Candy, pink cupcakes and heart shaped everything you can think off, means Valentine’s Day has descended on us. Our entire week was drenched in the theme, whether we liked it or not. With so much of inspiration around me, I dedicated an entire reel to Types of couples, from the super romantic to the hilarious. You know the ones that love to match every outfit, or the others who are ALWAYS holding hands. My better half and I fall into the ‘would probably forget Valentine’s Day if we weren’t on social media’ category. Case in point, it was a working V-Day for me at a show in Goa. But back in Chennai most videos doing the rounds started with ‘Last minute Valentine’s plans’ or ‘Last minute gift ideas’, as Instagrammers proceeded to tell us all of the amazing places we could go to, and a range of things we could possibly give our significant others. Which made me wonder, did no one have plans in advance? And was everyone making a mad dash to put something together at the last minute?
Asking around, I loved the answers I got, especially ones where the ladies banded together and went the ‘Galentine’s route’. One of the unique ones was at Smokin Hog, where the big attraction was an eight-course pork lovers dinner. Guests loved the no fuss version of things, where all the main focus was on the food. Favourites included the pork crackling and the bacon brownies (what!?), although it was a hard choice. The quirky décor and art work made for some fun pictures with everyone leaving in various stages of a food coma. Meanwhile at Express Avenue everything was drenched in romance as Chennai’s popular couples took the stage in a show choreographed by Karun Raman. Models showcased some seriously glam looks, high on bling. And weaving in the theme with some retail therapy, was Lime Soda’s Spring Valentine Soirée at Crowne Plaza. Also a hit with shoppers across all ages, the pop-up saw its regulars, plus a few new faces, who were there to stock up on cottons and summer wear. The crowd favourite was a tie between brand Khadivas and the Tarot Card reading section by Tantrik. It was a similar vibe at the Wild Milan Valentine Fest at Amethyst, with loads of clothing, accessories and sustainable goods to choose from, mostly by small scale businesses. It was a pretty setting and the ladies were dressed to impress, most in shades of red and pink. Yes, of course there were more pictures than we could count, followed by some serious shopping.
And on the fashion front this week saw two events, starting off Tifara celebrating 11 years, inviting guests to check out a specially curated collection for the ‘season of love’ over wine and cheese. Crowd favourites were Shantanu and Nikhil, and Deep Thee by Hyderabad based designer Deepthi Pothineni, who was also there in person. The other highlight was the delicious desserts by Shradha Lulla that people could not get enough of.
The second event was the launch of the S Studio, a boutique specialising in hand crafted saris. Doing the honours and inaugurating the store was renowned vocalist Bombay Jayshri. The ladies were treated to a beautiful range of kanjivarams, tussars and benarasi silks, as well as handpainted kalamkaris. And rounding out the week was the first event of Terroir — The Madras Wine Club for the year, and what a great way to kick start things off. The super elegant soirée at the Leela Palace was a serious wine appreciation dinner, with beautiful pairings through the evening.