A Spotlight on Style Statements to Add a Sparkle to Your Look
By- Kavita Shyam
Thinking about what to wear during the festivities that will last until the end of the year? It’s the time of the year, when the festive invitations are in order, and it’s time to flaunt all your traditional finery. This season, for festive wear, we are rooting for colours in a different way, experimenting with unconventional pieces like sarees with a twist or new forms of indo-western fusion wear. So if you want to look traditional yet stylish keep these pointers in mind.
Get Festive
Fashion is an extension of your personality. So move over, monotonous sarees, kurtis, and lehengas. Mix and match is in! Check out for sharp silhouettes. Here’s how you can dress festively.
- Sari-gown is an exemplary silhouette in Indian fashion this season and is a fine mix of fluidity, feminity, and assembly. It combines the six yards classic structure with the practicality of the zipped-up gown. Get yourself a metallic sari gown and pair it up with a belt!
- If Indian wear is not your thing, gift yourself a pleated skirt with attached pallu, along with three-quarter sleeved blouse. Add flavour to a simple flared or sharara bottom paired with a choli or pin tuck or kimono style kurti.
3. A gold pleated sari is a sure winner during the festival of lights. Pre-pleated drape saris look dramatic and classic, is light-weight and wrinkle-free. Best of all is easy to tuck in. Pair them up with brocade blouses and you have stolen the show!
- The high-low Anarkali suits, cowl drape Anarkali suit, floor length one piece with high slits in the front or sides still rules. Feeling experimental? Simply throw in a belt.
5. Pants never go out of style! Opt for palazzo pants, cigarette pants or embroidered Patiala pants. There are the tulip pants, dhoti pants, sharara pants with cape style tunics. Classic gold or metallic pants or ivory zari work bottoms are en vogue.
- Team boho peplum jackets/ cape jackets or jeweled / sequin jackets or collar blouses with floor length lehenga skirts, pleated skirts, blingy maxi dresses or even embroidered shararas.
- A card party lined up this week? Fret not!Simply get yourself a fitted, cropped trouser, Moroccan salwar or draped dhoti to add a bohemian element to a high-low look.
- Sequin or embroidered full–length straight gowns, lace bodysuit or draped cocktail gowns look splendid for festive evening gatherings.
- What’s a festival without some pop colours and prints? Fancy Kurta or lace shell with plain, textured or digital print, kitsch skirts look delightful during the festive season.
- Keep it short and sexy! Crop top with flared skirt sets or crop top and lehenga skirt are a rage this season. Work it differently with a floral /mosaic print with sequins, rich fabrics or even stitch your old garment into this kind of a set. The co-ordinates or separates look tres chic.
- Take inspiration from our northern or southern states, get yourself some Kashmiri embroidered fabrics or Benaras and south silks. Cape gown or cape Anarkali/ lehenga sets, opt for floral Kashmiri embroidered or silk booti prints.
- Sexy fusion wear never goes out of style. An embellished dress with a detachable skirt or long paneled and the asymmetric dress looks dressy for this season. Make sure you experiment with the tops – tube, one shoulder, noodle straps, peasant, high neck!
Designer Tips
Designer Kavita Bhartia gives us a quick tip to play dress up this month, “This season long skirts paired with different blouses with unique cuts and asymmetrical prints and patterns are in. Capes with embellishments and Resham embroidery with a bit of sparkle and with a colour palette of peaches, greens, ivory, orange are in vogue and desirable among those looking for something different and trendy yet traditional.”
Designer Gautam Gupta gives us 10 best outfits to experiment with ethnic wear for the upcoming festive season this year.
Monochrome Suits
Pair with contrasting dupattas layered, flared and loose fitted suits and Anarkali’s.
Anarkali’s with lehengas
Still shimmering from last year’s trend to pick are lovely Anarkalis paired with lehengas
Sari with a twist
One of the most creative ongoing trends is 6 yards in the way you want. Classics with new drape styles, paired with dhoti or even pants, worn with embellished jacket or crop tops, blouses with layers/off-shoulders.
Flared Layered stories
Wide range of layering by designers in their own styles paired with dhoti pants, palazzo or skirts
Indie floor length jackets
Yes, one of everyone favorite is “Indie Jackets” famously worn by celebrities these days, new trending, floor length jackets heavily embellished and paired with anything everything.
Off-shoulder
2016 is going crazy with off-shoulders, after rocking summer carnivals. Designer saree gives us new ways to carry off shoulders, paired with stunning lehengas, drape pants, sarees off-shoulder is one gorgeous hit despite all the chills.
Androgynous looks
Relaxed, boxy yet sexy, this look includes lots of structured silhouettes, jackets paired with straight pants, sherwani style kurta’s with minimal yet detailed embroidery.
Shirt story
Shirt paired with lehengas, sarees, pants, dhoti drape styles is must try for festive 2016.
Conscious fashion
Bringing back 70’s with earthy tones, natural dyeing, sustainable fashion, and love for organic products.
Traditions rule again – Handloom
Simplicity and elegance at its best, comebacks of Indian weaves this season is breath-taking. Banarsi, Patola, Paithani, Ikkat are here to woo you in every possible way.
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