Style Inspiration: Bollywood

Katrina Kaif (photo credit)

Happy Friday everyone! I am so excited to be heading to Florida for a mini vacation.  Lately I have felt a little zapped of energy and creativity so I hope that a little break from the routine and cold weather will help me feel refreshed and recharged.

And speaking of vacations, my mom is on vacation in India enjoying some warm weather and of course shopping too.  She asked me to give her styles and colors for sari's and outfits I want. So I have been browsing outfits on the Internet for inspiration and checking out the latest styles over at one of my favorite blogs, Bollywood Style Diaries.  Being Indian-American I appreciate Indian fashion and I enjoy wearing sari's and Indian outfits. (here and here) I also love getting personal style and fashion inspiration from Indian actresses, designers, and models.  I thought I would share with you a few outfits that have caught my attention.

Katrina Kaif (photo credit)

Katrina Kaif (photo credit)

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan (photo credit)

Aishwarya and Abhishek Bachchan (photo credit)

Deepika Padukone (photo credit)

Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan (photo credit)

Sonam Kapoor (photo credit)

Karisma and Kareena Kapoor (photo credit)

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Style Inspiration: Bollywood

Reader Request: What to Wear With Tall High Heel Boots

Occasionally I get emails from style'n readers who are looking for style advice and I am always so humbled and inspired by these requests. Sirena, a personal trainer and health and nutrition blogger (The Naked Dish), contacted me because she bought these new high heel tall brown boots and wanted some ideas about what to wear with them.  Below are some of the style tips I suggested to Sirena and since she lives here in Boston I thought it would be nice to meet up and take a picture of the outfit we styled. I like high heel boots (here) and if they are worn right they elongate the legs and give a sleek and sexy look.

Style'n tips: What to wear with tall high heel boots

1. Skinny Jeans, especially a dark wash or black ones. I love the look paired with a belted cardigan or a billowy silk blouse.
 

2. Short skirts including mini's and knee length.  I like to make sure the skirt length is shorter than the top of the boot so you can see the boots. For some people 1 inch above the boot works, and for others they look best when the skirt just hits above the boot. Also, skirts that stop 3-4 inches above the boot work well.

3. Long skirts, full or narrow, that cover the top of the boot.

4. Casual everyday long and short dresses. Follow the same basic principles with short and long skirts.

5. A high heel pointy-toed high heel boot with business suits gives a professional and classy look. (but  do do not tuck pants in the boots for this look!)

What do you wear with your high heeled boots?

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Reader Request: What to Wear With Tall High Heel Boots

Valentines Day Favorites: Etsy

1. Set of 2 sterling silver matching mother/daughter rings Boo Boo Art LLC $35
2. Red Love paperie a garland of handcut hearts Paper Polaroid $38
3. Solid Heart Rubber Stamp norajane $2.30
4. Handmade red convertible clutch with strap bonecalinda $70
5. 60s Bombshell Red Shift Dress andemonster $30
6. ILY cards-set of six JSGD $10

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Valentines Day Favorites: Etsy

Girls Day In: Valentines Day Cookies

I love Girls Day Out which usually consists of shopping and afternoons at the spa but on Saturday my sister Rachna, Ariyana, and I decided we needed a Girls Day In.   We hung out all day and baked cookies from scratch (my first time) and spent quality time with each other.  We made these cookies and used this icing.

 the dough all ready to go into the refrigerator

While waiting for the dough to harden in the fridge Rachna and Ariyana passed the time playing peekaboo

A package I ordered arrived while we were making the cookies so we got creative with the tissue paper

more uses for the tissue paper

Ariyana taking her frustrations out with the bubble wrap

the dough is finally ready

I was going to package the cookies in cute bags and have Ariyana take them to school but we had a small Superbowl get together at our place and we ended up eating all of them.

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Girls Day In: Valentines Day Cookies

A Bollywood Dance Party

Here are some pictures from Ariyana's Bollywood inspired dance party a couple of weeks ago.  We had the birthday party at a local dance studio on a Saturday evening and it was great fun for the kids and adults. It was so nice to have our family, Boston friends, and Ariyana's preschool friends there to celebrate with us. There was a dance instructor there to entertain and teach the kids some Zumba and Bollywood dance moves and then we opened up the dance floor for the adults and kids to dance too.   Martini, a good friend of mine and photographer with Severin Photography, did a great job capturing these special moments at the birthday party.

The invitation I made at Tiny Prints (image via style'n)

My sister, Ariyana, and me. My cousin Nina got this adorable skirt for Ariyana from her friend Prashi, a designer of a kids couture line called ShaSha Kids. I wanted a bright top to go with the skirt so I paired it up with a purple tank from Crew Cuts and a white cardigan from the Gap.  Nina also made the hairclip for Ariyana. It's from her line called Dragonfly Accessories.

The kids tables and place settings were bright and colorful

The birthday girl all ready to dance

Thanks to my good friend Nitu for taking care of the decorations for the party

I requested that guests not bring gifts but of course some like to anyway.  So I suggested that if they feel inclined to bring a gift then a book would be a great idea so we can expand Ariyana's book collection.

Ariyana and Lea hanging out before the dancing begins

Aneesh, along with the rest of our family, did so much to make this party happen. Most importantly he took care of the dance music and made sure we had plenty of beer and wine on hand for the adults.

I made gift bags for the kids and in the girls bags were bindi's and bangles
(image via style'n)

 I went for a casual look with this Stella and Dot necklace, Zara blouse, J.Crew nude belt, and J Brand gray skinny cargo's

I could not get Ariyana off the dance floor all evening!

Sweet Tooth Boston did a fantastic job making this vanilla and chocolate butter cream cake. I wanted an intricate mehndi (henna) design for the cake and was so happy with the way it turned out.

 Happy 3rd Birthday sweetie!

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A Bollywood Dance Party

Family Style

My brother and sister in law had these stylish and beautiful family pictures taken with my nephew recently and when I saw them I just melted.  Looking at these photos is so inspiring to me and even though I know I have a long way to go with my photography skills, these family photos touch my heart and motivate me to keep moving forward with this blog and with my photography journey.   These lovely pictures were all taken my sister in law's good friend Jasmin Hejazi of Hejazi Photography.

My sister in law is wearing a Ryu jacket from Nordstrom, Prada sunglasses, and diamond hoop earrings designed by my mom and made in India. My mom had identical pairs made for my sister in law, sister, and me.

My brother is style'n in a shirt from Abercrombie and Fitch.

The little munchkin is too cute!

Nails: Gel Manicure
Color: OPI - Black Cherry Chutney

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Family Style

Dark Spicy Gingerbread With Coffee Glaze

A few weeks ago I made brown sugar popovers , a recipe featured in the most recent issue of Boston magazine.  And this recipe for dark spicy gingerbread with coffee glaze was also featured and I knew I had to try it.  Both of these delicious recipes are from Joanne Chang's new book Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe.  The book has been selling so well that it was unavailable for a while, but I finally ordered my copy today and I can't wait to start making more of Joanne's recipes.  Ariyana and I made this spicy gingerbread cake on Saturday and it turned out moist and not overly sweet.  The intense flavors of the cake are attributed to the fresh and ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and teaspoon of black pepper.   I enjoyed the cake with a cup of coffee and Ariyana had hers with a glass of milk.  This was a perfect combination on a cold and lazy Saturday afternoon. 

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Dark Spicy Gingerbread With Coffee Glaze