I'm all in STITCHES!

Yep -- I got "stitched" as they call it here. I posted a picture on Monday of the man doing the beadwork at the Punjabi designer where I've been referred to get my skirt made. It's amazing, really... I ran over ("took a Rick") on Monday during lunch and they took my measurements. Within the span of a lunchbreak, I got fitted and then went to Bangalore's "premier" fabric store - Fazal's - and picked out a really nice sheer "motif'ed" fabric to flow over black satin. I went back Tuesday for a fitting and BOTH my skirts were done -- they just needed to hem my holiday skirt. I waited along with the designer and a couple of other ladies for the half-hour it took them to finish the pieces, and we had the most amazing conversation...

The designer was a homemaker up until about six years ago, when her husband died young and unexpectedly. She had never worked a "proper" job. She now owns two companies -- one is a partnership where they do construction project management and design (and just got a contract with Coca-Cola for new ventures in Bombay and Chennai)... And her stitching business -- run from her home -- has eight people on payroll. She has customers who call her from the US, send a pix via email, and she makes their clothing based on measurements she keeps on file and ships to them back in the States. How's THAT for a global distribution chain?! I was just so very impressed. Her creativity is endless. And the things she has done professionally since a major life event... Wow -- wish I could be that kind of woman. It was a lovely 30-45 minutes -- we had tea, we talked "women talk"... Sharing stories with "strangers" halfway around the globe makes one realize that the world is very small and our collective priorities are very very much the same.

I'm posting pictures of the ladies I enjoyed tea with. Also posting a (not so flattering) picture of me with my beautiful skirt and the wonderful designer, Vandana. The pix doesn't do the skirt justice, but you'll see it at the holidays... Not bad output for two lunch hours, huh?!




P.S. If you're ever in Bangalore and want exceptional stitching work done -- Vandana Rajnish Kohli -- vrexclusives@yahoo.co.in