Corporate Sari Style - Tips & Tricks To Make Saris Work For You At Your Workplace

by Ankita Priyadarshini

Corporate dressing for women has come to mean business suits in predictable combinations of black, grey, blue and white. There is neither much room to experiment, nor many options. While I have nothing against business suits, I prefer the freedom and elegance of a sari. Its flexibility to suit any shape and size and the comfort it offers for all-day wear, is what makes it a great work-wear option.

Ankita - dressed for work

Choosing and styling saris the right way goes a long way in helping you look put together while being comfortable. Some aspects to keep in mind while creating your sari look:

Fabric: The fabric is the foundation of your attire. If the fabric is uncomfortable it will be difficult to bear it all day and will show in your demeanor. Choose easy-to-carry, comfortable fabrics. Handloom cottons and silks are a good place to start. Try your sari beforehand to make sure it’s not too much to handle for a 10 hour workday. Lighter fabrics such as georgette or chiffon are acceptable if the sari is not sheer.

Some fabrics to begin with – Linen, soft cottons, silk cotton and Mysore silk are light and easy to handle. Choose breezy fabrics for summer and heavier silks or thick cottons for winter. Avoid stiff fabrics such as Organdy, Organza and Tissue.

The Brigade That Builds Brands: Payal Mittal Talwar's take on building a business & juggling service commitments

Hello everyone! Welcome to 'The Brigade that Builds Brands'. It's all about fauji wives / military spouses, who make work work for them through multiple postings, back-to-back social commitments, spotty internet connections, long stints of single parenting, community mindset regarding how military spouses should or should not work and a lot more. 

Meet Payal Mittal Talwar, a Life Coach, Trainer, Co-founder of WINGS Team and Army wife. I was introduced toPayal a year ago, when I was looking for ladies to interview for my article about Military Spouse Entrepreneurs. Since then, we've followed each other's journey and Payal has been especially supportive of my sojourn as a Green Wellness Educator & Entrepreneur. 

Here's our chat about what it takes to build a sumptuous work portfolio, while also living and working at back-of-beyond bases.

C. Please tell us something about yourself – what do you do, where are you based and how long have you been a fauji wife.

P. I’ve been married for over 22 years – a fauji to boot as I’m also a fauji daughter and a fauji daughter in law.

I co-founded a company, WINGS team, with my best friend- Priyanka Renjen Kumar(a  fauji wife herself). We are into Life Coaching, training and facilitation, and content development (social media as well as academic).

10 Reasons Why The Sari Is A Sustainable Style Option

At a time, when it’s even more important to make choices carefully, even in the fashion and style arena, the sari – especially the hand-woven variety, offers us a sustainable way of buying and wearing. Wondering what makes the sari a sustainable style option? Here’s why:

Though cotton requires a large dose of pesticides to grow and silk is harvested from silkworms (both of which don't make it very eco-friendly), the sari can still be a more sustainable choice of garment over factory-made apparel. And yes, there are organic cotton saris and Ahimsa silk too, to choose from, if you’d like to invest in a wardrobe that’s completely free of pesticides and cruelty.

However, for those who have plenty of non-organic saris in their closet and are wondering if saris can be brought under the green style umbrella, here’s my two-ana bit about why it is sustainable in so many different ways:

1. Handloom saris promote an age-old craft and tradition.

2. When you buy handloom saris, you're helping keep this art alive + helping weavers to do what they are so good at doing.

3. You can create a fabulous wardrobe with just a few saris. Mix-and-match your t-shirts and blouses + accessories to create new looks.

7 Things You Didn’t Know About Fighter Pilots

My husband is a fighter pilot. Hmm…now did I hear some oohs and aahs?! Because I always do whenever I mention this fact. With Tom Cruise aka Maverick having done a splendid job at creating this larger-than-life and smart-alecy image of fighter pilots, just the mention of this profession has people conjuring up Top Gun scenarios. 

Pic credit: The Fiscal Times

So, are fighter pilots like Tom Cruise in Top Gun? Do they wear their Aviator sunglasses all the time? Are they just as cheeky? Well, read on to find out.

I’ve been married to S aka Smokey Bandit for 12+ years now. I’ve also met and interacted with lots of other fighter pilots – his buddies, squadron mates, course mates and our friends. And this is what I have to say about the images and avatars that are attached to fighter pilots.

Here are the myths and truths (from my point-of-view):

1. The image: Fighter pilots have a larger-than-life persona.

Truth: These are guys with larger-than-life jobs, but down-to-earth personalities. Though not all of them are humble (c'mon we've all met a few stuffy ones, haven't we?), most of them are pretty easy-going.