Latest news with #Kushal'sFashionJewellery
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Lifestyle
- Hindustan Times
Top accessories for formal wear: What to wear with handloom sarees, deep necklines, blazers
Don't let your workwear be drab when you can bling it up with accessories. Glow up with trending jewellery and statement watches, and step into your corporate girl era, stylish, polished, and totally in charge. Own your styles by adding statement pieces to your ensemble. While pinstripes and checks remain among the key essentials, playing by the rulebook never made headlines anyway. Accessories can be the finishing touch to your look, refining your outfit, from necklines to hemlines. ALSO READ: Commuter core decoded: 6 ways to comfortably style fashion trend that is for all the girls on the go HT Lifestyle reached out to design and style experts to decode the latest accessory trends, highlighting how current workwear is being paired with certain jewellery and watches to amp up the style. Nandish Gulechha, director of design, Kushal's Fashion Jewellery, shared these trending jewellery pieces for workwear and how you can pair them with your formal and semi-formals: Style recommendation: Pair a fine chain with a small charm over a high-neck top. For added interest, layer multiple chains of varying lengths. Style recommendation: Let the oxidised jewellery stand out by pairing them with a handloom cotton or linen saree. Skip additional statement pieces; these studs are strong enough to carry the look on their own. Stacking rings is a trend nowadays. Wearing two or three thin, sterling silver rings layered together creates a look that's both curated and effortless. Style recommendation: Stack two or three rings on one hand, plain bands, or ones with tiny coloured stones, on one or both hands. These rings pair beautifully with tailored outfits or earth-tone palettes, adding an unexpected layer of sophistication to your everyday workwear. Silver hoops come in subtle, versatile forms that work across settings. The 92.5 sterling silver comes in a range- from clean, minimal loops to pieces with added texture or detail. Their close fit makes them perfect for all-day wear, while the design variations let you express subtle individuality. Whether thick and architectural or etched with Indian textures, these bracelets anchor your outfit with intent, making you look confident. Style recommendation: Opt for a silver bracelet and wear it boldly over the sleeve of a full-length blazer or sharp co-ord set. Best styled with solid colours and clean tailoring. Let the bracelet be your only wristwear, no stacking needed. Once seen only at festive events or beach vacations, anklets are now becoming part of everyday fashion, especially in sterling silver. A slim silver anklet adds a touch of tradition to modern outfits. Style recommendation: Pair a silver anklet, oxidised or matte, with cropped palazzos, or ankle-length trousers in cotton or linen. Go for neutral shades like ivory, rust, or grey. Complete the look with kolhapuris, mules, or loafers. Keep the top simple with a tucked-in shirt, high-neck top or straight kurta, and let the anklet be the small detail that stands out. The lariat necklace is an elongated, open-ended piece designed to loop or knot, creating a Y-shaped silhouette that adds dimension and length to your neckline. It's endlessly versatile, flattering everything from V-necks to buttoned-down tops. Its adjustable style means you can wear it loose and relaxed or cinched for a refined finish. Style recommendation: Loop a lariat necklace over a plain button-down shirt or under a relaxed blazer paired with a tucked-in tee for a look that effortlessly transitions from office hours to after-work gathering. Its sleek silhouette complements both casual and formal workwear. No accessory is complete without a good watch. Everyone knows a great timepiece tells more than just the time, it tells your story. So, decide how you wish to tell it, with the help of timepieces. Revathi Kant, chief design officer at Titan Company Ltd, shared these watch designs that are suitable for elevated workwear, from men's to women's styles: A post shared by Raga by Titan (@lovemyraga)
Time of India
26-04-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Bling without the sting: How Gen Z is redefining gold glam
Heirloom jewellery tucked away in velvet boxes? Gen Z would scroll right past. Their jewellery needs to move at swipe speed—versatile, feather-light and in lower carats like 18 carat, 14 carat, or even 9 carat. Even gold-plated is good enough. #Pahalgam Terrorist Attack India stares at a 'water bomb' threat as it freezes Indus Treaty India readies short, mid & long-term Indus River plans Shehbaz Sharif calls India's stand "worn-out narrative" Legacy isn't the point. Lookbooks are. They are not looking at a one-time splurge, but at an everyday style statement—part mood, part moment—that they can wear for Zoom calls in oversized shirts and dinner in coords. Jewellery must keep up—and stay pocket-friendly. No surprise then that layered chains, enamel pops and Y2K-inspired rings are flying off virtual shelves. Unlike traditional gold jewellery, which is high in purity (usually 22 carat) and bought as a long-term investment, fast-fashion gold typically uses lower carats (14 or 18 carat), and is designed for everyday wear, style, flexibility and affordability. At a time when the price of 24-carat gold has zoomed to 10,000 a gram and even 22-carat gold has breached 9,000 for a gram, affordability is the hook. Leading this shift in the organised sector are publicly listed brands like Titan, Kalyan Jewellers and Senco Gold . Last year, Aditya Birla Group launched Indriya, which offers an 18-carat, everyday-wear range, taking direct aim at Titan-owned Tanishq and Reliance Jewels. Gen Z is happy with even base metals or silver plated with 18-carat or 22-carat gold, studded with synthetic stones or cubic zirconia—sometimes styled to look like polkis. It's not fine jewellery, but it looks like it. It is stylish, trend-driven and costs a fraction. India's fashion jewellery market—also called imitation or costume jewellery—is projected to grow by $1.16 billion between 2024 and 2029, as per Technavio. With organised players stepping in and investors taking note, the question is: Can fast-fashion jewellery go formal? COSMETIC CHANGES Once the domain of flea markets and street stalls, India's costume jewellery industry is rapidly getting a retail glow-up. Brands like GIVA, Tanishq, Mellora, Amrapali Jewels, Kushal's Fashion Jewellery, ArtKarat and Isharya are formalising, repositioning fashion jewellery as accessible luxury, bridging the gap between street style and fine jewellery. 'Fashion jewellery has moved from being a compromise to a confident choice,' says Vijay Dhanuka, MD and head of private equity–consumer, Motilal Oswal Alternates, which invested `90 crore in Kushal's Fashion Jewellery in 2022. 'Kushal's is bridging that shift by offering a real jewellery-like experience, at a fraction of the cost.' Mellora, Aditya Birla-backed D2C player, has also stepped in with a price band of less than `10,000 and a focus on everyday, 18-carat jewellery, challenging older legacy brands with trend-first capsule drops. 'The surge in demand is driven by fast-evolving fashion trends, social media, ecommerce and advances in plating technology,' says Manish Gulechha, cofounder of Kushal's Fashion Jewellery, which has seen a 35% growth in FY24 over the previous year. FILM SETS TO FEEDS The shift towards formalisation isn't just about scale but also storytelling. Delhi-based ArtKarat, founded in 1988 by jewellery designer and gemologist Asha Kamal Modi, has celebrated the elegance of silver long before it became trend-forward. Her creations have lit up Bollywood screens and royal showcases. But even in this luxe lineage, there is a Gen Z mix. 'I love that I can wear a 1,500, gold-plated ring to college and a 12,000 polki necklace to a wedding, without worrying about loss or resale,' says Sakshi Jain, a Delhi University student browsing ArtKarat's Khan Market store. This demand for look-rich, cost-smart pieces isn't limited to India. Global brands like Mejuri, Monica Vinader, Missoma, Astrid & Miyu and By Pariah have carved out a niche in the affordable luxury segment, championing everyday gold vermeil (silver coated with gold), silver and demi-fine pieces that are as Instagrammable as they are wearable. Meanwhile, UK-based label Daphine is producing sleek, minimalist pieces in an atelier in Jaipur, tapping into the city's rich jewellery-making heritage. IMITATION IS FLATTERING 'We are seeing a strong appetite for minimal, stackable designs that work for daily styling and social media,' says Oona Dhabhar, CEO of Isharya. Its 'I for Isharya' line—priced at `3,000-5,000—sells the fastest. 'Purchases in that range are impulsive, led by influencers, reels and moods,' she says. On Flipkart, fashion jewellery has clocked a 50% growth, y-o-y, driven by brands like YouBella , Shining Diva, Rubans and Yellow Chimes. 'Gen Z shoppers are using jewellery to express their individuality on a budget,' says Kunal Gupta, VP, head of fashion, Flipkart. Combo packs like sets of earrings and necklaces are particularly popular. Western-inspired designs like charm bracelets and Korean earrings are driving demand on Flipkart's platform Shopsy. The platform saw a 40% jump in fast-fashion jewellery sales in Q1 2025 over the previous quarter, and 80% sales are in the `100-300 range, says a Shopsy spokesperson. Myntra, Tata CliQ and Nykaa Fashion report continued growth, while Tata CliQ, according to the company, has seen a 100% growth in imitation jewellery year-to-date. Investors are tuning in. What was once a fragmented, low-margin sector is now flush with capital, scalability and strategic positioning. Kushal's raised `284 crore in Series B funding from Lighthouse Venture in 2023, bolstering its offline footprint and supply chain. Silver and fashion jewellery brand GIVA, known for its D2C-first strategy and minimalist designs, got $10 million in Series A funding in 2022 to back its omnichannel expansion. Other players like BySimran, Palmonas, Rubans, Amrapali and Isharya are doubling down on premium, gold-plated collections that straddle the fine-imitation divide. 'As disposable incomes rise, consumers are likely to become more brand conscious, more discerning of value and have greater choices at their disposal,' says Dhanuka. That is good news for the fast-fashion jewellery market to evolve into a mainstream category of affordable luxury. Formal fashion accessory brands may continue to come up with lesser carats and friendlier pricing. Less is, eventually, becoming more.
