What: Playing cards designed by 54 artists for 54 Project Deck, available online here, Rs 950 for a pack.

Why: Skulls on the three of spades, Ravana-like King of Hearts, retro astronauts floating around the five of spades and a natty argyle pirate on the seven of diamonds—have these uber-cool cards and hold ‘em! On the designer list we spotted Ishan Khosla Design, Harsha Vardhan, Siddhi Yadav and Surgery Minor Kunst. Lucky draw!

When: You want the Queen of Arts.

So apparently, names are overrated. Just down the street from the no-name bar above Yellow Tree Café in Bandra, there’s a new export surplus store that hasn’t decided what it wants to be called yet. It’s been around for two weeks, but hey, why deal with the baggage of a tag when you can have a clean slate?

This was the situation when we visited the Pali Naka store on Tuesday August 14, fumbling from Janata to Pali Village Café, until we found what we were looking for. Inside was a man, non-committal, who explained the above no-title business quite matter-of-factly, while his spritely assistant sprouted a list of names that wouldn’t stop – “Only, Roxy, Tommy, Reebok, Adidas, Mango, Loft…”   These are some of the brands stocked at this store where there’s plenty for women, but not so much for men.

Roxy Heart

As far as export surplus stores go, this one’s well-organised (clothes are arranged by size), and comes with a trial room. Currently trending in the dominant women’s section are blouses. Sheer ones from Only with prints, cap sleeves and front ties, for approximately Rs 550 each. See black and white polka one. There are also some fun Roxy T-shirts, tacky tube dresses and blah Reebok track pants. The most useful buy here is the Rs 300 solid-coloured Adidas spaghetti strap top available in every colour of the rainbow. bpb acquired some for yoga class, as well as a silky rainforest green Loft dress (Rs 1,100) and a cool orange and pink mesh pencil skirt (Rs 650) where the brand label’s been torn out. There‘s also a pants section with Mango jeans and Tommy trousers.

Children of Men

The men’s section here is barely-there featuring Tommy Hilfiger undies and a few random tees. We imagine they’ll be stocking up soon.

Maybe this store is like Ms Golightly's cat named Cat. Maybe they’ll call it Shop. But wait, there’s already The Shop just across the road. This is going to be one hard street to navigate. Lucky for you, Janata’s boozy party packs are well (ear) marked.

Getting there: Umm, export surplus store with no name, next to Pali Village Café, Pali Naka, Bandra, approximately Rs 550 for a top, Rs 700 for a skirt.

Boys, how do you get measured for a shirt? Put on a French song by The Plastiscines. Get a measuring tape and give it to your significant other. If you don’t have one, get “a friend, or um, your mother”.

So goes the instructional measurement video on The Bombay Shirt Company website, a fun feature that immediately sets this bespoke shirt builder apart from other e-commerce platforms for men in India. Add to that slick web design and a co-founder who used to be the business head at Obataimu, and you’ve got yourself a thread ceremony that promises to be pretty sacred.

Earn Your Stripes

Launched by founders Akshay and Alex who, if you work backwards from their business idea you’ll predict, have always found it hard to like a shirt in Bombay. They probably met a few that were cool, but not worth taking home. To put a shirt on their backs, the business school graduates found themselves doing the rounds of congested cloth markets and crafty tailors, but decided to spare you the horror by building The Bombay Shirt Company. Here, you can find material and a bespoke tailoring service in the same place, at reasonable prices (between Rs 1,700 and Rs 1,900). Through his vast network of vendors, they source limited number of fabric bales, which are replaced by different prints once the stock is over.  Get plaid!

Why: If you’ve been smooching at Marine Drive, you’re probably familiar with the contours of these four-footed rocks. Tetrapods, one of Mumbai’s most under-used icons have inspired design collective Bombayography to create mini cement versions that will serve as paperweights. Hot and heavy! Run by an MIT guy, a product developer and ad executive, Bombayography’s next project involves quilts embroidered with city ward maps. While you were sleeping…

A Chic Waiting Room?

It’s 7 pm. He’s an hour late. You’re waiting at Dolcemente Italia, bored, hopelessly poking at a melting scoop of frozen yogurt. Scarf it down quickly and go out back, where a fun new fashion store will keep you suitably occupied. You can bill your blouse to him as a late fee.

A tiny store- approximately the size of 15 Godrej almaris or 20 voluminous gowns- Adie (pronounced ay-dee, short for ‘a design is everything’), is right behind this sweet dessert shop. Here you’ll find classic dresses and tops in bright hues and vintage prints, suited for any kind of girlfriend you’d like to be this evening. Cosplay?

Adie started out as a home-grown label by Meghna Dukle, a former engineer and FIT, New York graduate, who used to retail at boutiques like Bliss and Sobo. A year and a half later, Meghna decided it was time to get her own space. “I wanted the store to be a stripped down, industrial New York kind of boutique with a neutral setup that would make my bright-coloured clothes really pop,” she explains.

Cat Powers

Walk around Adie and you’ll see little details against the roughly whitewashed walls. There are metal pipes on which the 30-odd clothes are hung neatly; an old wooden ladder where that colour block dress leans and stands out like a candy stick in a scoop of vanilla; a poster of French cats; a small dressing room shaped like a  big wooden cargo box; and a chair with a netted back.

The collection, although scant, is worth a browse, with classic cuts and minimalist styles that could be a fun addition to your wardrobe. We loved the sunny egg yellow peplum top with lace details on the collar and shoulders (Rs 2,300), an asymmetrical dress with black and white polka bodice and A-line red skirt (Rs 3,300), and colour block dress in orange, currant maroon and pink. Meghna can also do customised colours and fittings, which will take about a week’s time.

At the end of our browse, we noticed an old trunk stacked with lifestyle books, including one on legendary nightclub Studio 54 and a classic edition of Catcher In The Rye. Looks it won’t matter that your date is late, after all. Or that the scoop of yogurt is melting. There’s enough of Salinger to salivate over in this chic new 'waiting room'.

Getting there: Adie, shop no 8, Silver Croft, junction of 16^th and 33^rd Roads, Bandra (W), dresses are priced between Rs 2,000 and 4,500.

What: Neon Betsey Johnson bags at Steve Madden, 143 & 144, DLF Promenade Mall, Vasant Kunj, call 45060913, Rs 5,900.

Why: The bright Betsey tote wins our vote this dreary week. Available in electric blue, pink and toxic yellow, these roomy, faux patent leather bags are good for work, and better for play.

When: You need a sense of belonging(s).

One single memory can contain an entire city. Split it like an atom and you’ll find tall drinks and days when the sun came out, old friends and fading moons, strong bridges and weak knees. And through all of this memory-deconstructing, in your head, you’ll picture yourself wearing something specific, an ensemble that is now inter-linked with that city forever.  Like our flow-y peach dress with comfy sandals and a straw hat, a combination that reminds this writer of her three years in the green Barossa valley in Adelaide, Australia.

It is this concept – handmade ensembles that are inspired by and evoke cities around the world – that Seat 14A uses to sell clothes online. This fun, new e-commerce platform operates from the US, but retails anywhere in the world, and is currently just for men. Buys for women are on the eve.

How it Works

Once you’re on the home page of the site, you’ll see a map of the world and the collections available from different cities. Select the collection you want to browse, and you’ll see what past customers have bought. From the Dilli Summer collection, you can get a basic ensemble of two summer pants, two scarves, one pair of handmade leather Kolhapuris slippers and two accessories (like a bead necklace, if you’re into that sort of thing), all done by local designers for the price of USD 125.

Our fair city is dressing rather well these days, with Fashion Week rolling into town soon as well as the much-awaited Maison Trunk Show arriving next week. An off-shoot of the Bangalore-based fashion and accessory boutique Maison, unbearably swish and carrier of hard-to-find international labels such as Carven, Preen, Acne, Issa London, this three day sale at the brand new Ave 29 promises to carry all kinds of pretty. 

Sale-ing Away

Look out for a Givenchy sling purse in deep blue, new Chloe stock and a Tibi dress the color of a swimmingly-sunny day. All prices are on par with those internationally, and some will be at up to 40% discount.

You can also check out the website, and if you find something you like, ask them to stock it for you at the sale.

The Early Bird Catches The Right Shoe Size

Ankita, head of Marketing and PR for Maison suggests that you visit soon, because their stock runs out pretty soon. We suggest you bring along a budget buddy, because if you're not careful, you might sell the farm for a bubble-pink Acne shift dress. We would. 

Getting There: From August 8 - 11, 11 am to 9 pm, Ave 29 -4, Kohinoor Mansion, 29, Hughes Rd.

Animal, Hide

A "vegetarian" shoe might sound like it's meant for hippies only, but who says that your office-going, so-serious feet don't deserve some guilt-free love as well? Enter Senso, a new brand of nicely-finished faux leather Oxfords that are made without harming any animals and come equipped with anti-sweat insoles which prevent your feet from smelling funny. 

Conceptualized by siblings Nilesh and Ritu who recently moved to Mumbai from the Middle East and hail from a family of footwear professionals, Senso aims to fill a gap in the footwear market. “Good formal shoes for men are only available in leather,” says Nilesh. “And the non-leather options that are available are of bad quality and don't last long.” 

A Safe Lace

The shoes – which come in several styles but only black color (we like Classic Oxford Corporate Ladder and Smooth Classic Buckle Shoes) —are made from polyurethene, a material that can be easily wiped clean and washed with water. “But they'll take about four to five hours to dry completely,” explains Nilesh. 

Senso Veg plans to open its first Mumbai shoe-room in a couple of weeks, and also retail out of the big malls. In the mean time, you can order them over the phone and have them shipped over. The hippies would be proud. 

Getting there: Visit sensoveg.com, to order call 25610411/22/33, free delivery anywhere in the country, cash on delivery option available (Rs 50 extra charge).

It’s started already. We got our first one in the mail yesterday. Soon, it will be an Owl Post-style flood of envelopes, announcing the nuptial knots and tangles that our friends insist on getting into this year. Yeah yeah, we’re happy for them and all.

But sewed on to all those wedding invites, is the stress of buying Indian clothes. Ones that usually cost an arm and a leg. You may not have received a card yet, but you should bookmark Karmik for when you do, a new multi-designer store in Juhu that retails affordable lines by big couturiers.

Launched a month ago by the owners of Kimaya, Karmik houses salwar kameezes, anarkalis, tunics and saris (priced between Rs 3,000 and Rs 10,000) by ten designers, including JJ Valaya, Tarun Tahiliani, Abraham & Thakore, Rohit Bal and Anamika Khanna. And while they do stock some fun pieces, here’s what we think they need to do to lessen the impending wedding stress.