The best wedding gift!

That’s what happens when you’re friends with both the bride and the groom- you are being pulled by both of them in a way that is worse than tug of war. I was the happiest being on planet earth when I learned two of my best friends are getting married. My euphoria became a nightmare when their wedding date began to near. Both the to-be bride and groom needed me on various occasions and both fought about whom I should attend first! The tension reached its limits when both of them wanted me to accompany them for shopping; I like a patient mother, scheduled my meeting with both of them!

I had fixed up a shopping schedule with the lady first because she obviously had a lot of things on her list. We paid visit to all the bridal jewellery shops in Delhi she has listed. And with a lot of scrutiny she finalized her wedding jewelleries from all of the shops she had listed! A necklace from one, a ring from another, and so on! Her bridal wear was a massive decision and she was dependent on me for that crucial verdict. I lost count of the number of stores we visited to nail her wedding dress. Can’t blame her, she is the bride and she is allowed to freak out and change her mind after every piece she was shown. That was precisely why I was called!

The day after, I had an appointment with the groom for the same purpose. He was utterly confused about everything! He looked for almost all the available options when the jeweler showed him nearly all the rings for men! He has zero knowledge of jewellery and I came to his recue just the way I helped him get an engagement ring. It took him 2 full hours to pin down one ring for himself. Thanks to the patient attendants of Hazoorilal Jewelers who did their best to help him (and me!). The rest of the shopping was easier, as he sort of knew what he wanted and with a little backing from me, he was quite fast!

Although, it was a tough time attending to both of their needs, it was a pleasure to see them both smiling on the D-Day, and no wonder, I give myself full credit for giving them that gift which no one else did!

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My best friend’s wedding

Weddings are joyous occasions that bring together family and friends, even if only for a few days. When my best friend was getting married, there was no need for her to verbally express her happiness; her eyes said it all. But apart from the bride and groom, who do you think was also equally excited? The best friends, of course! And while it was my dearest friend who was preparing for her big day, my joy too knew no limits. Accompanying her on her never-ending shopping sprees, dancing on each of her functions, and the sleepless nights when we discussed her new phase of life during those last few days before her wedding, were great memories I know I would remember for the rest of my life (okay, at least until I get married).

The task of shopping was an exacting task. We used to come back home exhausted after a day spent on shopping. But the days when we visited various jewellers in Delhi to find the right kind of jewellery were always the best. I could not stop staring at the amazing diamond solitaires, traditional gold jewellery, and platinum jewels. And since the friends of the bride too have the right to look beautiful on the various functions, I always ended up buying things for myself as well.

Let me now talk about the wedding day. My best friend was the most beautiful bride I had ever seen in real life. With the pink and golden lehenga perfectly complementing her fair complexion, and the ethereal gold jewellery from the best jewellery shop in Delhi, she looked absolutely stunning. And did I tell you that the groom just could not stop smiling? The perfect couple had a perfect wedding and while clothes and jewellery do not matter where there is true love, those did in reality contribute in making the wedding day truly memorable.

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Dos and Don’ts at an Indian Wedding!

So, everybody knows that Delhi is synonymous with weddings, don’t you? At least I do! And then not the simple plain Jane weddings but the huge big fat Indian weddings you have ever seen out there. Come November and you see a slew of people dressed in ornate clothes dancing their way to glory on the streets like no one’s watching and blocking the already narrow roads, while the quintessential marriage band goes on with the irritating blaring noise which so far I seem to know by heart! Anyways, another speciality of such weddings is that yes no doubt the bride will be gleaming with that jewellery from that posh and famous bridal jewellery shops in Delhi, but the guests are no less, and you see them aunties in bright sparkling saris and backless blouses, their faces lighting white (too much foundation maybe) with their jhatkas and matkas and not to forget their open match making. But then Indian weddings are just so much fun and engaging, I would choose to go to a wedding instead of the club any day, because weddings can be really interesting too!! But yes, on your way to attend one soon? Read along a little dos and don’ts before you set out:

•Dress Code/ Colour code:

Completely completely avoid wearing white and black if you are going to a traditional Hindu wedding because Hindus associate white with death and black with mourning. Also, be modest when dressing up and avoid too much skin show because in weddings like Sikh and Jain weddings which take place in temples, you might be breaching the conduct of the holy place.

•Jewellery:

Please understand that the bride and groom deserve to be the stars on their wedding, so please give them that honour! Yes, I know they have those huge diamond rings for men in the market, but you really don’t need that to shine right? And for the ones who think weddings is the type to flirt with girls and be the cool dude, trust me for I am a girl, too much

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Want to own a diamond? Then know the diamond!

Owning a diamond, is not knowing a diamond, and since it’s diamond, it is better you don’t just own it, it know about that piece or chunk you so lovingly like to flaunt. My friend is in dire need of a diamond ring. The reason is predictable; he is proposing his lady love soon! He doesn’t know many shops of jewellery in Delhi, nor is he well versed with diamonds. As a good old friend, I considered it as my duty to tell him about the 4 Cs of diamond. The ‘Four Cs’ are: cut, colour, clarity and carat. All of which must be considered equally while evaluating options before making the final buy.

CUT

The cut of the diamond depends on the way it has been carved, and since it is a process handled by men, it is prone to mistakes. A bad cut can lead to a definite amount of reduced sparkle in the stone. Too deep or too shallow a cut would alter the sheen of the diamond.  Be extremely careful about he cut before making a purchase.

COLOR

The best diamonds are perfect white or rather colorless. The whiteness symbolizes the purity of the stone. So you know how to differentiate between the different shades of diamond.  Diamonds with a distinct colour are usually rare and are hence expensive, who knows, you might just end up getting hold of the Best Diamond Jewellery in India, in your quest to find the perfect ring?

CLARITY

As long as the stone is a graded SI1 or better (best and most expensive is IF, or Internally Flawless), it should be all right. There is not much to fuss about the clarity. Just take a glimpse into the diamond you are about to buy with a magnifying eyeglass and look for small inclusions. They are natural as long as there isn’t too many of them.

CARAT

The weight, and size, of a diamond is measured by carat as we all know. A carat is as much as 0.2gm, or 200mgm. The average size of most engagement-ring diamonds ranges between one carat and half a carat. 

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