29/100. Monsoon is here – which means it’s time to put away my cottons and to bring out my georgettes and crepes. But I couldn’t say bye to summer without wearing this saree at least once.

I had gifted this saree to my mom about three years back from one of our favourite stores – Kamala. The official outlet of the Crafts Council of India, Kamala is a near-perfect microcosm of the indigenous arts and crafts heaven that is our country. The sarees they stock are few – yet each is a beauty.

Take this one, for instance. Vertical stripes. Floral jaal. Block prints. Pink and grey. On a mulmul base. What’s not to love?

I have been putting off wearing this saree for the last three years because I do not have a matching blouse. And believe me when I say that I would not have worn this today either if it were not for the pact. I am rather staid when it comes to saree blouses. Forget blouse styles, I do not even play around with colours or textures. So, pairing this saree with a solid black blouse was quite a big step for me. So that I wouldn’t feel too mismatched, I wore this with black lacquered wooden jewellery with silver accents. And actually, I quite liked the final effect. The black added a punch to the pretty smartness of the saree.

Hmmm. Now that I think of it, it’s interesting that I stepped a wee bit out of my comfort zone for the last saree in the Twenties. I am all fired up now. Looking forward to my Thirties, I am!