Secret Santa FTLOFAOT X India Circus

The aromas of pumpkin lattes (okay, maybe toffee and hazelnut), the string of fairy lights now and then seen darted across localities, a tad bit of the murky fog and endless portions of some divine pie. I'm thinking Christmas is here and maybe it is time to kickstart secret santa on For the love of fashion and Other things. FTLOFAOT has partnered with India Circus to bring to you a game of Christmas that will light up your day, and possibly the season ahead. Simple rules and a chance to win yourself a set of these fabulous elephant bath coasters and also this artistic mirror prints glass mug. If the prizes have you excited then wait till you see what else you could buy yourself and your friends from India Circus this season.

Rules:

Tell us which of these five goodies from India Circus would you want for yourself from Santa this Christmas and why, along with your email address in the comment section. The coolest two answers can win themselves the aforementioned coasters and mug. This contest is also open on my instagram.

All you need to do is leave your answers here or on instagram with your email id. Don't forget to follow us on instagram here and indiacircus here. Your entry will be considered invalid without the same.

So what is it going to be? 1. Owl howl shot glasses

2. Chirping birds blue floor cushion

3. Elephant bath coasters

4. Zig zag print shorts (Also a new addition to India Circus)

5. Mirror prints glass mug

Get going. The contest is open for all Indian residents till the 20th of December, just in time for Christmas. :)

What really makes these great choices for Christmas shopping? 
The owl howl shot glasses with their adorably quirky print are just the right choice for that welcome drink for all your guests. Kickstarting your christmas party was never this easy.

I haven't met a person who did not enjoy a gift for his/her house. This Christmas, India Circus gives you the option to buy the coolest floor cushions in prints galore to buy your friends and family. I personally love this blue with the white bird print and would set up my bed with a pair of two.

They also have a wide variety of coasters with prints to suit your mood, fun, quirky, eclectic, classy, sophisticated, whatever works. A great party addition to your christmas carnival this year. And it also helps that it keeps your home furniture stain free. ;)

My hot favourite this month at India Circus is their range of hot pants and boxers for men and women. While I agree that the weather in Delhi currently doesn't allow these, I can't wait for summer to flaunt a toned body (yeah, sure, whatever) in these. A perfect gift for that friend who is perpetually on a holiday or likes his/her life by the beach.

Their mirror prints glass mug are my favourite. When I received mine from India Circus, I couldn't quite fathom whether I should use it for actually consuming liquids or use it as a little decoration holder. That applies to their wide range of mugs which you should definitely browse through for a pocket friendly, fun Christmas buy.

What are you buying from India Circus this Christmas?


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Mash up

Delhi is finding it extremely hard to make up its mind. The second week of December is here and we are still not witnessing the level of cold that we are now accustomed to. I am unsure of whether thats a good thing. Mostly because I find it hard to pick pieces to create outfits appropriate for the weather. For this particular day, I found solace in creating a mash up that would put the nomads to shame. I picked this red collared vest with a zippered front from a little stall in a market. To me it stands for Indian fashion at its best. Colourful thread embroidery with a hint of mirror work. I decided to pair it with a black tulle midi skirt and my combat boots with crochet. It was delightful how the outfit almost seamlessly came together, even though spanning across different trends of the world. Its easy to create a mash up of all your favourite trends if you believe its something that complements your personal style.

This mash up is all about the bass, no treble. (Pear-shaped Indian women unite.)

Wearing:

Embroidered vest: Street find

Black tulle skirt: ASOS

Black booties: Forever 21

Matha patti and bangles: Assortment of designers and stores

Photography Courtesy: Riddhima Arora Behance or reach her on email at riddhimarora17@gmail.com

Till the next time,

x

Style Saturday with Marks & Spencer

Ever since I can remember, the urge to style people, influence people's shopping decisions has been my idea of fun. A little fashion nerdy as it sounds, it is a knack to be able to gauge and make informed decisions with people as far as their personal shopping needs go. Marks and Spencer India invited me to be their stylist for a day at their ginormous South Extension-II, Delhi store as a part of their Style Saturday campaign. A fun idea, this involved me being placed as a stylist at their store for an entire day and taking that opportunity to style all the customers who came in to shop that day. I had the good fortune of meeting a quite a few of my readers and other fun customers who are now opening their minds to making more adventurous choices in terms of fashion. The format of this fun activity was such that it involved a lot of conversation, the process of shopping and my advice to them regarding the same, a photo booth and cute Marks and Spencer giveaways which the shoppers loved. Whats not to love about a stylist's day which progresses like that.
The trends doing the rounds in the new collection at Marks and Spencer India include, houndstooth prints, floral prints, cowl necks , capes and my winter favourites; chunky knits. A whole array of leggings and treggings await you if they are your winter favourites. I particularly like the shawl-cape trend that the new collection taps into. Definitely a shape shifter as it covers your body flaws with the utmost elegance.
If you are in Mumbai, then get set for the coming weekend as Style Saturday comes to Mumbai. Watch their page for more details.

Wearing:
Black shirt with lace inserts: C/O Marks & Spencer
Acid wash leggings: ASOS
Earrings: Mimco
Cuff: Forever 21
Oxfords: Zara

This is a sponsored post.

Till the next post,
x

Glamour Untamed

Any reader who has been around for the turn of the century on my blog will know how I am not a very 'winter person', so to speak. Sure, trench coats, double breasted jackets, bombers, cardigans, cashmere have their charm and as an ardent lover of fashion, it is almost impossible to be oblivious to it. However, I tend to get lazy. My best friends are my tartan PJs. My beanie over ruffled hair fails to embarrass me in public. Simply put, it is just too cold to care.

So before it gets too cold for me to stop caring, let me unleash a can of glamour untamed on this blog. This should not be too anti climatic since the outfit in itself is all about the glamour of the current era. Lacy camisoles, a chunky necklace in gold emblazoned with powerful gems, a little black skirt with the handiwork of glass beads all across forming geometric patterns, the perfect cherry coloured platformed oxfords and the warmest swankiest chunky cardigan in a slatey shade with hints of ecru.

If this doesn't sound like winter wonderland to you, then maybe this visual revelry of an outfit that I came up with will make you a believer.

The skirt comes from the hands of the immensely talented designer who runs her label Thats Thefft, an outfit from which you saw here on my blog. The necklace is crafted by the hands of designer Ankita Tiwari whose label Aé-Teē has been spotted on every Queen Bee of Tinsel Town. If there is a jewellery label that just gets me, it is definitely this.
Clarks India's latest campaign, Shoe Diaries with Rina Dhaka is what really got me to style these uber cool shoes. As one of the bloggers collaborating with Clarks on this really cool campaign, this is my ShoeDiary. You can head to ShoeDiaries and find out everything about this and enter their contests to win exciting prizes. 

Wearing:

Skirt: C/O Thats Thefft

Shoes: C/O Clarks India

Cardigan: Zara

Necklace: C/O Aé-Teē

Photography Courtesy: Riddhima Arora Behance or reach her on email at riddhimarora17@gmail.com

Till the next post,

x

Players gonna plaid

The tartan patterned plaid shirt is like hot chocolate on a nippy day. Comforting, yet never goes out of style. Plaid isn't just confined to the kilts of the hot Scottish men or the sexy school girl outfit *cough* and here at FTLOFAOT, I give you my own version of the plaid look. In this weather where I was seemingly undecided about whether it was chilly enough for a jacket or warm enough to just float about in my maxis, I decided to do a little cool layering with my dependable custom made black maxi dress and the plaid shirt. Its certainly hipster since the floaty maxy and the shirt both exude a very devil-may-care vibe, but hey, turns out the devil does care and teams up a leopard print clutch against the plaid shirt. Hair, Brooklyn-ish gold hoops and black multi-strapped flat sandals could easily be classified as norm core but thats the thing, I always do norm core in parts and elements.
This was my outfit for Day 4 of the Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week and the photographs are courtesy the lovely couple behind The Fashion Flite.

Wearing:
Plaid shirt: Zara
Black maxi dress: Custom stitched
Black strappy sandals: Forever 21
Portfolio clutch: ASOS
Gold Loops: Forever 21

Till the next post,
x

Back to the roots

Now is a good time as any to go back to the roots. With design mavens like Sanjay Garg for Raw Mango, Vaishali S, Wendell Rodricks teaching us a thing or two about going back to the Indian textiles, the design scene in India looks richer than ever before. The saree in khadi, matka silk, chanderi and other hand spun textiles is suddenly the new cool option. Not to say that it ever was not. India's design history has always been rich and our resources are never ending. The man power is talented and it is phenomenal what a little tapping into it can do. But these designers with interesting cuts and drapes are making these options seem so much more appealing to everyone. I for one am sold.

To the outfit now. With an attempt to do a half drape saree, this look is the more earthy and unkempt one amongst the two that we shot for my friend's college project. The half saree look can be achieved this Diwali even without the complications of the whole nine yards. Take a cue from the photos and you definitely run the chance of upping the style quotient at that coveted Diwali party. ;)

Wearing:
Half draped saree: Dastkar Mela, Delhi
Jewellery: Paharganj, Delhi
Earrings: Forever 21

Photography Courtesy: Riddhima Arora Behance or reach her on email at riddhimarora17@gmail.com

Soul of a wanderer

I have contemplated the theory that I have the soul of a hippie. On days I just want to pack up and leave, irrespective of the day, time and state of affairs in the Republic of Kalra. But apart from the whimsical thoughts too and more on point of what I choose to put on my back, I have enjoyed sporting a look or two where I don at least one element of a very bohemian look, even if not more. This look, however, is entirely another story. A shoot I modelled for, for my photographer's fashion school project, I shared one of the images from my shoot here and the response propelled me into sharing the entire look with you. Its whimsical, yet practical. Hippie, yet mature. It is an alter ego which I best describe as 'a wanderer' that surfaces occasionally and mostly when I decide I cannot flow with the mainstream anymore.

Wearing: 
Black maxi dress as kurta: which I got stitched
Floral pants and the accessories: Photographer and stylist's
Strappy sandals: Forever 21

Photography Courtesy: Riddhima Arora Behance or reach her on email at riddhimarora17@gmail.com

WLIFW: Day One

Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week kickstarted today and is it politically incorrect to say that the shows were just about lukewarm? Are we taking the same trend and showcasing it in the same permutation combination? Or can I look forward to more exciting shows in the days to come?
Alpana & Neeraj's 'kawaii' themed Japanese line with minimalistic design and lot of bow detailing made for a beautiful runway presentation. Hemant-Nandita played with ikat and used some great '70s inspired silhouettes that made you think a retro funner summer resort line.
Meanwhile, us bloggers have a tendency to run our own little fashion show off the runway. I went sporty luxe with a tinge of gothic. A Dhruv Kapoor sweatshirt in bonded jersey and mesh paired with leather skinny pants made for an almost androgynous look. Of course worn with those shoes my mother would never approve of but I adore.
Just an insight into Day One's outfit. Here's to hoping for better shows tomorrow.

Wearing:
Sweatshirt: Dhruv Kapoor
Leather pants: Next
Shoes: Charles and Keith
Clutch: Zara

x

Chanel Spring 2015: A call for a cause or a call for attention

When the Chanel models took to the asbestos streets at Palais de Tokyo at the Paris Fashion Week, their choice of cry for protesting was feminism. But is it really embodying feminism? 
Ever since I saw the show, complete with its theatrics of eyebrow maven Cara Delevingne taking to protesting against inequality between men and women into a Chanel megaphone, I have been slightly perturbed by the nature of these theatrics. Now I am not someone who studied gender deeply, but with a basic understanding of gender and law and what really entails feminism, this feeble attempt by Karl Lagerfeld to make Chanel ready-to-wear a part of second wave feminism missed the mark. His idea as I read on Style.com was simple, "my mother was a feminist, and I was brought up with a history of that." Completing his thought, given how 'cool' the concept of being feminist has become in this day and age where every average woman without a real understanding of the issues with gender norms or gender inequality, claims to be a feminist, it seemed like the right vendable move. Are we, in the process, over simplifying feminism? In my opinion, yes. Do beautifully tailored pant suits on typically beautiful models suffice to carry forward the desired message of feminism? Probably not. The idea of feminism in sartorial choices is wonderful except I failed to see anything that had not been said before. Women have been taking to pant suits like fish to water since the late '60s ever since the induction of this androgynous piece of clothing in our wardrobes. The collection highlighted khaki, tweed with a hint of psychedelic, pin-striped with a lacquered sheen, skirt suits with lacey blouses, leather stripped dresses and knitted sweater dresses. The collection was on point with the luxurious use of fabrics and bringing a whole bag of elegant to the table. But do slogans on the lines of 'Be different', 'free freedom', 'history is her story', 'women's rights are more than alright', really convey the essence of this zeitgeist called 'feminism? Why are we lapping up everything that is the current politically correct flavour of the season, in this case feminism? 
A creative director known for having called Adele, 'a little too fat' preaching a feeble sermon of feminism to the fashion world and the world at large is resounding hollow and downright fallacious.
We all love a little drama on the runway but this is when we ask ourselves the larger question? Should the drama ever overpower the clothes? 
I believe that fashion has the power to be a purveyor of great social and political messages. I do also believe that a surreptitiously worded slogan hinting at some kind of equality between men and women does not create an impact that a cause like this deserves.
Sorry Karl, this Boulevard of Chanel did not create the fashion Bastille that you hoped it would.