Satya for Sale

Inspired by the world travels and spiritual explorations of founders/designers Satya and Beth, Satya Jewelry combines semi-precious stones with gold and sterling silver to create pieces with diverse elements and meanings. Satya is a Sanskrit word meaning “the inner Truth that permeates all.”

This weekend, 5/2–5/4, their jewelry is up to 80 percent off; the triple-charm necklaces were $128, but are now $35. 95. Christopher St., at Bleecker St. (212-243-7313); 5/2–5/4 (10–6). — NY

More: The Satya Foundation is a non-profit committed to bringing yoga and healthy living to kids. The foundation also donates 100% of the proceeds from one of its necklaces to the Epidermolysis Bullosa Medical Research Foundation (EBMRF), aiming to find a cure for this rare childhood skin disease.

Look for more details on Satya in an upcoming issue of Nirali!

Mustache Panache (Or, How I Totally Called It)

More from the Sartorialist’s trip to ND.

Like I was saying to Priya, I’ve been trying to predict which uniquely desi spins on fashion The Sartorialist will feature on his influential blog as he traipses through New Delhi. Turns out I was right on one crucial front — my conviction that the Sartorialist couldn’t resist the throwback élan of an old-school subcontinental ’stache.

Though this gentleman isn’t rocking the Rajasthani jobi-square I so pithily anticipated back in Priya’s earlier Nirali post, his mustache is definitely everything I hoped Mr. Schuman would notice. Feast your eyes on it, readers. Them is some luscious vibrissae, oh yes them is!

I can only hope that the man in question knows what a gifty crop he’s got growing … that he fertilizes it shiny and well with copious amounts of Parachute (or, as I call it, India’s Dapper Dan) … and that he sedately runs his fingers through it like Kattabomman when solving affairs of state or heart. You can totally tell just by looking at him that he’s got to do both in a day’s work. Love it.

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.

Hermès Orange, Indian Pink (UPDATED)

Lakshmi Menon for Hermès Spring/Summer 2008 campaign. Shot by Thierry Le Goués. Click for a closer look.

Wow, guys. I am literally bouncing in my seat. The fat March issue of Vanity Fair landed on my desk. I love going through the March and September books because generally that’s when all the new ad campaigns debut.

This season I’m loving Prada (gorgeous illustrations!), Dolce & Gabbana (artist loft chic!) and Kate Spade (always a sucker for the preppy styling!). Then my eyes landed on the new Hermès campaign…

Ooooh lord, it’s good. The three-pager in VF opens with a shot of a black horse following a painted Indian elephant on a pathway of hot pink and orange flowers. (Very smart, Hermès!) The following spread shows a shot of Indian model Lakshmi Menon in jodhpur chic (Dude, those pants are made of crocodile…. seriously?) between two more painted elephants with more orange and pink flowers. Tagline? Hermès Orange Indian Pink. So perfect.

I love that Lakshmi is the new face of Hermès. She is such great choice for this season’s collection especially since it was inspired by India. I can’t wait to see the rest of this campaign as more March and April books drop on my desk! Will keep this post updated.

UPDATE: I have more shots from this campaign including shots for the Hermès Home collection and handbags and shoes. See it all after the jump!

Read the rest of this entry »

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.

Protocol to be a Marc Jacobs Model

M.I.A. for Marc by Marc Jacobs

This ain’t no Rocawear. Flipping through the new February issue of Teen Vogue (shut up.), I caught the new shots for Spring 2008 campaign for Marc by Marc Jacobs featuring none other than our girl, M.I.A. (Front of book, first ad after the L’Oreal gatefold.)

I wanted to love it, I really did but does anyone else think homeskillet looks a bit tired in these photos? And that the hell is up with the styling? Don’t mind the shot on the right but sticking her in a men’s cut suit? Really? The Spring line has so many gorgeous colorful clothes… why go that route? I associate M.I.A. with hyper color anyway, much like the Spring collection, so what’s up with the gray and olive?

Anyway, what are your thoughts? Bigger photos after the jump… Read the rest of this entry »

The Chloé Kerala

The Chloé Kerala

My good friend Amrapali is looking for a cute purple patent clutch so we were perusing our favorite handbag blog, Bagsnob to see if we could find anything of note. While we didn’t find a clutch (And dear readers, if you have spied a nice one recently, please do tell!) we did find a favorable (!?) review of Chloé’s Kerala shoulder bag in a buttery yellow.

Yes, I know it’s not really desi-related but I found small joy in the first decently designed Chloé bag released lately carries the moniker Kerala.

That is all. Oh. If you want to purchase the above, it’s $1,225 at Net-a-porter.

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.

You Can Be My Brown Kate Moss…

The inaugural issue.

Condé Nast’s Vogue launches in India tomorrow under the helm of Priya Tanna. Of the launch, Tanna told Reuters recently, “We will raise the bar because we are the ultimate style-bible. More and more confident, successful women are moving from the ‘we’ culture to the ‘me’ culture.”

The inaugural issue is Bollywood-themed featuring a write-up by Sukhetu Mehta about the film industry. The issue also includes an article about an up-and-coming socialite on the scene, style advice from Bipasha Basu, Priyanka Chopra and Preity Zinta and a reportedly gorgeous photo spread shot by Patrick Demarchelier of Gemma Ward frolicking on the set of Saawariya. (Though, when I heard the news of this shoot I have to admit to feeling a bit annoyed: I would have loved to see a desi model photographed by such a legend.) The cover itself features Bipasha Basu, Gemma Ward, Priyanka Chopra, Monikangana, Preity Zinta and Laxmi Menon.

Anyone waiting for the launch with bated breath? Are you excited to read it? I will try to find it in New York. Until then, report back!

More: Read an interview with Vogue India’s Editor-In-Chief, Priya Tanna on Forbes.com.

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.