• Articles
    • All Articles
    • Sareeing
    • Mindful Living
    • Thoughts & Musing
  • Art
  • Shop
Menu

Revive Style

fashion, design and old world charm

rlogo02

13th September 2016

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)

Oorja Makkad

Blogger | Designer
Millennial Sareephile
Indian Textile Aficionado

Musing on fashion, handicraft, sustainability narratives, cruelty-free beauty and eclectically homegrown design. Find me on Instagram @oorja.revivestyle.

#HANDCRAFTEDISBEAUTIFUL

Subscribe

I know every new post is on my social media, but imagine having them delivered fresh to your inbox on priority!

Join 2,365 other subscribers.

Social Me

INSTAGRAM

oorja.revivestyle

Oorja M
'the mango tree bent with clusters of red sprouts 'the mango tree bent with clusters of red sprouts kindle ardent desire in women's hearts
The ashoka tree that bears blossoms red like coral makes the hearts of women sorrowful
The atimukta creepers whose blossoms are sucked by intoxicated bees excite the minds of lovers
The kurbaka tree whose blossoms are lovely as the faces of women pain the hearts of sensitive men
The kimsuka grove bent with blossoms, waved by winds, appears like a bride with red garments'

- excerpt from Kalidasa's (poet) 'Ritusamharam,' which is, in the words of Harsha V Dehejia, "a poetic  testimony of how intimately the moods of the human mind are tied up with the colours and sounds of the seasons in classical Sanskrit thought and art." 

Vasanta (spring) is not too far away 🌹
Source: 'The Flute and The Lotus: Romantic Moments in Indian Poetry & Painting' by Harsha V. Dehejia

PS: I got that delicious neckpiece from a secondhand store! Ring is @sukkhi_jewellery, saree from @suta_bombay and the blouse a hand-me-down ❤️
Don't you ever tame your demons but always keep th Don't you ever tame your demons
but always keep them on a leash
- one among 1083637 things Hozier said that we all just... F e l t ✨

Two versions of my fav silky slip meets kashidakari shawl outfit worn in January - once understated with gold studs and vegan flats, and once fusion-esque with the handcrafted karigari of  South Indian jewellery 🌚 #StyleRepeats #RepeatFashion
Decade old blazer, two decade old saree 🖤 I'm s Decade old blazer, two decade old saree 🖤
I'm so in love with shirtless blazers as a concept I'm definitely going to overdo it this month! This one was given to me as a hand-me-down from my aunt one decade ago, I'm not sure of its original age. The chikankari saree is my mom's, black with white threadwork, probably my age or a little older. A handcrafted, bohemian, intricate silver amulet pendant on a black cord from @store.aarna ties these two together like two cherries on a luscious chocolate cake! I don't think the look would've flied if it hadn't been for her beautiful jewellery. I'm always enchanted by Aarna's tasteful, sublime, precious creations!

Entering @thebohobaalika's #15days15ways #tangowiththesaree in this vintage outfit, and also @sareesaatsamundarpaar's #blackforsankraant, and also @drapeastory's #RestylingWithPenaaz 🌚 Two much worn, much styled, much loved pieces come together on this special day!
the typical sUSTaiNabLE markers aren't here, its g the typical sUSTaiNabLE markers aren't here, its good ol' polyester tulle all the way. But what feels sustainable about it?

1) The make. Suits bought from traditional Indian ateliers/designers/shops/boutiques have a seriously huge margin. They aren't designed for you to quickly grow out of and then come and buy more. My mother purchased this for herself when I was in the school. She has worn it, I have worn it, my aunt has worn it, all at different occasions. A desi tailor can scale sizes on a generously margin-ed suit with his eyes closed!

2) The use. This suit is today more than a decade old, and has attended so many festivities on three different bodies! I myself have posted it on this feed multiple times, with different jewellery at different stages of my life. The classic design adhered to no fad or loud colour, it's a brocade overlaid with a tulle embroidered in dull gold. My mother, when she bought this, was smart enough to tell that this would remain timelessly stylish.

The perfect sustainable garment (does it even exist? or is it just subjective?) would usually - on social media tokenism standards - be considered a sweet spot in the Venn diagram of handmade, handloom, naturally dyed, natural fabric, the levels of economics involved in its creation would all be rightly prosperous and the outfit itself would be, righteously, very expensive and out of reach for many. This is a conversation for another day, but we can't deny that truly, pedantically, wholly ethical consumption is a luxury afforded only to the very rich in today's world. But, sustainability cannot be competed upon, and participating in holier than thou sustainability is a disservice to the whole point. You do the best YOU can, and always know that it isn't just about what you're shopping and posting. It begins with how you are using what you already have, and what you're making of your means. This isn't an outfit I'd show off for sustainability, but it is one that I've used sustainably. Not every garment will please everyone, when it comes to sustainability factor. It's simply impossible. But we need to remember to make our sustainability about DOING, not just showing!
Caption this? But in Punjabi song lyrics only 🖤 Caption this? But in Punjabi song lyrics only 🖤🌚 #HappyMargashirshaToPaush
Consent to my love; let elixir pour from your face Consent to my love; let elixir pour from your face.
Offer your lip's nectar to revive a dying slave, Radha.
Radha, make your jewelled girdle cords echo the tone of your voice.
Soothe the long torture my ears have suffered from cuckoo's shrill cries 
Glance at me and end my passion's despair.

I recently started reading a translation of Jayadeva's Gita Govinda... And I'm losing my mind in aesthetic delight, page by page! Mellifluous style, richly painted scenes and  delicately portrayed emotions. There's so many verses that are headily, passionately, lustfully romantic, but the manner in which they fall upon your mind is as light and gentle as a delicate blossom meeting the earth. I guess today's outfit quite perfectly captures that mood - @store.aarna calls this neckpiece "a young queen in the making," and quite rightly so for a dainty, crescent shaped stunner composed of freshwater pearls, rubies, gold plating and natural stones. Delicately blooming with a block printed cotton mul kurta from a designer in Udaipur 🌷
@saumya_sood clicks really nice pictures 📸🌊 @saumya_sood clicks really nice pictures 📸🌊
Comment to Book: Handcrafted, silky Ajrakh magic f Comment to Book: Handcrafted, silky Ajrakh magic for  Pongal, Sankrant and merrymaking 🖤 We'll DM the deets!
touristy 🍷 touristy 🍷
Imagine: One signature outfit, everyday for the re Imagine: One signature outfit, everyday for the rest of your life. What would be yours? Mine would be a slinky bias cut silk slip, a Kashmir shawl, and little touches of delicate, handcrafted, artisanal jewelry 🌷

Ring, pendant and earrings by @store.aarna
Source: Yesterday's Print on Tumblr. We've come a Source: Yesterday's Print on Tumblr. We've come a full circle in the 2020s.
'A peculiarly Indian puzzle emerges from the cosmi 'A peculiarly Indian puzzle emerges from the cosmic and human aspects of kama (desire/pleasure). Krishna and Radha are creating the universe in their love-play in the eyes of a bhakti devotee. God takes the form of a lover so that the devotee can gain access to the sacred by means of earthly desires rather than by suppressing them. The metaphor connects her world with the divine, and the erotic can also be sacred.⠀
⠀
Kama is a powerful inner fire whose ultimate source is the very same creative heat that gives rise to the universe. For this reason, kama was viewed with reverence in India, unlike in the Christian West. The notion of 'erotic-ascetic' is also peculiar to the Indian subcontinent, linked to the Sanskrit word 'tapas,' or heat, which is simulated in the creative act of meditation as well as the heat of desire in the sexual act. When channelled outward, it has the capacity to produce life. When channelled upward, it produces spiritual gnosis. If misused, kama can destroy, and there is a need  For this reason, Hindu canonical texts contain strict regulations regarding sexual practices and relations. At the same time, kama is one of the four aims of Hindu life, and certainly allows for the experience of pleasure outside the aims of producing a child. In it, the outward and the inward flows of sexual energy are merged in such a way that kama leads to the spiritual goal of moksha.⠀
⠀
How can we live erotically without injuring ourselves? How can we live with passion without being controlled by it? The kama optimists focus on the creative, life-giving and transcendental power of love, while the pessimists worry about its excess and subversive power. The struggle between the kama optimists and pessimisists is an old one, both in the East and the West.'⠀
⠀
Excerpts: Kama - The Riddle of Desire, Gurcharan Das. A deeply transformative book to read in a present day India where 'unmarried couples' are turned away from hotel rooms and constantly harassed by the police in both public and private places 🤷 Who are we anymore? 

Wearing @store.aarna's handcrafted silver thread amulet in a deeply sensual red, and kashidakari ❤️🍎
@afsarnama began from the top of the map with Kash @afsarnama began from the top of the map with Kashmir for #themebroideryedit today, so shall I! Two kashidakaris and one sozni in these pictures, the silk sozni in the centre a vintage heirloom saree from decades ago! I've talked of my favourite embroidered textiles from Kashmir many a times on this feed before. Today I'm just going to ask you to go see @afsarnama's detailed and knowledgeable kashidakari post because it's absolutely stunning and her customised saree representates a beautiful confluence of embroideries! Another great must-watch point of reference  is @artsofhindostan's IGTV video on the shawls of Kashmir 🌷 It makes me so happy that there's so much conversation around craft, textile and heritage on Instagram now!
All that maach 🐟 handwoven, handspun. My insigh All that maach 🐟 handwoven, handspun. My insights say this was the most favourited post in 2020, so I thought I should end the year with this one. Have a happy 31st! ✨
In continuation from this morning, another frame f In continuation from this morning, another frame full of Rajasthan's artisanal traditions 🤍 Chitaai work engraved silver neckpiece from @store.aarna, indigo mud resist and block print on a handwoven kota doria saree
a sublime, delicate, quietly lyrical life force en a sublime, delicate, quietly lyrical life force energy seems to throb gently within the minute expanses in miniature paintings. There's something about miniature painting. As if each folio, artwork, pendant or parchment is sharing hushed, sensual secrets to every Rasika - aesthete - that is quiet, patient and sensitive enough to beauty to be receptive to these whisperings ✨ 

hand-painted ganeshjis in various moods , and hand-painted lovers Radha and her blue God nestled within an intricate silver jharonkha design, as if sighted by the spectator on a tryst from outside of a royal balcony. These beautiful adornments from @store.aarna seemed to need nothing but a subtle, understated, delicately luminous tissue kota doria that lets their intricate beauty have centre stage in the ensemble.
apple bottom jeans and art deco floor apple bottom jeans and art deco floor
unseen on feed shabby outfit pics 2020, I'd say th unseen on feed shabby outfit pics 2020, I'd say the last is my personal best :))
Load More… Follow on Instagram

Facebook Page

Facebook Page

Revive Style

fashion, design and old world charm

  • Articles
    • All Articles
    • Sareeing
    • Mindful Living
    • Thoughts & Musing
  • Art
  • Shop

Revive Style by UrbanSoul