Five kinds of clothes you will find in Sarojini Nagar

Im quite sick of people with extreme views on Sarojini- some think its absolute trash, while the others feel its candyland. Honestly, it’s neither. Sarojini Nagar is like a loosely curated, vintage-cum fashion departmental store that requires its customer to have some sort of sartorial reference, a lot of patience and bargaining skills. Now these might come to you in time, but we can start with an idea of what you can actually purchase at the market.

Please note that Sarojini doesn’t bring with it the need to negotiate or compromise on quality. Do not waste your time and money purchasing something with bad stitching, itchy fabric just because its ‘cheap’. Keep your hopes high, and you will find what you’re looking for.

If you do maintain good standards, here are a few archtypes of what you can find:

The Multipurpose dress

When I say multipurpose, I mean a dress that is easy on our Indian curves and smoothens out the problem areas. I have a slim waist but a big hip, so I go with the cotton dress with a clinch in the middle. If you would like it simpler, go with something like the pink shirt dress, with the quirky blue piping. The body specific dress gets by with a little help from its friends:

• Dressy Pumps+ Statement earrings=night out
• Tailored black jacket+ brogues= Formals
• Large shopping bag+ cute broach= day out

The Quirky statement piece

This is the piece your mom warned you about- the one that makes you look a little stranger than usual. Don’t sweat- check its tailoring and pick it up! These pieces are one of a kind and will make you stand out in a crowd. Just make sure you stand out for the right reasons- for which you will need:

• A Plain Cotton tee (that suits your body type)
• Basic jeans
• Neutral coordinates (please go for dresses that don’t have too much of button/strap/print details about them)
• A chunky/statement necklace that compliments the outfit. Once again- this should be a strong block piece… not something with a lot of detailing

Classic coordinates at Cost price

Saw an amazing white shirt at ZARA that is too expensive for your daily dressing? Want to hop onto the pyjama brigade but can’t bear to buy a cotton pyjama for 2500? Welcome to the high street of all high streets. Carbon copy coordinates from Vero Moda/Forever 21 are sold here for 1/14^th the price, if you bargain well. However, once you do get yourself a classic thrift, wear it only with your high scale splurges:

• Fancy Tan bag from Charles & Keith/ your aunts hand me down bag from Hong Kong/London
• Leather oxfords from ALDO
• Shiny trinklets/ elegant brooches

Good on Paper investment

We have all heard of,  seen and obsessed over the cool maxi dress or  the funky jumpsuit pasted over fashion glossies. Only some of us (the more fortunate ones) go and buy these. The easiest way to try on an experimental look is to source some cool ones from Sarojini. How do you know if you’re rocking a look? By the number of times people ask you where you bought it from. Your answer to that should be- Oh, a ‘vintage’ shop in {Enter name of most exotic holiday} HA!

Not one-get two. It’s time for you to pick a shoe!

I recently bought a pair of brogues for around 2K which were very charming until I came face to face with shoe heaven- this store called RK Accessories (In the Gopalsons lane) from where my friend ended up buying super practical, leather flats.  For 650 a pop, these stunners are definitely a steal. Considering the beautiful, rose laden roads in Delhi, these can be your best friends. (Provided you put in an insole)