What: Amrapali shop in a shop at Good Earth, Raghuvanshi Mills, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, call 24951954. 

Why: A dainty silver hair barrette from Amrapali was among the first ten recommendations that brown paper bag made when we launched back in 2009. And so to polish nostalgia we’ll return to the jewellery label’s pretty pop up shop at Good Earth that in addition to selling new gold and silver collections, will also showcase their collaboration with designer Manish Arora. Shrine on!

When: Starts on March 12

When a store is called Roti Kapda Makaan, you expect to find life’s essentials on its shelves . That’s exactly what we found at Raghuvanshi Mills’ fun new store, our shopping bag filled with mini chocolate tarts (food), heart pajamas (clothing) and a motorcycle handle turned into a lamp (shelter), quickly taking us from have-nots to haves.

Started by Sneha Raisoni of Tappu ki Dukaan with business partner Henal, the route to this store is as convoluted as Tappu’s Fort establishment  – though an office building with minimum signage – which makes it a fun discovery. On a small first floor space that used to be rented out to photographers, you’ll see a clothes line hung with pajamas and waist coats, a showcase full of treats, furniture and a bright yellow wall displaying odds and ends for the home.

Vroom With a View

While stocking some eye-fatigue products from Happily Unmarried that we’ve been seeing in stores for years was a conscious decision – “they’re popular and people still want them,” we were told – there’s also a whole bunch of newer products. Take the abovementioned motorbike handle light for instance, or the farm rake wine rack that protrudes out from the wall, both from Art Feat. Walk past the same old shot glasses and truck photo frames to the more fun Transfomer USB, seven day steel medicine boxes stacked like a dabba, moustache toothpicks and napkin swans. All of these are displayed inside trunks, suitcases, window frames and amputated chairs that are painted yellow and mounted on the wall. A fun idea if you are renovating!

If you’re looking for furniture, Roti Kapda Makaan is a relief compared to its frightfully expensive counterparts in the same mill. Here, pieces are fun and functional – we like that they’re not too kitschy - and rarely go beyond Rs 20,000. There’s the library ladder inspired chair from Urban Ladder, a table with steps so you can display plants, a colourful woven laptop bed stand and sofa that slides to reveal a coffee table in the middle.

What’s the Peg?

Pegged to the clothesline are slightly pricey sleepwear by Pajama Party, pretty waist coats by Grass Roots and boxers. This line up, we’re told, will keep changing. The food here is restricted to bagels and cream cheese from Bagelwala; cake pops, tarts, hot chocolate in a spoon by Icing on Top; and mini croissants for takeaway.  With a pantry in the back, the space will soon serve as a café, so you can eat at the store as well. Although it seems a little cramped to us for browsing and bingeing.

Still, make a trip to this bright yellow store to put a shirt on your back. Or a napkin swan on your table.

Getting there: Roti Kapda Makaan, 2nd floor, Reproscan, Raghuvanshi Mills, Lower Parel, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 24965527, Rs 500 for pajamas, Rs 10,500 for a motorcycle lamp.

Part of WETHEPPL, NorBlack NorWhite is one of our favorite design labels, and we often wish they did an updated line of clothes. They're not quite there yet, but here's a next best thing: all of their women's clothes as well as Camiz shirts for men just went on sale, featuring discounts up to 50%. 

Here are five yummy things to look out for, as you raid their online store:

Black tasseled tank top with sheer orange yolk: We first spotted this as a dress sample, in Bombay Electric over a year ago. It made us feel like we were dancing on a table at Gatsby's party. 

Green Maliwali jumper: If you can pull of jumpsuits (we've never been able to), this one is a good bet, because it combines two of the biggest trends this season - pajamas and jumpsuits. 

Two-toned Diamond dress: We own this particular dress, and promise that it'll be the most useful thing you own.

The Architect Camiz Shirt: This unisex navy and sky shirt further feeds our current obsession with blue. 

Zardozi Tights: It's getting a bit warm for these babies, but you can always save them for next year.

Happy shopping!

Getting there: Visit www.wetheppl.com, approximately Rs 10,000 for a tasseled top.

Remember those annoying ‘What Would Meredith Do’ promotions for Grey’s Anatomy on TV? They’d scarred us, so to think of a store where bags are inspired by the show’s characters, didn’t sound particularly exciting.

But then we heard some other whispers - every bag you buy comes with a built-in secret, from pepper spray and lip gloss to a chaos key finder.  And just like that, we were intrigued again. This is Shwa, a recently opened bag store in Bandra run by marketing and innovation graduates Chandni Nihalani, and Ira Jhangiani-Jain.

Clutch This

The bags here are not only named after Grey’s Anatomy characters, but are also designed to match their personalities. ‘Meredith’, the multi-tasker’s big work bag comes with a zip-off after-work clutch, which also doubles up as an iPad pouch; ‘Robin’ comes with pepper spray; ‘April’ has an in-built key finder; and ‘Erica’ comes with a torch-cum-laser light. The collection includes all kinds of hand bags: office ones, clutches, sling bags, wallets and shiny party purses. Other secrets engineered into them include a see-through compartment, a detachable make-up pouch, a bag hook, a phone charger, a flash drive, hand sanitizer – things that make life slightly easier.

Once you get past the gimmicks though – and we think they should have stuck to the secrets angle and done away with the Grey’s Anatomy one – you’ll realise that some of the bags here don't deserve a shoulder. Especially the work ones that lack character in terms of design, appearing like generic handbags. See instead the bright sling bags and clutches with playful highlights. Our favourite is the orange and yellow comfy sling with subtle metal detailing.  We inquired. And they said, “meet McDreamy.”

One shoulder replacement, please.

Getting there: Shwa, 36 Chandni Apartments, ground floor, Pali Road, Bandra (W), call 8082031122 or visit www.shwa.in, Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,500.

The good folks at Pop Vulture understand your need to stay ahead of the game. Which is why, after extensive research, which we're guessing involved throwing darts (how does a gaming office operate, anyway?), they have launched Pop Vulture, a desi board game version of Cranium. This team (they recommend at least 3 people at one time), task led game is based on movies, music, television shows and other Indian pop culture references, and tests your ability to mime, draw and act.

One of the cards in the game for instance, would need you to mime 'Mere paas maa hai' or hum the tune of Made in India. So basically, this game will make you more aware of irrelevant details from the '90s and '80s (Baba Sehgal and Road Rash, ring a bell?). You can order the game online, they deliver across India. At Rs 850 (shipping extra), Pop Vulture could be a fun, well-priced party starter. It does not however, help you make new 'frandships', as Pop Vulture politely points out. Alright, we stand warned.

Getting There: Buy online. For more information, visit www.facebook.com/p0pvulture

Fashion store Bombay Electric was all part of the conspiracy, the grand plan to throw Scouter MP an anti-surprise surprise party.

The sale at the Colaba fashion store that started on February 9, was to serve as the distraction platform last evening, while anti-cakes and people who know better than to shout "surprise", gathered at MP's Marine Drive apartment.

Unfortunately, the sale - up to 90% off on Manish Arora, Pero, Bodice, Cue, Anupamaa, Retarded Velvet (their mad Amul prints are available too) - did not have enough shiny slashed things to keep the unsuspecting birthday girl occupied long enough. But if you have five minutes, we have five picks:

30% off olive green pleated skirt by Bodice (original price: Rs 9,000).

30% off Periwinkle's vintage sunglasses with embellishments (original price: Rs 5,100).

15% off floral short skirt by Katha (original price: Rs 6,100).

30% off shiny brocade Rohit Gandhi pants (original price: Rs 5,300).

30% off red Rachna Reddy clutch (original price: Rs 6,000).

A lot of the nicer stock - polka dotted dress, diaphanous cotton candy-like skirt - are not on sale.

Surprise, surprise!

Wait, we're not really supposed to say that word.

Getting there: 1 Reay House, BEST Marg, Colaba, call 22876276.

bpb Bulletin

We wonder why, but the Bandra-Khar-Santacruz strip has few good independent fashion stores in comparison to South Bombay's Bungalow 8, Kitsch, Obataimu and Bombay Electric. What was probably the sole place in the suburb to find a nice dress, necklace or just a fun diary, Attic Santacruz pulled down its shutters quite suddenly last weekend. While a note on their Facebook page cites "unforeseen circumstances", a chat with the store owners was more reassuring.

This is just a temporary shut down, while the girls look for a new home. If you know of a cute space to rent in and around Bandra, leave them a note on their Facebook page. Maybe there will be a little hand-painted box in it for you.

At bpb we're hoping that they return with a full new avatar - reinvented space, more designers on the shelves and a whole new rack of dresses to try on.

See you soon, dust bunnies!

Getting there: Attic, view the Facebook page here.

You have our attention when you say latex toys. Throw in period costumes, swords, armors, corsets and we'll excuse ourselves for a fantasy break and go right to The Collectors Heritage, an online store that stocks everything we mentioned above, except you need to find your own amour.

Off With Their Heads

Run by The Windlass Group, the manufacturers of the official sword for the Indian Coast Guard and the Sword of Honour for the Indian Military Academy, this site is a treat for collectors, connoisseurs  and movie/book fanboys.Here you'll find an impressive collection of knives, swords, shields and other weapons for play. Much to our disappointment, we learned that these weapons were artifacts for decorations and equipped with blunt edges, but we did love a Gothic Suit of Armour, which would be a great conversation starter at our next house party, and a Musketeer Rapier, if things got really grand. Three’s company?

We Were On A Role

Offering licensed products from LOTR, Harry Potter, Star Wars and Gladiator, the costume and role playing section is cool as well, especially because The Collectors Heritage is attempting to introduce Live Action Role Play (LARP) in India. To increase awareness, they are organizing events in Delhi soon(check the Facebook page for updates). We were listening and already plotting ways to accessorize the Bellatrix Lestrange corset. Unless of course, you'd want to Ron with the Hermione Granger Yule Ball Gown. Perhaps on a date with a man in the General Maximus helmet ? It would only be fitting to drink out of our Viking Drinking Horn. Is that a sword in your pocket or are you just happy to see us?

The site offers free shipping and a 15 day, free return policy. With prices ranging from Rs 3,999 for the Viking Drinking Horn to Rs 89,000 for the Gothic Suit of Armour, this might be a shopping experience for collectors and aficionados strictly. Unless the costume section catches your fancy, and you don't mind the p(l)ay.

Getting there: Shop online on www.collectorsheritage.in, Rs 3,100 for a pirate’s cutlass.

Celebrity-endorsed posters, film songs, Bollywood standees. You will find none of these at Being Human, actor Salman Khan's new fashion store for men at Linking Road. Instead, a typewriter and a tastily tattered copy of The Old Man and The Sea are what greet you. And overused as they are, these types of props at clothing stores, along with beaten up trunks and old film cameras, they still had us pleasantly surprised.

The huge three storey store's aesthetic and its merchandise design  will remind you of a much lower end Diesel (ignore the single Salman Khan photo on the wall). The stock - caps, tees, shirts, trousers, jeans, flip-flops - range from lightly branded with Being Human to hardcore look-at-me patchwork. We visited on a Sunday evening to find the space buzzing with a mix of Salman Khan fans - they all talked about whether the actor would emerge from a clothes rack or something of that sort- and curious shoppers-by.

What: Isis dinner plates and napkin swans from Propshop24.in, Rs 1,800 for 4 and Rs 1,450 for 6 respectively.

Why: If Bjork is your favourite swan, this flock will come a close second. Crafted to look like origami birds, these ceramic swans hold pretty napkin fans for your dinner table. Pair these pretties with the Africa-inspired printed dinner plates, and you’ve got yourself quite a setting.

When: You want dinner and a Swan Lake recital.