Appeasing The Rain Gods : Grey Kurta Dress

The only thing I like about the monsoons is the first shower, which is fantastic and beautiful. From the second shower on I am pretty much waiting for the whole thing to end. But this time of the year, the transition from summer to monsoons is just stunning, my heart sings, my hips sway, the skies are grey, the branches sway, the wind gets cooler, fragrant and sweet, there is newness and anticipation in everything...there is a miracle in every corner..a gift for the senses where ever you go.
I wish it could stay this way, but I know the rains need to come soon else we will all be in trouble..
So this is my way of appeasing the rain Gods, I am wearing colours of the monsoons, grey, white and just a hint of colour.
I dont know if you have noticed but this summer I have enjoyed wearing a lot of Westside kurtas as dresses.
There was this kurta and turban, then this bright quirky one and now this grey one specially for the rain Gods :)

Kurta : Westside

Watch : Bebe

Heels : Zara (Details here)

Vintage Pink Day Dress

They say your dreams say a lot about you..I wonder what mine say about me. Coz mine are usually made up of pretty dresses and gorgeous shoes..hehe
So when I saw this dress on shopnineteen, I jumped off my chair, my dream came true right before my eyes. This dress in shades of pink and a flattering form was just so perfect that I could not believe it, to add it has a hint of vintage which is something I love.
So I obviously got it, it arrived quickly and when it did I could not wait to try it on and show you guys..
The pictures are not perfect but believe me the dress is :)

What are your dreams made of??

Dress : shopnineteen.com (Rs 999)

Heels : Platform, Bandra Mumbai (Details here)

Clutch : Accessorize

Interview With The Fab Nilu Of Big Hair Loud Mouth

For me one of the biggest perks of blogging is getting to know some of the most stylish, inspiring and intelligent women around (they mostly happen to be bloggers :)
A while ago I came across Nilu's wonderful blog Big Hair Loud Mouth and I have been smitten since. She has this unique interesting way of putting things together and making it all look wonderfully cohesive. I have spent many enjoyable hours lost in her colourful world and I always emerge inspired and excited to try some new things myself.
Whenever I come across a new blog, I go to their very first post, just to see the evolution and how far they have come, Nilu has come such a long way and her entire journey is beautiful, bright and wonderful.
Nilu was kind enough to answer some of my questions and I wanted to share them with you...so here goes..

1. Tell us a little about Nilu, what have you studied, where? What industry do you work in? What are your passions other than fashion?

Nilu is the dreamer of Big Hair Loud mouth, a blog dedicated to exhibiting Streetstyle fashion in India, incorporating both the Western and the Eastern trends. I was educated in Kalimpong, Darjeeling and later I got my BE degree in Electronics and Electricals from VTU Universtity in Bangalore. I currently work in Yahoo!Bangalore and my passion other than fashion would be singing, dancing and trying DIY projects (which I fail at miserably).

2. How did the blog come about? What was the inspiration?

I used to see a couple of my school friends post on Facebook, that they had blogged and it made me curious. When I checked their content I thought "this is so interesting" and I wanted to try it. There was no inspiration to be really honest, I'm a shopaholic and I thought why let a good look go waste when I can document it in a blog post! The thought made me feel good and so Big hair Loud mouth was born.

3. You started out as a very sweet and simple looking girl with big hair, in a maxi skirt..cut to today and the transformation in you is hard to believe. You look chic, stylish, glamorous and sexy. A lot has changed, other than your hair..tell us about the transformation, the journey.

Thats true! When I look back at the old posts, I do feel the same and all I can say is that nothing would have been possible if I didnt have my Team BHLM, which comprises of my closest friends, to Push me and Drag me to do what we do! Every post we make, is a reflection of our passion and dedication to things we love doing the most. And when common ideas converge, its the birth of something new and intriguing.

4. The most striking change has been your hair style, its short and hot..do you ever miss your long hair? 

I used to miss my long hair often before. Had I answered your questions a couple of weeks before, the answer would have been Yes. But lately, the answer would be No. Since my latest haircut two weeks ago, I realised this is what I love more than my long hair! BIG hair doesnt necessarily mean a voluminous long hair, Infact it has no relation to the literal meaning at all. The hair part in my Blog title simply means, I love chaging hairstyles and hairstyle constitutes one of the basic foundation to good styling.

5. You are someone who has experimented and played around a lot with your hair. What have been your best hair decisions and which have been your worst. What hair advise will you give us?

My best hair decision would be using the Moroccan Oil Products for hair treatment. The worst decision I ever made was bleaching my hair to follow the Ombre trend. The Ombre dye literally killed my hair and I finally understood what it meant to have a lifeless hair. There is no shine, no bounce, just a limpless mass. Hence I decided to go short and try a chic look, keeping in mind I'll never repeat the mistake of washing off my original hair color.

6. What is your everyday morning beauty and makeup routine?

I use Vichy and Shiseido products for the day.I dont apply makeup everyday. However, when I apply makeup, I use a foundation from Revlon, Blush and Brozer from NYX, eyeshadow from Naked palette and a Lakme Eyeliner with my usual red lipstick. I make it a point to use my Clarisonic Mia before sleeping every night and I use Jojoba face oil every night before I go to sleep.

7. You wear statement red lips, which is this fab red?

I keep changing them :) But my favorites are the Mac Ruby woo and Russian Red and the Estee Lauder Stay Scarlet.

8. What is your night time beauty routine?

Jojoba face oil.

9. What beauty brands and products do you swear by?

I'd say this is a pretty tricky question. I can use anything but currently I'm using products from Mac, maybelline, Estee Lauder, NYX, Shiseido, Vichy, Colorbar and Inglot to name a few.

10. You shop online a lot..Which are your favourite online stores that are trendy and value for money?

ASOS! My ultimate favorite!

Have you read our interviews with 
Natural Beauty Guru Nisha Rajpal
Ex New Yorker And Fashion Designer Anaka
Forest Essentials Tanushree Saxena

Book Club : Bina Ramani Bird In A Banyan Tree

I read 'Bird In A Banyan Tree' by Bina Ramani a month ago and it left me so overwhelmed that I am writing this review only now, a month later. The book also left me with a few questions that I would have loved to ask Bina Ramani, I was hoping to be able to do that but since it hasnt happened yet, I thought I should go ahead and write this post anyway.
So let me start right from the start. I was browsing through books at a bookstore, when I noticed this one calling out to me, I picked it up admired the gorgeous cover and thought to myself "who wants to read the story of a party girl?", I put it back and left. A few weeks later, at another book store this book caught my attention from under atleast 50 other books, I pulled it out, read a page, and decided I needed to read this.
I came home and started reading and believe me I could not put it down. I think I read this book in record time.

The book is beautifully written, moves at a fast pace and every chapter in the book could work as a full fledged superhit Bollywood movie.
A party girl who got into some trouble is all I knew and thought about Bina Ramani, but reading this book changed all that completely. It is a book about grit, determination, passion, courage, persistence, hope belief and so much more.

As a young girl Bina Ramani, sacrifices her passion and her love for the sake of family, she even enters a loveless marriage for family. She endures years of heartbreak hoping and praying that things would change and the marriage would turn into a marriage that all Indian girls are taught to epitomize.
It is also a story of a mother and her fierce love for her children. That intensity of love can move mountains and drive one to be able to o things otherwise thought impossible and irrational.
Bina Ramani's life fills me with hope and belief that when there is passion for something inside you nothing can stop you from achieving it. Bina Ramani, could boast of no real education and fancy degrees but that did not stop her from becoming a household name and single handedly changing the fashion scene in Delhi and the country.

Even the way she handled her life through the high profile Jessica Lal murder case and proceedings is unfathomable - immense pressure, threats, negative media and even jail.
Bina Ramani has endured so much in life and has emerged more elegant and beautiful from each challenge that life has thrown at her. I really do not think I could have done what she has, even just reading some segments of the book left me with such intense pain in my heart that I thought "I don't think I could have endured that."
All in all it left me in awe of Bina Ramani, her courage and grit. It made me so grateful for the tiny little issues in my life because they are nothing in comparison with the storms she has weathered.
This book is an absolute must read for every Indian girl. Every mother should gift this to her daughter.
I would love to ask Bina Ramani a few questions and understand her life better, so if any of you know how to get in touch with her please do let me know - an email address, number anything would be greatly appreciated.
Bina Ramani, Bird In A Banyan Tree.