The Sartorialist Does New Delhi

Seen in New Delhi.

Nalini and I were chatting yesterday about the fact that Scott Schuman, otherwise known as the fabulous street fashion photographer who blogs as The Sartorialist, has arrived in India.

Nalini predicted at least one shot of a dapper gent. “My money’s on at least one pukka-type, Savile Row-suited elderly Indian man with an awesome mustache and maybe a bandini-print pocket square. Wishful thinking.” I concur. Mr. Schuman loves shooting well-dressed men. I also wished to see the Indian fashion sense we all know and love … the elegant way that East meets West with a bit of eccentricity thrown in.

Enter today’s shot. Just … wow. Speaking as one super short girl I am totally in awe by the way she manages to wear a dress that you’d think would make her look even shorter but does nothing but elongate her frame.

Nalini and I are in love. The dress, the shoes, the lip color, those eyes. Perfection. Our eyes are peeled for more from Scott.

Kali’s Jewel Box

From “Terrorism Affects Tourism”

The New York Times Sunday Styles always get my weekly love. This week I happened upon a small item regarding Kali Arulpragasam’s fine jewelry.

Wait. Arulpragasam, you say? Is that?…. Yes. Kali is the sister of your girl and mine, M.I.A.

Kali is a jewelry designer with a studio in London. Her work can be seen on her site, Super Fertile.

Her work is highly influenced by social issues with collections titled “Rich Girl vs. Poor Girl” and “Endangered Species”. Her latest collection is called “Terrorism Affects Tourism”. The collection celebrates the positive side to countries that we think of as war-torn and poverty stricken. From the Times:

These pieces are plated gold and silver and start at $800. See Super Fertile for ordering information.

Pillow Talk

(Style Court)

The September issue of Domino magazine profiles Montreal-based textile designer Anupama Swaminadhan, whose years-ago stint overseeing the production of couture fabrics in India informs her current work. Swaminadhan’s new line of pillows, stoles and other home accessories are created through kalamkari, an ancient Indian printing technique. The dyes used in the line are all-natural and come from vegetable and mineral dyes. For inspiration, Swaminadhan draws on India’s “[t]raditional temple art depicting mythological scenes and narratives.”

Domino also features Swaminadhan’s line in its back-of-the-book “Domino Deals” section.

More: Anupama Swaminadhan’s official site.

New Media & NY Fashion Week

Naeem Khan Spring 2008

New York’s Fashion week wraps up this Wednesday and if you weren’t personally invited, blogs might be your best bet for coverage of what’s happening and who’s showing up under the tents in Bryant Park. According to Women’s Wear Daily new media still only accounts for 10% of the overall issued media credentials at New York’s Fashion Week. But there’s no doubting that it’s a whole lot easier for the average fashion-watching web surfer to click into the blogosphere than it is to get into a designer’s show.

WWD’s list of blogging bigwigs (Sartorialist, GoFugYourself) and relative newcomers (Fashionista–“style like you mean it,” Fashionologie–“the musings of a twentysomething American girl who wishes she could have a Freaky Friday incident and switch bodies with Phoebe Philo”) includes writers with fashion industry experience and those offering a perspective for women of color, size or limited budget (The Fashion Bomb–“all urban fashion…all the time,” Too Fat for Fashion—“fashion beyond sample sizes,” The Budget Fashionista–“an Ivy League-educated epidemiologist who had a love of fashion and lack of cash”). See the full article for more blogs that got on the list this year.

Floral Inspiration

(prestonbailey.com)

Celebrity florist Preston Bailey has done events for everyone from to Donald Trump to Oprah. His style is quite masterful, abundant and very lush. There are no simple arrangements here, kiddies. A look through his portfolio shows the stunning transformations he’s done (with unbelievable before and after shots!) and examples of different table settings any bride can get inspiration from.

Let’s Put It On

Thukral & Tagra

The Daily Desi suggests that we run out to see Thukral & Tagra’s exhibit “Put It On” at Bose Pascia in Chelsea, Manhattan, while it’s still hot. Hosting the show until June 9, and established in 1994, the gallery was the first in the West to specialize in and promote contemporary and avant-garde art from South Asia.

New Delhi-based Jiten Thukral and Sumir Tagra work collaboratively in a wide variety of media including painting, sculpture, installation, video, graphic and product design, websites, music and fashion.

In their latest exhibition, “Put It On,” they channel their collaborative artistry into “arriving at a range of probable solutions for HIV awareness and vigilance through the visual arts.” The resulting works include stylistic and creative placement of pictures of proper condom usage throughout large-scale canvas paintings and mixed-media installations with custom-designed underwear and flip-flops.

More:
Photos of Thukral & Tagra’s Everyday BoseDK exhibit in New Delhi last month; BoseDK Designs, T&T’s consortium of graphic designers, illustrators, film-makers and design-inclined writers. With e-zines.

Flower Show Still Fresh

Store entrance, San Francisco (Photo: Brightroom)

You might remember me finding out last week about this year’s flower show at Macy’s in San Francisco. Well, it’s not over yet! There’s still time, through Saturday, April 14, actually, to see the floral displays in store or attend one of the upcoming events, including the cooking demos with chefs from Junnoon and Le Meridien, and a final chance to have Lancôme-sponsored Henna Lounge artists adorn you with intricate designs. Hurry up if you want complimentary henna on your hands, though. Judging by the long line formed well before the event’s starting time last Friday, this may be one of the show’s most popular events. (Event details.)

Puja Sabharwal, who works in media relations at Macy’s, offers a tip on what not to miss if you make it out to “Imagine India:” “The tabletop settings on the 6th floor are phenomenal. Each setting is inspired by different elements of nature in India. The Macy’s visual team has done a tremendous job of capturing India in every possible way.”

Check back on Monday for more from Sabharwal in the second part of our April issue.

The New Scent of Crime

Delhi police (Tribune India)

Police in Gujarat have been issued new uniforms that smell like rose petals and citrus fruits. “Most policemen look hassled, drenched in sweat after coming from any scene of crime,” says Somesh Singh, of Ahmedabad’s National Institute of Design. “They are surely not the best person one would like to meet, but if they smell good and fresh one might as well approach them.”

Made of cotton that has been treated with fragrance, the uniforms will retain their scent even after multiple washes.

“We think that by end of the year you will notice a new, fresh look when you are intercepted by one of our men,” says J. Mahpatra, a police commissioner of Ahmedabad.

The garments are being issued to 300,000 policemen in the state.

Cute Kids Tees, Kanchipuram Style

Mallika Malhotra and sons (Kid-Guru.com)

Mallika Malhotra stumbled upon hidden treasure collecting dust in her mother’s closet—a box of 1960s sari silks given as wedding gifts to her mother. Gathering the vintage textiles, the young mother with a passion for style started plannning her at-home business and launched Kid-Guru, an appliquéd t-shirt collection, in 2004.

Handcrafted in Denver, Colorado, with traditional fabrics brought back from Malhotra’s trips to India, the tees feature an assortment of charming designs—sailboats, spiders and pirate skulls, in addition to butterflies, hearts and snowflakes. You won’t find Kid-Guru at Baby Gap. Sold online and in boutiques and trunk shows, the cotton shirts are made from prints of limited quantity.

More:
Kid-Guru’s formalwear line
Kanchipuram saris

Haute Couture Meets Hijab, East Meets West

Khan’s Spring 2007 Collection (NYMagazine.Com)

Rising star Naeem Khan recently created a stir with his Spring, 2007 collection of flirty, vibrant cocktail dresses. Last week, Khan and other designers joined forces at New York Fashion Week to raise awareness and funds for Darfur.

Participants in “Designers for Darfur” included Luca Luca, BCBG Max Azria, and Rabia Yalcin, a conservative Muslim designer interested in marrying high fashion with Islamic sensibilities.“In private, clothing should reflect a woman’s sensuality,” says the Istanbul-based Yalcin. In public, she wants to help “show the beauty of the flower while covering the flower.”

All profits generated through the fundraiser go directly to the Save Darfur Coalition.

Khan and Yalcin join the growing cadre of eastern designers, showcasing their work in New York (remember Sabyasachi Mukherjee’s collection from Olympus Fashion Week earlier this year?).