Valentines Gift Ideas from Strand of Silk

Valentines day is drawing nearer, and weather you hate it or love it; it’s hard to escape it! With an influx of Valentines Day gifts swarming shop front displays, TV adverts and magazines, it’s hard to know where to look or what to select.

We are here to make it a little easier for you! We have selected our top 3 Valentines Gift ideas and Indian Accessories sure to put a smile on that special someone’s face.

First is this stunning clutch bag by Meera Mahadevia. This exquisite clutch bag in gold polish is the perfect and luxury gift for a special occasion such as Valentines Day. It features a maroon velvet base ornamented with gorgeous metal flowers at the front lower half. The dazzling big semi-precious embellished stones make it all the more striking and desirable for that special someone. This versatile and easy to combine shape is ideal for those days that require something really special.

A Meera Mahadevia clutch bag is exquisitely detailed with a variety of semi-precious stones to create luxury fashion forward Indian accessories. Hand-made to the last detail, no two bags are identical though each enjoys a life-long after sales service. She designs luxury clutches for Bollywood actresses to famous celebrities.

Second is this stunning Diagold ring, which is a playful take on fine jewellery with a distinct message and look. This Diamond and Ruby Encrusted Bird brings with it a Pear Cut Emerald for an awe-striking effect. Indian Designer Varda Geonka's 'Bird' ring is intricately crafted from 18-karat Gold and plated white for added brilliance. This signature piece will make a love-forever precious investment for that lucky lady.

The Diagold Designer collection by Varda Geonka offers fine and intricate Indian accessories created with passion for creation. Known for it's trendy designs, quality products and exemplary service. Each stunning piece undergoes the 4C's test: 'Cut, Clarity, Carat, Colour' with each stone cut with precision to create stunning master pieces.

Last but not least are these pretty circular dangling earrings by Roopa Vohra, in a stunning hoop design encrusted with five sparkling white stones. It also features a teardrop shaped striking red semi-precious stone with five golden chain danglers. This charming feminine style will make the perfect pretty gift for Valentines Day.

Roopa Vohra is a Mumbai based Jewellery designer who creates contemporary and stylish Indian accessories. Her trademark styles incorporate traditional Indian crafts like Thewa and Kundan into her contemporary styles. Her collections include a range of Necklaces, Bracelets, Cuffs and Earrings in sterling silver plated with 22 kt Gold.

See also other Indian Designers creations!

The Perks of Custom Made Dresses for the Brides and Bridesmaids

In the world of weddings, when brides deliberate bridesmaid dresses for their big day, a common thing is for them to automatically think of well known and big name designers. Although this is a valid option, it is ultimately an expensive one.

Picking a unified selection of dresses for a number of women can be a daunting task, every woman is going to be a different shape, size and personality. This is where customisation comes in, aswell as customised the sizes of each bridesmaid dress to suit the individual, you can also keep and certain theme running through the dresses.

By choosing lesser known brands when selecting bridesmaid dresses it can not only mean you save precious pennies, but also be exposed to more unique styles and designs than those available on the market.

For example, selecting styles from Indian designers, like those offered by Strand of Silk, ensures that dresses can be customised to suit the needs and wants of both the bride and the bridesmaids, tailored to a unified look, yet do not cost a fortune.

Aswell as bridesmaid dresses, when it comes to the bride, nothing can bring out their best more than customised wedding dresses that not only fits flawlessly, but enhance their assets and replicate their own unique personality.

This style of customised wedding dress from a lesser known brand can still combine the desired high-end luxury of a designer gown but with the practicality a of ready-to-wear bridal dress that is tailored to the individual perfectly.

Strand of Silk's made-to-measure line runs through the heritage based pieces designed by their selection of contemporary designers. Discover Indian fashion!

The Age Old Trends of Baroque and Brocade within Indian Fashion Design

The baroque art movement has persisted for over two centuries and still popular to this day all over the world. The Baroque technique refers back to a significant era when art was portrayed in its most beautiful and theatrical glory.

The enthusiastic and dramatic Baroque style first began in Italy and from them influenced a variety of countries around the world. English fashion designers discovered their new ideas in traditional books about Continental ornaments. A unique sense of drama and a distinctive ornate style characterise the technique that is Baroque. Within the decade in which this trend first became popular Interiors were lavish with rich velvets and highly embellished furnishings teamed with patterned wood.

In relation to this, within Indian techniques and design, the technique of brocade within Indian fashion design is extremely popular and similar in aesthetic. The process begins with a simple pencilled design, it is then transferred onto a larger sheet of paper that shows magnified detail of the weft colours. Tanchoi fabric is used to produce Tanchoi sarees, which was first introduced to Varanasi in the early 20th century.

Indian Designer Rohit Bal has showcased a number of stunning collections, which feature brocade throughout a number of the garment designs. Rohit’s signature stunning needlework and traditional silhouettes are used, created garments such as floor sweeping anarkalis with gorgeous and extremely traditional brocade detailing. Proving that the trend is still very much in tact after all theses years, especially within Indian fashion design. 

Current popular bridal trends were seem to be swarming the runways showcased rich velvet textures, chandleries, and heavily textured brocades, teamed with luxurious silks and delicate embroidery which definitely ruled the ramps.

While a number of designers are innovating their Indian fashion design style, and brides are now prepared to experiment more quirky and vintage styles such as brocade, silhouettes that are ultimately overshadowing bridal trends are a blend of both old trend and charm teamed with contemporary styling.

Sources: Wedding Sutra, Strand of Silk, Modern Urban Living

Tarun Tahiliani Bridal Couture Insight

Tarun Tahiliani first launched his design studio in 1990, which has now lead to an extremely popular career in fashion design. His distinguishing signature style has since developed as a combination of intricate textile detail, sophisticated luxury, and extremely detailed tailoring.

The Tarun Tahiliani Design Studio creates unique couture, diffusion and prêt-a-porter, which are all very traditionally Indian in their sensibility, but international and contemporary in their appeal.

The rich heritage of the garments is reinvented as modern and on trend high fashion through the mastermind of traditional Indian craftsmanship, with the finest of Indian textiles; along with detailed Italian pattern cutting and new hi-tech technologies, such as digital textiles printing. His unique and beautiful combination of historical lavishness and innovative contemporary chic also lend themselves to Indian couture.

Tahiliani, who graduated with a degree in Business Management from the Wharton School of Business, then gained an associate degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. He then gained the status of the first Indian fashion designer to be requested to showcase his designs at Milan Fashion Week.

The Tarun Tahiliani brand sets out to produce the definitive "India Modern": Combining Indias most loved traditional techniques with todays current fashion trends and innovations such as western cuts, construction and finish whilst being crafted with Indian heritage and craftsmanship.

Tarun Tahiliani's new stunning couture collection embodies these elements by borrowing from India's rich and popular cultural roots, drama, and complexity and infuses it with subtleness paired with a fun playfulness.

His newest collection consists of a burst of shimmering gold, soft hues of pastel tones and a distinctive whimsical bubbliness that is suggestive of a past era of charisma and elegance. Tarun Tahilani's key purpose within his collections is to create beautiful couture that preserves distinguishing Indian crafts, whilst investigating visions of sparkling crystals that reflects emotions for beautiful brides to be.

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Abraham & Thakore: A Success Story

Abraham & Thakore is now one of India's most successful and valued brand for fashion, accessories and even home textile products. This unique design label was initially established by David Abraham and Rakesh Thakore, both graduates of the National Institute of Design.

Each Abraham & Thakore collection explores an innovative modern design voice whilst also focusing on the rich cultural and traditional vocabulary of Indian design and craft. The design sensibility is low key yet highly distinctive, with a strong respect for material, form and craft. A&T reiterates the belief that real luxury lies in specially crafted product in limited numbers of high quality.

Abraham & Thakore have never simply followed current trends, but approached then in innovative and quirky way, making their own trends along the way. The stylish designer duo have always made up their own fashion rules, sticking to their own personal idea of stylish contemporary Indian fashion with a touch of culture.

For one of their campaigns the quirky designer duo joined forces with well known Banarasi silk leader Ekaya, for a beautiful collection fashioned from hand-crafted brocade in striking tones of bright pink, saffron, bronze and vermillion. The collection was extremely sophisticated in its approach; the garments were created to challenge the current ample Indian silhouettes into more subtle and stylised western proportions. While the modernist styling of the collections offered an interesting angle, the definite standout garment in the collection was decidedly more traditionalist – a stunning liquid gold sari with matching blouse.

Other collections by Abraham & Thakore, which are presented each season, represent the extremely modern collaboration between fashion and lifestyle, with an undeniable unifying vision for the way the contemporary urban consumer dresses and lives - whether in New Delhi, London or Tokyo. Each season both the fashion and home textile collections are showcased to high-end international buyers in prestigious trade salons in Paris. In India, the collection is presented biannually at the India Fashion Week, New Delhi.

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Bridal Indian Jewellery and Top Bridal Trends

Bridal Indian Jewellery is an extremely significant and integral part of the styling and appearance of the Indian bride on her big day. Essentially the bridal look is not actually considered to be complete unless the bride to be is showcasing every piece of jewellery that is intended and chosen for her. 

Traditionally, within most Indian weddings, the bride wears a variety of statement gold bridal Indian jewellery, similar to how every country has its own bridal trends. Among these countries, Indian weddings are widely considered the most glamorous.

The significant occurrence of marriage is an extremely special one for most people. In India, it is considered to be a very sacred and special bond. An Indian woman considers the day of her marriage to be the most important and biggest day in her life. To make this special day perfect, arrangements go on for a number of months within the Indian households. Bridal Indian Jewellery plays an extremely important role within Indian weddings; the Indian bride is normally decorated from head to toe in gorgeous bridal jewellery that accompaniments both her attire and personality.

On par with Bridal Indian Jewellery, bridal attire trends are always changing, and brides often strive to be at the head of their game when it comes to following the top and most luxurious trends, here are our top bridal trends from the most recent Indian Bridal Fashion Week, that stood out to us as being one of the best we've seen so far!

First is rich colours and Mirror work. Designer Suneet Varma was specifically inspired by the rich coloured hand-painted and crafted architecture of ‘Shekhawati’, a well known region in Rajasthan. His collection consisted of vibrant reds and deep fuchsia, perfect for a bride looking to turn heads. Kangana Ranaut stole the show in a deep red coloured saree, heavily embroidered and every inch of glamorous.

Next is the unique colour trend, and the colour of choice is blue. Funnily enough blue is an unusual choice for bridal wear, but it looks beautiful for more reasons than one. To get the most out of this unusual tone trend, add contrasting colours such as reds, oranges, maroons, and a touch of gold to accomplish a opulent look just like the one showcased by Ashima Leena's Jashn Bridal Collection. Her colourful bodice was an instant hit for it’s unique colour contrast.

Last but not least is the Cape trend, it would be fair to state that Sonam Kapoor was the first person introduce this trend when she wore a unique cape over her saree at Cannes Film Festival. But most recently, popular designer Jyotsna Tiwari paired a stunning sheer cape over a beautifully structured gown that made it look all that more special!

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