It’s no secret that my go-to comfort outfit is a kurti + leggings. As much as I love (and live in) that combo, it bothers me that I usually go out and buy kurti’s specifically to mix with my “Western wardrobe”. Even as someone who is very comfortable wearing very Indian inspired looks, I still have two independent wardrobes – one Western and one Indian.
While kurtis, jhumke, and chudiyan have snuck into my Western looks over the years, the outfits I purchase as decidedly Indian wear for weddings, parties, etc, never make the transition. Like most desi girls I have bins full of sarees, lehengas, and salwar kameez outfits just waiting for the turn to hit the party circuit at the back of my closet.
One of my fashion goals for this year is to bring those pieces out of and try to fuse them with my everyday wardrobe in a natural way. My first experiment was this kameez that I usually pair with a red salwar and duppata, paired with jeans and stilletos. I know it’s not too far off from my normal jeans and a kurta look, but somehow it felt special to me. It’s opened up a whole new selection of clothes without spending extra money, too!
(I wore this outfit the whole day – for photos, to a business meeting with a potential client, and did a little shopping. IRL.)
My plan today is to go through my bins of “Indian outfits” and separate them into individual “pieces”. I feel like looking at a lehenga as just a skirt and a top, rather than a set that goes together will help me come up with even more ideas. What about you, do you mix your Indian and Western wardrobe?
Looks great!