ankle)