I am not a fashion designer, although my daydreams are mostly about fashion and clothes and accessories. Even though I am not trained in fashion design, I am someone who would like to think that I know a lot about what works and what doesn’t. I mean, one looks at someone and I can tell whether the outfit they are wearing is right for them, whether they have accessorised it properly and of course, how the ensemble could have been made to look better. I had always wanted to create my own outfit, and while I spent a lot of time playing around with small design ideas with my local tailor, I knew that none of them were at the same level as truly designer wear.
And then came that time – the time I had been waiting for! My brother was getting married! Although I was aware of the fact that it was his wedding and that he would be the centre of attention, I knew that I would get a fair share too. A little voice inside my head was telling “create your own costume” and I was sure that this was the time for me to shine. However, another thing that was lingering in my mind was how much of a dent I could put in my savings. If I even ventured near those big designers or boutiques, I would probably have to be happy with just one outfit, but because this was my own brother’s wedding, I had to look good for every event. That meant that I needed a total of four outfits – one for the engagement, one for the sangeet, one for the actual wedding and of course, one for the reception.
This was the time for me to get truly creative and not only get outfits that were befitting the sister of the groom, but also pocket-friendly. Now, I had three options – one was to sit down with my local tailor and use material that I could find in the local markets to create something that vaguely resembles what you can see in a fashion magazine. The second was to walk in and out of several stores and boutiques, trying to find the outfit that I would want to wear. And then the third choice was the internet – which is the one I was most sceptical about, because how do you know what you are getting, without seeing it first.
I decided to be brave and get at least one customized outfit online – luckily for me, I had plenty of time before the engagement and of course between then engagement and the wedding. This meant that even if something did go wrong, I would have time to find another outfit. I decided to head straight to India Emporium, because I had heard some good things about them. When I first went to the website and found out that they offered the services of a professional fashion designer I was pleasantly surprised. What surprised me even more was the fact that the first consultation was absolutely free of cost! A quick chat with her and she had a pretty good idea of what I had in my mind – within a few hours, she had emailed me a sketch of the outfit – a stunning anarkali. With my photo and measurements in hand, she helped me choose the right colours and the embroidery. You will not believe it, within three days, she sent me a swatch of the embroidery, asking me whether I was ok with it or not. Every step of the way, the designer kept me posted and before I knew it, my made to orderoutfit was ready and delivered to my doorstep.
On the day of my brother’s engagement, I can’t tell you the number of complements I received on how wonderful my outfit looked and I couldn’t believe how well it fitted me! The outfit was a dream come true on so many levels – one, I had gotten an outfit that was really designer, two, it was couture because this outfit had been designed exclusively for me, three, it fit me so well and finally, it had not burnt a hole in my pocket. Now, I was absolutely sure that I was going to get all my outfits for the wedding made through India Emporium.
Over the next few weeks, I was constantly in touch with the design team at India Emporium, and well before the wedding festivities started, my entire wardrobe had reached me. I had customized ethnic wear, unique and designed especially for me, for each event. For the sangeet, I had a lovely flowy lehenga with a long tunic like top in dark pink, and I was able to dance the night away in it. At the wedding, I had a designer saree in pale gold – a net saree with embroidery all over the pallu and the base. The tints of dark blue in the embroidery went so well with the dark blue sapphire jewellery I had borrowed from my mother! And then for the reception, my design team at India Emporium had this stunning teal gown with silver embroidery. The silk used for the gown made sure that it looked almost ethereal and the fit was incredible.
Shopping with India Emporium made me realise that shopping online has evolved so much – gone are the days, when you just had a few outfits and you had to choose from them. Today, you can have your outfit designed, created with care and then delivered to your doorstep!
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