Cayma Emran - My experience!

I ordered an outfit from Cayma Emran quite a few months ago and I found the experience incredibly smooth - from the moment I got in touch I was responded to pretty much immediately and they were very accommodating when it came to changes in the design/colours etc.

I ordered two outfits from them, the first was displayed as a kurti which I decided to have made into a full length kameez with a churidaar and dupatta; the second was this suit which I requested a few changes to.

The best thing about ordering from them was there was no need to involve western union, I was able to transfer money straight to a UK account and everything was dealt with very smoothly.

I unfortunately don’t have photos of the second outfit I ordered as I ended up passing this on to a cousin who needed a last minute outfit - but the quality of the work and materials was excellent!

For me the 'silk' outfit is a gem; it is very versatile - can be dressed up or down and this will most likely be my Eid outfit - YAY!! The jewel tones really stand out due to the sheen in the fabric, the flair and Hi-Lo hemline really make it very pretty and girly!! Best of all the price for this was pretty amazing, I

it came to around £80 which is great for A reasonably dressy and well made party outfit.

A big thumbs up for Cayma from my end!!!

Wednesday Pretty

Probably not to everyone's taste but me... I love my florals!!
Its an Anamika Khanna.
(images from www.pinkvilla.com)

If this Saree was a Room - Designwali

I've just come across the blog 'Designwali' and I love her posts on 'If this saree were a room'

I've uploaded my three favourites (although it was hard to narrow them down!) and you can view the rest of these posts here.

Just thought I would share!
xoxo

(all images are from the blog Designwali)

Turban Hijabs

I've noticed many a well heeled ladies (in particular in Selfridges - our Arab sisters seem to fill the store!) sporting the Hijab-ed turban trend - I know this has been slowly emerging for a while but I've seen a lot of it lately and that too done very well and I like very much! It actually looks very elegant and incredibly chic!

I feel inspired by our hijabed sisters and I would like to start off with a turbaned hat for the winter!! Although not sure it would work on my heart shaped face... hmmmm!!!

Hello!!

Hello Beautiful People!!

I hope you're all having a lovely afternoon! Firstly - I am on Twitter! It would be lovely if you can follow me - just click here 

Fellow bloggers - I am a bit of a novice still finding my feet so do follow me that way it will be easier for me to follow you BACKKKKK :)

Winter seems to have hit London with a BANG!! I would have liked a bit of a transition period before the cold hit - but hey ho - we cant have everything!! I'm not complaining mind!! I love winter - polo necks, coats, boots ooohhhhh winter wear is my favourite fashion season!!

My post however isn't so much fashion related - I just thought Id blog about my new discoveries which I am currently raving to anyone who will listen about!!

In my quest for a new foundation I was recommended Chantecaille (pronounced Shant-e-cai - took me a while to say it properly!) - TBH I didn't expect it to match my skin tone, nor provide enough coverage as the friend the recommendation came from has very pale and beautiful clear Serbian skin; my skin although not very tanned requires very yellow undertones to get the right match and I was specifically looking for something with good coverage to wear for upcoming weddings so I was very pleasantly surprised when I found a perfect match!!

It is their 'Just Skin' foundation which is packed with some lovely skin healing ingredients and is also oil free; when I visited Space NK I applied Nars Sheer glow on one side and Chantecaille on the other - both were great and I did very much like the Sheer Glow however the colour with the Chantecaille was a slightly better match + my friend has been raving about how this foundation really works on improving skin condition over all - she has been using it for a while and insists it has helped improve the condition of her skin overall so I was sold!

It looks pretty natural on and gives a lovely dewy finish without looking greasy. I find I can build it up quite a bit for heavier coverage without looking cakey - I have used it normally for light coverage and also heavier with two layers on and it stayed put and even more importantly didn't oxidise with or without the primer.

If I wasn't after the amazing ingredients in the Chantecaille foundation I may have stuck to Nars as its a lot cheaper and as I mentioned the finish was also lovely.

Also anyone looking for high spf the Chantecaille primer has spf 50 - is amazing light and doesn't have that 'white flash' issue at all! I will stick to using this for holidays too - I hate wearing SPF as it just feels so yucky on the skin but this just melts like a very light lotion. It is again oil free and also Paraben free which will keep my dermatologist happy!

I know I sound like a sales woman but so far so good! I know sometimes you need to use a foundation for a few weeks for it to show its true colours so I shall report back in case it does start to play up!

Im not a make up professional like other bloggers - just your average girl who likes to get it right when she needs to hence why stippling brush was a new concept for me - I got hold of a 'Real techniques' one from Superdrug - cheap and cheerful at around £10 and I have to say it made a big difference to the usual flat bobbi brown foundation brush I have been using - initially it didn't seem to be working but after a few seconds I noticed the foundation to really settle into my skin without any streaks. I happened to just pick this up as I wanted to try a cheaper one before investing but I was pleasantly surprised at how good the brush is.

For a more complete overview I had been using Bobbi Brown 'skin' foundation prior to that but wanted to try something different I found lately as my skin feels a bit drier this hasn't been sinking in so well, I also use Nars tinted Moisturiser which I do like but needed something with more coverage.  I also checked out YSL Touche Eclat foundation - which gave a lovely finish but colour didn't seem right and on top of that it oxidised; Giorgio Armani silk finish (I think that's what is is called) was okay but colour just seemed to again intensify despite the primer underneath and lastly I also tried Illamasqua Skin Base foundation - I got pretty terrible service there and was matched a few shades too light so cant really comment! (Credit where its due after I complained they have arranged a full session with a stylist for me)

I know the hunt for the perfect foundation is endless and difficult so I just thought Id let you guys make use of my experience and maybe help along the way!!

Chikankari - Hot Trend!

Well its hot in hot countries and us westerners may only have a few days of sun left to get the most from this one!!

I used to have loads of chikan outfits; my family are original U.P folk so this kinda stuff floated around so much so I got fed up of it (and it kinda went out of fashion too!)

Anyway - my interest has been rekindled by the numerous pretty kurta's I keep seeing and recent posts in the blog Pink 2.55 has made me take action! How pretty is this??

I am going to get in touch with my Lucknow connections and see if I can get some pretty things shipped out to me! Once I see what these are like I will be happy to help my beautiful readers out too! If you're interested leave a message below! (If you want to keep it private just say and it wont get published)- Lucknowi Chikankari direct from the city of 'Aap -Janaab' and Hazrat Ganj's Basket Chat!

In case you're not familiar with Chikan work it is usually done on cotton and is light threadwork - however heavier outfits can also be made and other fabrics can also be used.

Something beautiful for a beautiful month

Something beautiful by Farah Talib Aziz - this one starts at 80K Their description:

The peshwas is extra flared with alternating shades of orange in each kali. The embossed silk net (thicker and more sustainable than normal net) has dull gold kaamdani at a distance of 1.5 - 2 ". the front neck, back neck and sleeves are heavily embellished with gold kora dapka and colored thread work. the bottom banarsi border is enhanced with colored florals. we complement the shirt with a contrasting two-tone raspberry pink dupatta with kaamdani and borders

Sounds lovely! - they also work with budgets reducing kaam etc to suit budget and occasion

Sonam Sunday

Loving this sari and the way its been styled with that blouse

Curly Fries Enchanted Clothing

Afternoon peeps!!

One of my favourite bloggers Curly Fries has just uploaded a review of Enchanted Clothing which I am sharing – especially as her outfit has turned out very pretty!!

If you’re not following her already – trust me you need to add her! I love the way Curly Fries is quite London centric and like me she muses over things that catch her eye – I particularly love her bollywood observations!

Catch her blog here: Curly Fries

Let it Shine, Let it Shine, Let it Shine!!

Good afternoon everyone on this bright and sunny Thursday!

I hope everyone is well and if in London enjoying the sunshine, if you’re not in my great city then I hope you’re enjoying your day wherever you are!

When the sun shines it makes me want to shop! I need to update my wardrobe, the transition to spring, maybe even summer – fingers crossed! is a bit tricky so I need to stock up and layer up – I’ve been going crazy on ASOS and The Outnet all morning…. Loving printed trousers at the mo although I’m having trouble finding the right cut…

Anyway! After quite a long dry period I have a few things on order from Pakistan…. Oooohhhh exciting times!!!

But I want to share with you my recent arrival – A cobalt blue Kurta from a UK based seller Shamaila Sohail.

I only have a couple of UK based sellers on my radar but I have noticed that their prices are very reasonable for casuals… I’ve steered clear in the past as I assume their mark up will be high and I prefer to cut out the middle man but I think on these ready made Kurta type things it actually works out cheaper esp when the seller wants to shift stock (I imagine there’s only so much room in ones shed!) You save on WU and courier fees which is a considerable amount when ordering just one thing.

This Kurta I bought was reduced down to £35 and shipping was just £4 so £39 in total – she shipped it as soon as she received my bank transfer and was very easy to deal with.

The Kurta itself more than exceeded my expectations which was a relief! I only saw the first pic below and decided it will be suitable for hanging out with family at the weekend but it turned out to be a lot dressier than expected which was a pleasant surprise!

The fabric is a soft linen type fabric, the buttons are very pretty diamante balls and pearls and there is even a motif at the back – to top it off there is a lot of flair too!

As these are ready made sizing is a bit of an issue – mine doesn't fit at the shoulders and I will need to see if I can get it altered… I bought it discounted and well aware it’s not going to be a perfect fit so I suppose its only fair I deal with this issue myself!

Overall thumbs Up for Shamaila!

Sabyasachi Tuesday

Sabyasachi Tuesday - A different type of homage

A little something borrowed from Vogue India

Sitwat, Insiya and Rajula

I was going through some old pics I had saved back in 2011 and I thought Id share this particular one with you as it’s such a beautiful image and even though we cannot see the outfit in full you can tell it’s a beauty!

The photo I came across on the Sitwat & Insiya page and the outfit is by Rajula Jaffery – The description the designer sent me is below incase you want to get your imagination going and conjure up an imagine of this delight!

The outfit has been compiled in 4 very rich colored Jamawars, Majenta which is the shirt, Purple and emrald green which was the farshi gharara and the dupatta which is a two tone maysoori chiffon purplish pink colour. 

The heavily worked outfit in Kora, Dapka, Nakhshi, Katdana, Moti and Diamontees has work in 3 shades of oxidized gold and sliver motifs to add an element on the dupatta and gharara. 

The majenta shirt is front open, the Pink Dupatta has work in lines all over has two borders majenta with a bail in oxidized gold, and Purple with silver motifs. The Ghara is purple and green and has motifs in silver and gold.

Sonam Sunday

Abaya Couture

Wow – Just WOW!

I have seen some beautiful abayas on my visits to the arab world – some very elegant, others very much on the blingy side but these that I stumbled across today from Hesseh Abaya Couture are just very very beautiful!

I think they could probably be work as evening dresses too….!

Not on the affordable side – priced at over £500 but lovely for inspiration!

In MY city

So not only is Sabyasachi coming to my city, he is coming to my ‘hood!!!!

Wooohoooo!

I’m worried I’ll turn into a groupie and start following him around…. Ohhh maybe I will even get him to sign my arm *faints*

Better start saving those pennies… or maybe £’s…. maybe even sell something – anything to get me a Sabyasachi!!!

(Actually will just take the husband along and see what happens ;))

Adnan Khan

Happy Friday Everyone!!

If you remember a while back I was swooning over an Adnan Khan creation, it was the first time I had come across the designer and I just loved the simplicity of hit outfits, the colours and cuts he used are pretty timeless – I didn’t feature him on the blog at that time it was only on my FB page (BTW if you haven’t ‘Liked’ yet please don’t forget to do so HERE making sure you set it to see my updates!!)

Anyway – I got in touch with the man himself to find out a little bit more about him and his label…

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Tell us a little about yourself and how did your label came about?   

I am born and bred in Lahore. Arts has been my passion and interest since very the start. My early education is from Beaconhouse school and later I studied at the  Pakistan Institute of fashion design, Lahore which is affiliated with La Chambre Syndicale de la couture a Paris. My label came into being in 2005. I have bridal as well as prêt line for women and I also do men's formal wear clothing. 

Where do you find inspiration?

Nature is the biggest source of inspiration for me. I make it a must to carry my camera with me whenever I am traveling domestic or internationally. I keep a record of pics of beautiful nature around us and later use it in my collections when needed.

How do you source your kaarigars and tailors?

I have my own setup of workers. There is a section for pattern making and tailoring and another for kaarigars who do the embroideries. Every piece is done with extreme precision and care and in the end, product quality is checked thoroughly.

Which region is the best for crafts?

Pakistan is a very rich culture land and every region has its own significance. I personally have spend time in bahawalpur during my studies and got the opportunity to visit near by cities, like multan, Rahim yar khan,dera ghazi khan... etc, places which have immense crafts to offer. One can witness a variety of hand made embroideries like Taarkashi, kaam dani, gotta patti, sheesha work to name few along with beautifully dyed chunri. I often use these techniques and fabrics in my collections.

Which is your current favourite outfit; one bridal, one Formal

I try to give the best of my skills making any bridal or formal dress, selecting any fav won’t be fair.

Which trend do you dislike?

It all depends on how one carries a Trend, be it long or short lengths or straight or volumes. Mixing of too many elements in one design is something I absolutely don't agree with. Too many cuts or panels with a mixture of prints and colors in one outfit takes away the impact of making an outfit beautiful to ugly.

Is there a style which you think is particularly unflattering?

Voluminous dress without any shape given on the waist is unflattering to me.

Who is your favourtie designer

Each designer has his/her own strengths and weakness. to name a favorite is tough. The name that I always admire is Bunto Kazmi. 

What is your favourite type of embroidery?

I like using all type of embroideries in my collections it totally depends on my mood. I have almost used every technique in my collections from thread work to zari work.....if I am in the mood of making a modern line then cut beads, sequins and swarovski are mostly used. For a traditional line my technique is conventional. My forthcoming collection is based on taarkashi and sheesha work used together.

What is the most ridiculous modification someone has asked you to make?

Converting a skimpy mini skirt into a long floor length gown.

Are there certain things you will refuse to do in an outfit if you really believe the end result wont work?

Recently a bride to be came to me wanting a bridal outfit from my collection. Design was in one color meant for a Walima reception and her demand was to make the same design using 4 to 5 colors. After an hour of exhausting discussion, I refused, knowing the end result would be a disaster.

Lastly, some words for anyone thinking of ordering from you…

Place your order with full confidence, exclusivity is our forte and we assure you stand out in the crowd wearing ADNANKHAN !!!

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I always find it interesting which embroideries designers prefer, their reasoning behind it and where a lot of the different crafts come from. I have never heard of Taarkashi and have asked Adnan to send me pics of it so I can share – sheesha (mirror) work is a personal favourite!

Below are some of creations from Adnan’s latest collection, naturally the hot pink with an incredible amount of flair is my fav! You can view more of his creations HERE