The hearts are fluttering and the hands are trembling, the eyes moisten with joy and the hugs become a tad tighter. The date is set, the venue fixed, the arrangements underway and the orders made.
The D-day is fast approaching!
As the preparations for your soon-to-be-held wedding hit a crescendo, your anxiety levels are bound to be sky high. However, amidst all the drama, noise and hullaballoo, do keep your wits about you. Be charming, be glowing, be relaxed and be rested!
When it comes to shopping for your wedding, don’t forget to give your magical touch to everything. Your bridal Lehenga Choli is vital – it must contain all your essentials, and should also be high on style and sensuality. No wonder, putting together a perfect designer wedding saree is a daunting task.
While we agree that you would like to carry the world with you, we suggest you to first earmark the essentials, lest you forget this or that, or worse, end up making wrong purchases.
To help you plan a perfect wedding trousseau, Saree.com gives you this all-important check-list –
1. Clothes
First things first – the trousseau for your wedding should include all sorts of garments - for all your daily needs as well as special occasions. Here’s a low-down –
- Indian Ethnic Ensembles – Any Indian bride’s trousseau is incomplete without these, even if you live abroad. But, do increase/ decrease the count of pieces, basis the expected usage. Invest more in sarees and classics, as they have lesser risk of going out of style or size. Avoid going OTT, as such garments will be difficult to wear later on. Don’t forget well-fitting blouses and snazzy kurtas.
- Regular Clothes – Many brides make the mistake of not including a good number of regular ensembles in their wedding collection. Once the honeymoon is over - the initial excitement waning, you will need this stuff. Comfy Casual attire is a must for grocery shopping trips etc. Professional/ Formal gear is non-negotiable, if you plan to join back the work-force, a few weeks after your wedding.
- Western Basics and more – You don’t need to irrevocably alter your dressing style, post wedding. Do keep stuff that you are most comfortable in. Buy stuff that will accentuate your style and glam quotient – and is fun to wear. This includes the all-important jeans and tee combos, your blouses/ tops, beach wear for honeymoon, dresses, if you love them (like us).
- Sleep and Lounge wear – For those lazy evenings and off-work days/ mornings, for kitchen outings (that will happen eventually) and long after-dinner strolls and drives – you will need your comfy lounge-wear. Same goes for sleep-wear. Investing in some sensuous night-suits, satin capes, lacy camisoles is a must. But, you also must have comfortable night suits etc.
- Lingerie – Last but not the least on the clothing list, the lush yet comfortable lingerie is something you can’t afford to miss. No longer just the under-wear, the bridal lingerie/under clothes make for a huge fashion array. Do keep a fine balance between sensuality and comfort, though. You won’t be able to wear your racy, lacy lingerie pieces to work! Look for fun prints, bright colours and interesting patterns in comfortable, breezy fabrics.
- Vital additions to your outfit, which you need to put together rather carefully, as it is quite possible to go haywire here.
- Shoes – A woman’s love for shoes doesn’t need much elaboration. But, this also creates troubles. You may end up buying too much, or may be biased towards only a few (alas, impractical) styles. Result? Most pieces rot at the back of your shoe-rack. Plan and coordinate. Give emphasis to comfort over mere ‘looks’. These babies will nurse your feet for hours, and if they happen to be rough – imagine the time you will spend nursing your callouses and blisters! Get one in gold and one in silver. Buy some regular stuff also, and don’t forget open toe sandals, stylish flats and flirty flip-flops. Heels are a matter of contention – so, you decide!
- Bags – Can you ever have enough bags? Not really! Then, why try to squeeze umpteen styles and sizes in your wedding trousseau. You have your whole life ahead of you, after all! Thus, stick to basics and classics. A big tote bag in flirty colours and in a good brand is a must – for honeymoon, for outings, even for work. A glittery clutch (maybe two) is non-negotiable too; a potli bag to go with your sarees. Get a trendy cross-body for those beach walks or hill treks. Keep a practical, smart work bag with multiple pockets, if you are a career-oriented bride. And, if you are swanky journo-types, get your back-pack/jhola/purse – whatever works.
- Stoles, Scarves, Sarongs and Dupattas – These lovely add-ons are every bride’s must-have. Just look at the number of videos telling you to do so many drapes with simple scarves. From being an amazing cover-up around the pool/ beach to taking up your outfit up by notches, these fluid, fun additions must not be forgotten.
- Hair Accessories – Many women forget these! Clips, clutch pins, hair pins, banana clips, rubber-bands, hair-ties and everything else you use to tie fly-away hair. For the modish ones - hair bands, ribbons, scarves, bandanas, tick-tick pins etc. are a must. You can even take a floral tiara for a dreamy honeymoon evening by the beach. Bobby pins, invisible pins and bun pins (and bun chopsticks) are a must too, if elaborate hair styles are your style.
- Sun Glasses , Spectacles, Contact lenses and more
Although Jewelry rightfully falls under Accessories, it’s such an important part of the Bridal Trousseau that it deserves a special head – just for itself.
- Real jewels aside, you will also need to carry imitation jewelry for various occasions.
- Real Jewelry must also be planned with care. Since many families and brides do not make these purchases, keeping in mind trends and preferences, these pieces end up staying in lockers. Why would you do that? Buy lighter pieces, or invest in classics. Real jewelry with gemstones remains an eternal favourite, and looks good at any age. Buy a pair of diamond and another pair of Ruby studs, if you can afford. These will serve you for a long time. Platinum jewelry is in vogue, and it looks great with western as well as Indian clothes. Chains, pendants and dainty earrings are also wearable, and should be added, if possible, to trousseau. For your most ornate piece, take a pick from kundan, jadau or meenakari. Invest in some antique silver jhumkas and neckpieces too.
- Imitation Jewelry is extremely important, as this is what you will really wear. It’s also safer to wear art-jewels. However, they too can be quite expensive, and hence must be bought, keeping in mind practical aspects. Look for brand and make to ensure they stay glistening for longer. Find a good balance between traditional and contemporary pieces. Don’t buy a lot of heavy traditional sets. Instead, get small jhumkas, lovely matha-pattis, interesting earrings, bead jewelry – these will go with Indian as well as fusion looks.
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| Source - heybeautiful.in |
- In their bid to plan a perfect trousseau, many families forget the importance of good quality, well planned luggage – that will carry it all.
- 2-3 suit-cases that will carry your personal belongings generally form the luggage. However, don’t just buy big ones. You will need medium sized suitcases, when travelling. Cabin luggage for honeymoon and other trips is a must too. A back-pack and a travel duffle bag may be included too. Focus on smart ‘looks’ as well as high quality. Get your suitcases with wheels.
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| Souce - srkpro.com |
- This is an entirely personal thing. However, do not forget the bare essentials in personal care range. This includes your favourite shampoo, soap/ body wash, conditioner, face cream, cleanser, face wash, toner, moisturizer, sun block, wet wipes, body cream, hand/foot cream, scrub and face-pack.
- As for the make-up, you will, obviously, be tuned in to what’s latest and what suits you the best. Don’t go overboard here, especially if you are not in a habit of using make-up regularly. Base, lipstick, mascara, eye liner, kajal and make-up remover are the bare minimum.
- Safety pins and brooches are a must, especially if you wear saris or dupattas.
- Make-up Box – Invest in a good quality, roomy make-up box to store your essentials.
- Medicines that you routinely have, including your supplements, must be carried too. If you are allergic to some meds, carry specific medication and anti-allergics too.
- Towels, handkerchiefs are other set of oft-ignored essentials. Sanitary pads and tampons can’t be left behind.
- Don’t forget your tooth-brush (and a tooth-paste).
Cheers to a brand new life, and a lovely journey ahead!
