Fab Shopping – Another Oldie post from October’s trip to Chennai for Diwali

Whenever I travel to Chennai I always go shopping with my folks. And considering this is Diwali time, we pretty much went all out buying gifts for everyone as well as ourselves.

Now, generally I much prefer to shop in Bangalore. There is a larger variety of shops, and the maal is not very over-the-top. Chennai goods can be a bit blingy on the eyes.

However, if there is one thing that is superior in Chennai it is traditional silk. It is much cheaper and there is tons more variety. This time, we went to Nalli Silks to buy my daughter a pattu-paavadai for her birthday as well as to pick up a silk kurta for my FIL (Father-In-Law).

Kalyan was extremely determined to check out all options before committing to any purchase. So, off we went to :

• Nalli – Adyar
• Nalli – T Nagar
• Nalli 100 – T Nagar

Until this visit, I had no idea there were so many Nalli stores in Chennai. I get the idea that Nalli is so popular that they need many branches. But, why the need to have 2 stores in T Nagar within walking distance of each other ? In addition, we bought the pattu paavadai from Nalli, T Nagar, but when we enquired about men’s silk kurtas, we were told they don’t stock silk kurtas in this store. We would have to walk up to Nalli 100 to buy that. So confusing, and so utterly time-wasting. However, we did just that, and ended up finding quite a good piece for my Father-In-Law (FIL).

Another place we went shopping was FabIndia in Besant Nagar. In general, FabIndia is one of my fave stores. They stock all varieties of clothing and accessories. Another plus point is that the decor of the store is very nice. I really prefer stores that sell a way of life, rather than just clothes. FabIndia has a range of products starting from Indian and Western wear for men, women and kids, home linen, furnishings and products and recently added organic food and skin care products made from natural products.

Another recently-added item is jewellery. And I really flipped for the collection in the store. Now, I am very traditional when it comes to jewellery. Always found with my trinity of vaira thodu (diamond studs), gold thali, and Sai Baba ring. In fact, my friends are completely sick of this look and have at many times tried to persuade me to try something different. However, the few times I have worn costume jewellery, I really feel lost and uncomfortable.

The FabIndia jewellery collection has convinced me to try something new, I think. I saw a beautiful silk kurta, which I was easily able to accessorize with a beaded chain made of semi-precious stones – turquoise, lapis lazuli, and crystal.

See below photos of the kurta and the chain (excuse the poor resolution – it was taken using a cell phone):

Gorgeous clothes we bought

Will post pics of the snub-nose in the paavadai later…we are holding off for her upcoming birthday 😀