Tag Archives: Nepaliaustralian

BEHULI by Sanyukta Shrestha

Posted on October 2, 2013 | 6 comments

If you haven’t heard about Sanyukta Shrestha before she is a London based Nepalese bridal wear designer who has been regarded as a fast rising star of the industry having been awarded The Best Perfect Wedding Newcomer Award 2011 & Bridal Innovation Award 2011.  She is the driving force behind the industry’s future as seen by the British media and the industry alike.

Born in Nepal, she has been awarded best designer several times in Nepal and international beauty pageants, since the year she started her design journey at the age of 17.  A graduate of London College of Fashion, she has worked in bridal and retail industry in the UK for 5 years before setting up her own label.  With her beautiful approach on ethical designs, she has brought a breath of fresh air, passion and distinct styling to the British bridal industry.

Her aim is for a new vision for bridal wear, one that combines an eco-friendly approach with the hand-crafted luxury, expected of the most desirable bridal collections & millinery; the whole collection is driven by a ‘LOVE GREEN-BELIEVE IN ETHICS’ ethos. Most of the natural fibres used in the bridal collections are skilfully hand spun and hand loomed by village women in Nepal.

Through blending sustainability with her ethical beliefs, Sanyukta intends to create opportunities for women in this area of the world, by merging and turning their traditional skills into delicate fabrics and exquisite designs. Sanyukta’s bridal collections goes beyond the one special occasion and are valued as collectable pieces of sustainably hand-made, hand woven and hand crafted products. From luxurious silk wedding gowns to exquisite bridal millinery each style within this collection follows ecologically green guidelines, with fabrics from ethical and fair trade certified manufacturers.

Sanyukta Shrestha’s launch of her first eponymous bridal collection in the 2011 White Gallery London created a stir in the wedding industry. Recognition for her work has come from features in leading magazines Conde Nast Brides, You and Your Wedding, Wedding UK, Perfect Wedding, Bridal Buyer, Attire Bridal and also from international press like Vogue Sposa, Sposa Bella and Fashion TV.

Sanyukta Shrestha couture wedding gown Pippa from 2013 collection has been now preserved in Fashion Museum, Bath as a unique piece of art.

She has also been honoured with Highly Commended Brand Leader in Design at Source Awards 2012, The Global Awards for Sustainable Fashion.

Sanyukta Shrestha collections are currently stocked in luxury Bridal Boutiques in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Recently Sanyukta Shrestha team hosted a launch event to introduce press and industry to the new flagship store ‘Behuli‘. Behuli means bride in Nepalese and I am so glad that she picked that name for her store showing her Nepalese heritage.

Behuli is an extension of Sanyukta’s ethos ‘Beauty with a conscience’ focusing on providing luxury bridal wear that is individual and ethical.

The event was attended by many notable people in bridal fashion industry from leading bridal Editors, Fashion directors & stylists, to wedding planners, Photographers & bridal boutiques owners.

“I believe in individuality and I enjoy bringing out inner beauty, a reflection of personality of woman who wears my design. For me feeling good is equally important as looking good. My desire has been always to create beautiful designs that are luxurious, indulgent, individual and equally sustainable. Through following ecologically green guidelines for all our production process using only eco fabrics that are sourced from trusted suppliers and hand weaved through the traditional skills of Nepalese village women, we are trying to ensure that the whole creative process of our gowns is ethical and natural. It is ultimately all about creating ‘beauty with a conscience’.  – Sanyukta Shrestha

To know her better please read the following interview from myrepublica.com.

After the Best Wedding Newcomer Award 2011, Bridal Innovation Award 2011 and Highly Commended Brand Leader at the Source Award 2012, your wedding gown has now made it into The Fashion House. How do you feel?

“This is surely one of the happiest moments of my life as a designer. It’s so great to be recognized for doing work that you truly believe in. It is a wonderful feeling and I feel honored. It inspires and encourages me to work even harder to create better work.

What is SOURCE Awards and how important is this award for you?

The SOURCE Awards are Global Awards for Sustainable Fashion, which celebrate and focus the spotlight on the most innovative, inspirational businesses, individuals, and initiatives in the fashion industry, globally. This award is very special as it is dedicated to forward thinking fashion that aims to inspire and change the industry. It is an honor to be named Brand Leader as with all of our work we hope to encourage others as well to move towards sustainable fashion as a future plan.

You are a fast rising star in the bridal industry in the UK. How did you land up designing wedding dresses?

I find bridal the most intriguing part of the Fashion industry. In my whole design career, my desire was always to bring out the personality and individuality of every person who wears my design. To bring out the inner beauty of the bride on the most special day of her life is very fulfilling.

How big the wedding dress market is there and how are your dresses doing?

It’s a huge industry here in the UK. We are very lucky to be in the company of incredibly talented international and national designers who are working together for the industry. I still feel a little bit like Alice in the wonderland. However, it’s a journey that is challenging and inspiring me every day. Our brides are not just limited to UK and Ireland, awareness is growing gradually in surrounding European countries and Canada too.

Yours is a one of a kind sustainable bridal brand. How did you define sustainable fashion? And what are sustainable eco-friendly fabrics?

For me sustainable fashion is all about having heart, good thoughts and tying to do good deeds. In a simple word it’s a ‘fashion for humankind. ’ You have to think of every consequence, every choice that may affect people and our planet. Eco Fabrics are hemp, organic cotton, organic silk, soya, milk to name few.

Explain your ethos – ‘Love green – believe in ethics’.

The Love Green – Believe in Ethics ethos comes from the desire to create beautiful designs that are sustainable, eco friendly and hand crafted. Through using only eco fabrics that are sourced from trusted suppliers and hand weaved through the traditional skills of Nepalese village women we are trying to ensure that the whole creative process of our gowns is ethical and natural. It is ultimately all about creating ‘beauty with a conscience’.

How do you collect fabrics you use? Do you use Nepali fabrics also?

Most fabrics we use are from Nepal, like organic cotton, bamboo, silk, soya, Nettle, hemp etc. Some others are sourced locally in the UK. While new innovative technology fabrics like milk and bamboo silk lace comes from Italy.

How you do you feel owning your own label Sanyukta Shrestha?

Very happy and very privileged!

You started as an official designer in Miss Nepal in 1998? Do you have any plans to do something back home?

First collection I created was for Miss Nepal Beauty Pageant in 1998. Nepal has always been part of my design inspiration and the production process. Yes, I love to design for beautiful Nepalese women of all ages.

Pippa gown

The inspiration behind Pippa dress came to Sanyukta organically when she moved to new house. She explains, “I discovered these 30 years old of history caught up under the floorboards. Refusing to simply discard these pieces of antiquity I decided to aid another metamorphosis by reincarnating these aged papers into a dreamy romantic wedding dress for my collection that is inspired by Wallis Simpson.”

Including issues from the 1982 to 1983, from publications such as The Standard, The Daily Mail, Sunday Mail, The Weekly News, The Daily Express, The Sun and Motorcycle News, Pippa’s perfectly aged paper took the catwalk to truly represent the journey that any up-cycled product can take from ordinary to extraordinary. The Pippa gown gives new meaning to an old world style that takes the vintage to the next level. Aided by Nepalese hand loomed organic cotton and finished with nearly three thousand Swarovski Crystals to ensure that she really dazzles the world, the Pippa gown was launched at White gallery London Battersea Evolution, May 2012. With stunningly extravagant design and such an unusual history the finale of Pippa shocked and awed the audience. With the industry and press alike recognising Pippa as an incredible piece of art as well as statement on the importance of eco-friendly fashion the gown is unique, dramatic and showed a real story that gives a sense of history.

Source: http://www.sanyuktashrestha.com

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1,2,3

Posted on September 29, 2013 | 8 comments

Me: I feel like hot and sour soup baby. I need to learn how to make it.
AS: It is easy as 1 2 3.
Me: Really?
AS: Yes 🙂

1 Open the computer
2 Type Google.com
3 Type hot and sour soup, waaallllaaaa

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*How thoughtful!!! *He said *He knows how to make me smile

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How to piss off a Nepali?

Posted on September 27, 2013 | 25 comments

I was reading this article on www.matadornetwork.com and was laughing whole way through as it is so true. I can’t help but share this with you all.

So you happen to come across this brown individual at a party or at the mall and you start making guesses about where he or she is from. The worst way you can start off your interaction is by asking them if they are from India. Not a “So, where are you from?” But a direct “Are you from India?”

You’ve learned how to piss off a Nepali already. Although an incredibly laid-back lot, we can at times be quite sensitive about people’s assumptions or understanding of our country, and our nationality. Being sandwiched between two massive cultures doesn’t help — many an ignorant soul thinks Nepali culture and ethnicity is purely a mix of Indian and Chinese.

Here are a few more things you can say to further piss off someone from Nepal.

“Where is that?”

Just because you suck at geography, we have to go through a list of ‘Did you know?’ facts about our country to give you a sense of where in the world it is. If you know Mt. Everest, you should have probably put in the effort to look up where it is.

The point is that when it comes to our country and our nationality, Nepali people are, in general, a proud bunch. And when you tell us you haven’t even heard of the place or don’t know where it is, you’re bound to incite a frown or two.

“Oh Naples, of course!”

If you want to go one level higher, this would be the jackpot. Fake that you know what you’re talking about and then burst that bubble by telling us you know of a city that’s not even one of the best known in Europe, and think that it’s actually a country.

“Oh so you must have climbed Everest.”

Yes, Everest is in Nepal, but not in my backyard. And not all of us are Sherpas. In addition, it takes years of training and around $50k to ascend the highest mountain in the world.

In fact, a good number of Nepali people have never even seen Everest (thanks to the number of other massive Himalayan mountains that block our view), let alone climbed it. Would you assume someone from France or Italy must have summited Mont Blanc?

“So you speak Indian.”

Hindi, you mean. It’s called Hindi. And no, we speak Nepali because we’re from Nepal. The two are different languages even though they use the same script. English and German aren’t the same language just because they use the same alphabet, now are they?

“Buddha was from India.”

It’s a matter of grave distress to Nepali people when you mistakenly proclaim that Buddha was born in India. Yes, he did gain enlightenment and did most of his important work in India. But don’t make us take out the history books, or demand that you go to Lumbini in southern Nepal to visit the birthplace of the Enlightened One.

“So, you’re Buddhist.”

Over 80% of the population of Nepal is Hindu; only around 10% are Buddhist. But we might give you the benefit of the doubt on this one, because Buddhism and Hinduism are essentially the same religion in Nepal. Gautam Buddha was Hindu himself and is considered an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu.

“Momos…aren’t they the same as Chinese or Japanese dumplings?”

No! Dumplings may have been invented somewhere in the Far East. They might have come into Nepal through Tibet in the north. But they were perfected in Nepal and they are called momos. We will not even consider anything else for an answer.

These out-of-this-world delicious dumplings come with a sauce that’s even better and can be found basically anywhere you go in Nepal. Try them and your taste buds will be caressed by the rich flavors of the momos till all your tongue wants is more momos.

“It must be freezing over there.”

Yes, we’re situated among the Himalayas. But not all of Nepal lives at extreme altitudes. The southern parts of the country are as low as 300ft above sea level and can get plenty hot.

You’re gonna look pretty dumb in your winter coat on the back of an elephant in Chitwan National Park.

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Our Story : Phi Phi and Krabi – Part 19

Posted on September 24, 2013 | 6 comments

This is a continuation of my previous posts. Please read the previous posts here.

Every moment I spent with AS was so precious and both of us were so happy together. I didn’t want to think about anything else but us at that point. I felt blessed that AS was in my life and couldn’t wait for him to come to Sydney to spend the rest of our life together.

I felt a sense of stability with him and I couldn’t imagine my life without him. That amazing bliss we felt when together was like sunshine, happiness, and chocolate cake all rolled up in one. I felt our relationship was made in heaven and he was the man that was going to be my husband.

Phi Phi

To visit Phi Phi Island, we booked the tour and arranged to be picked up from the hotel at 7.45 am. The tour included island visit, snorkeling, lunch, afternoon tea and pick up/ drop off to the hotel.

We slept late the night before so I was struggling to wake up in the morning. AS was already awake and had his shower. I quickly ran to the shower and got ready. Then we rushed to the rooftop of the hotel for our breakfast. We waited for the van to pick us up to go to the port where the boat was waiting for us to take us to Phi Phi.

The van picked up a few more people on the way to Karon beach where we were briefed on our day. We all were given a sticker so the guide would know that we belong to his group. Everyone introduced themselves and we found out that there were three friends from Poland, a couple from Perth, a couple from India on their honeymoon and a few other people.

We took a speedboat and were on our way. I sat next to AS and held his hand and looked one of the best views I have ever seen. After almost an hour’s ride the boat stopped for our first stop in Maya Bay Island.

Phi Phi (2)

Ever since seeing the movie, The Beach, I have been interested in the island. The view was really breath-taking and the water was crystal clear and the sand amazingly white. The guide told us we had an hour there.

At one end of the beach, there were boats lined up against it. There were so many people on the island, so many boats in the water, and so much going on. Everyone seemed relaxed, taking photos or swimming or lying on the beach getting a tan.

Phi Phi (1)

We decided to snorkeled for a while. It was just beautiful and after a few minutes’ walk on the beach our time was up. So we hopped on the boat again.

After half an hour on the boat, they stopped at a new area for snorkeling.  It is on the other side of Maya bay. The place looked stunning and when we snorkeled, we saw lots of beautiful and healthy coral.

Phi Phi (4)

We stayed about 20 minutes as they fed bread to the fish so they would swarm around us. We saw some great fish, a lot were the same but the colours were bright and they ranged in all sizes. We saw a big bright blue one that shimmered in the turquoise water and with the sunlight shining through. I wish we had more time there but we were back on boat and off to the next stop, Monkey Beach.

As soon as I got to the beach, I saw lots of monkeys around. I am really scared of monkeys so I didn’t dare to go close but AS was running behind the monkeys taking their photos.

The place was just divine and the day was perfect. The guide informed us that we would have our lunch there and then we could go out and explore the place.

We went to this small restaurant where the table was set for our lunch. It was Thai lunch with chicken curry, seafood, vegetables and rice. We love Thai food so I and AS were happy with the food while some of the other people were complaining about the food.

Phi Phi (6)

The lunch was actually quite nicely presented and delicious with a wide array of choices. They also served tropical fruits platter. There were some girls selling ice-cream so I ordered vanilla ice-cream with mango topping and AS ordered chocolate ice-cream with chocolate topping.

I always think having an open mind and enjoying the local cuisine is the best way to explore a new place. That is how you learn more about the food, the place and the people. I have always found Thai people to be friendly and very helpful. The whole time we were there we never had any problem with people or food.

Phi Phi (5)

After the lunch we walked around and took some photos. As we were informed earlier that there would be another snorkeling session in the middle of the ocean so we decided to just walk on the beach and play with the water until we went on the boat again.

The place was really beautiful and I know I could live there forever. I even suggested to AS that maybe we should move to Thailand to live there one day 🙂

Phi Phi (3).

Then it was time for us to go back to our boat. After a short ride, we stopped again and it was another beautiful spot. The water was crystal clear, shiny, with marvellous turquoise colour tones and very clean. It’s a true luxury to take a swim when the water temperature is just perfect so you can cool off from the summer heat. The guide threw some food on the water and we could see so many colourful fish swimming towards us. We were near the reef so the floor of the ocean was just below us.

By the time we were done and were escorted back to the both, both of us were very tired. They gave us some juice and fruits and we were on our way back to the mainland. It felt like a very long time to reach the mainland and we just cuddled and enjoyed the view.

It was great to be in AS’s arms and enjoy the magnificent view of the lovely beaches and surroundings. The van was waiting for us to drop us off at our hotel and a warn shower in the hotel felt beautiful on my skin after the wonderful trip.

Late that night we went for massage and dinner and came back straight to sleep as we had another trip booked for the following day to go to Karbi.

Krabi

We had decided that we also needed to do a trip to Krabi since AS’s cousin highly recommended it. As it was more remote than Phi Phi, she said it had even better views, less people and amazing atmosphere. So we booked our trip through the hotel again. This trip cost us around AUD$80 p/p which also included island visit, snorkeling, lunch, afternoon tea and pick up/ drop off to our hotel.

I was so exhausted from the trip the previous day that I was too tired to wake up and get ready for the trip. AS made sure that I was awake and ready for breakfast before the van comes to pick us up. I took my own time waking up so I had to quickly get ready and rushed through breakfast to catch the van.

As on our previous tours, a van came to pick us up and then picked up a few other people on the way to the port. We were given a sticker and we introduced ourselves. This group was smaller than the one we went to Phi Phi with.

We were doing the trip to three islands of Ko Poda, Ko Gai (Chicken Island) and Ko Tub, with its sweeping three-pronged sandbar, plus the beautiful Phra Nang Cave Beach on the Railay peninsula.

Krabi (1)

It took us more than an hour in the speed boat to reach our first stop in Krabi Koh Poda but it was all worth it when I saw the magnificent view once we reached there. It was a real quiet island and there was one another boat only so I felt like we were in some remote part of the world, far away from civilization.

Krabi (4)

When we arrived it was a sunny day with blue sky. For the holiday we were blessed with perfect weather on every trip we had taken thus far. We had time to relax and see the place while the lunch was getting ready. One of our favourite things to do is to take long walks on the beach.

The remote island meant we had the beach all to ourselves and we enjoyed every minute. I was having so much fun on the beach that I got carried away and made a big heart in the sand and wrote A+ M.

The beach is famous for its white beaches and turquoise water and we were not disappointed. It was great to swim and relax before the lunch was served.

Krabi (3)

After that we went to Chicken Island, with the odd rocky outcrop that earned it its name makes a good photo op. Chicken Island is really called “Axe Island” or Koh Hua Gwan; it was dubbed “that chicken island” by Krabi’s first tourists and the nickname stuck.

After a few photos we were taken to snorkeling sites near Ko Yawasam and Ko See, rocky outcrops with abundant coral reefs and marine life. The backdrop for swimming was stunning with the huge limestone cliffs towering in the background. The sunset over the water was the best I’ve seen.  So beautiful and romantic 🙂

Krabi (2)

For afternoon refreshment fruits were served and I was tired but happy to get back to our warm bed. It was a long ride back to the port and then to the hotel.

We changed, got ready and went for dinner which was followed by an hour long aromatherapy massage and I also had manicure and pedicure.  It was great to be able to relax at the end of the day.

Next stop, Bangkok 🙂

Till then, take care.

M from nepaliaustralia

XOXO

Go to Part 20

You may also like:

*Our Story – Apart again : Part 16 *Our Story – We meet again : Part 18 *Our Story – Meeting the Parents – Part 13

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Posted in Our Story, Relationship, Thailand

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English name

Posted on September 23, 2013 | 10 comments

I used to get annoyed when I used to watch international channels in Nepal that they spelled Kathmandu as KATMANDU. I never understood the logic behind it but then I realised that it was Kathmandu’s English name. I was like, seriously!! Why do places in Nepal need English names? A name is a piece of identity, so no matter how hard the name is to pronounce, the place should be called by its original name, not a fake, easily-pronounced one. Most of the time, these names have their own history and meaning behind them so we are ruining it by changing it.

During my holiday, I realised it is not just Kathamndu that has its name changed;  I saw the same thing in so many places in Europe and the Middle East also.

Some examples:

Original Name

English Name

Wien

Vienna

Milano

Milan

Torino

Turin

Firenze

Florence

Roma

Rome

Napoli

Naples

Brussels

Brussel

Italia

Italy

Roosendaal

Rosendale

al-Yaman

Pekino

Yemen

Beijing

These names are not even hard to pronounce as ‘Wien’ is no more of a tongue twister in English than cities called by their original names like ‘Lyon’ or ‘Zurich’. The pronunciation of the original name sounds as good or even better. I am sure people living there love the original name so why change for tourists.

I am not sure how many of you agree with me but for me a place should have only one name and that is its original name. Even though it might be hard to pronounce but it is its name and everyone needs to learn how to say it. Whoever got the idea of giving English names to every place, you are making this world boring. Why not just spend more time in teaching others how to pronounce the actual name instead of confusing others with two names?

What are your thoughts? Do you agree with me?

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