Five New Outfits

Jessica, our associate and internet go-to lady, shows us what she wore to work at the store today and tries on a few looks from the pickings at our Minneapolis store.

Blisland Tunic- $88, Charcoal Leggings- $58

“This is how I came in today. It’s unusually cold and really windy for this time of year, so maybe unconsciously I’ve dressed in darker colors! I get cold easily, so I usually dress in layers. I’m wearing my favorite Mehera Shaw cotton leggings under a black tunic dress that I bought in Japan when I lived there. Over that is our Blisland printed tunic top.”

Shree Phul Jaal Tunic Dress- $89, Cherry Blossom Pink Topstitched Cropped Pants- $88, Silk Chiffon Scarf- $40

“This ensemble was actually one of a few featured in our Spring/Summer collection model shots. It looked so cute on the model that I had to try it on. I love these pants! They remind me of the 1920s. The blouse is so flow-y and comfortable, too. I tied a silk scarf around my waist for a little definition of my figure. One customer called this look “very swashbuckling” and I have to agree!”

Dusty Turquoise Top- $58, Brown Lace Skirt with Ties- $117, Handloomed Raw Silk Scarf- $50

“I really like chocolate brown and light blue together. It’s a really carefree, comfortable look that is put-together but still very relaxed. "

Golden Lotus Tank Top- $68, Black Voile Skirt with Pintuck Detail- $156, Handloomed Silk Colorblock Scarf- $60

“I’ve been dying to try this top on! The “Golden Lotus” print is my favorite at our store. One of our regular customers came in to try on this top and she looked so bright and cheerful that she made me want to try it, too! This actually came out more formal than I had expected, especially with the gorgeous scarf.”

Basil Green Wrap Dress with Printed Belt- $139, Boysenberry Blouse- $68, Indigo Cotton Scarf- $16

“I feel very jet-set in this look, like I’m about to go to Paris or Rome. I wouldn’t had thought to wear the Boysenberry top unbuttoned as a kind of cardigan, but it’s a great idea and adds even more color and sophistication to the outfit.”

Shari's Notes From Jaipur

Shari Keller, the Designer and Creative Director for Mehera Shaw, writes from our production studio in Jaipur, India:

Deepali, our shop lady, quality control checker and computer person, Vijay, and Rajan, our manager for everything at our Jaipur Store

I have been in Jaipur for the past 10 days working out new designs and sourcing fabrics for future collections. I work at our Mehera Shaw production studio in which is located in an affluent neighborhood in Jaipur. I’ve had a rather strong desire to try out some Chinese influenced designs lately, so I’ve sketched out a tunic style with Mandarin collar, quilted front and back insets, and beautifully hand-done, Chinese buttons. I’ve added to that a style of traditional Ladakh pants and hopefully we’ll make a Ladakhi quilted vest as well. In general, my imagination has been leading me along the Silk Road for inspiration, so I also have some richly quilted long coats, trimmed in velvet with Chinese/Russian buttons. Before my trip to Jaipur, we shot some fashion photos of our upcoming fall collection and kept our model going with images of yak herding Mongolian princesses. My fictional muse is now named “Yasminka” and is able to lead large herds across the Mongolian plains while looking gorgeous in multiple turbans, a quilted jacket, Ladakhi pants, and perhaps a saber at her side. What does all this have to do with you and me and a stylish urban fashionista? The challenge I suppose, is to bring all my imaginative wanderings into focus in a very wearable, comfortable, yet richly intoned and decidedly feminine style. Hints from my style muses filter down into something urban, stylish, unique. I love the hint of the Orient and the wearability of the West.

My desk, before it got too messy

On this trip, we also searched for and found a new block printer. We are always on the lookout for new artisans to work with and this was a particularly good discovery. He specializes in the vegetable dyes of Bagru village, a centuries old tradition that has been developed to the point of true artistry. The printing techniques are dependent on the weather, quality of the water, drying times, and absorption of the fabric. All these elements influence the colors, so the mixers and printers are truly master artisans at work. I always find myself lost in the beauty of a print, noting how it changes characteristics when done in different color schemes. It is usually difficult to limit myself in choice of prints. Often, as I work, I choose a print and develop it into new and slightly modified color schemes. On this trip, the vegetable dye colors were so lovely and earthy, I decided to go ahead and use them as is since they brought the richness of my oriental inspirations to light.

Madanji, our pattern master, putting a new sample on the dress form

I am also developing a few original prints, blending the characteristics of the traditional block print motifs with stylized floral patterns and contrasting shades of intense jewel tones and muted pastels. There is almost limitless possibility in this realm. I love the freedom of imagination reigned in by my guiding principles: beauty, femininity, and wearability.

Ramuji, our cutter, Hanumanji, our sample maker, and Madanji, our pattern master

I have come to have great respect for those who are working here in our studio now. Our pattern master is brilliant at making lovely clothes from my sketches. Our cutter is equally as talented in making sure the patterns and prints are cut just so. They take the care that few people even consider doing. Each day, at our shop in the states, I hear people comment on the quality of the cuts, the stitching. Praise for this goes to our stitchers: a small group of men (yes, in India the men are typically the stitchers, pattern masters, and cutters). Day after day, they carefully make beautiful clothes. They are all ordinary people; but they are doing their best. All these bits and pieces, on a human scale, are felt in our clothing.

So, needless to say, I love every minute of the whole process—from sourcing and developing beautiful fabrics to working out the designs with our staff.

Jessica's Tips for Wearing Mehera Shaw as a 20-Something

Many younger women in their late teens and twenties come into our store while waiting for the bus or just taking a stroll around our South Minneapolis neighborhood. They really enjoy looking at our clothing, but sometimes seem to say things like:

“Oh! My mom would really love this store!”
Or,
“I should take my grandma here sometime!”

Admittedly, Mehera Shaw clothing is designed to accommodate a wide demographic and array of personal tastes, but it seems that our style can be a bit intimidating at times to younger fashion buyers.

As a 20-something fan of Mehera Shaw (as well as an employee with access to a generous discount), I’m constantly finding new ways to incorporate our clothing into my admittedly casual wardrobe. Part of the fun of my job is seeing peoples’ reactions to how I wear our clothes and inspiring customers of all ages to play around and layer in ways they would not have thought of previously.

I often pair boldly printed tunics with a dark denim pencil skirt or wide-legged black pants, throw on our lightweight cotton leggings under mini dresses and loose blouses, and layer cropped cardigans over printed wrap dresses for a funky but classy retro look. I accessorize our look with sweet headbands and tiny gemstone earrings to add an even more feminine touch.

Mehera Shaw is a very exclusive and upmarket brand, and with that comes the price of our clothing that is often not so easy on the budgets of those just getting started in the professional world. Buying separates, while indeed a good investment, can get quite expensive if one’s fashion budget is stretched thin. My personal solution to this is to buy a dress and layer it; wear a cropped blouse or a button-down shirt over it to create the illusion of a skirt, or wear the dress as-is. You can see how I’ve paired an Ocean Teal cotton blouse with my Golden Lotus printed wrap dress to create this look:
Scarves, which are very, very in right now, are a great way to put a little of our “Spice Chic” into your wardrobe. Starting at only $18, scarves are incredibly versatile pieces that can be dressed up or down and tied, wrapped, and worn many different ways. See how different my casual outfit looks with and without a scarf? Also, try wearing a tunic top or short (or even long) dress worn over skinny denim or leggings- it's always a fashion-forward and youthful look, but it’s also a staple of Indian fashion! This combination looks good on just about everyone and is a unique alternative to top-and-slacks or top-and-skirt pairings.

Mehera Shaw clothing is designed to embody the creativity, expressiveness, and femininity of all women, so experiment and discover your own youthful, colorful looks.

Jessica, Minneapolis Store Associate, on Mehera Shaw Clothing

As a woman in her now mid-twenties, I’ve come to the point in my style life where I realize that my wardrobe is not quite professional and just on the edge of being “grown up.”
This is not especially surprising. I graduated from college only two years ago and my career has taken me from being an elementary school teacher in Japan (no place for silks and suits) to being a freelance writer and illustrator (where I can work in pajama pants and a t-shirt) to an Associate at the Mehera Shaw boutique in Minneapolis. Only now, working in the Fashion sector, is my wardrobe becoming more polished. I absolutely give the credit for this to Shari Keller’s designs for Mehera Shaw. All aspects of our clothing – the cuts, the colors, the prints, and the production ethics- inspire me immensely. I feel polished but feminine and entirely my own in my clothes from our store. More than anything, when I wear Mehera Shaw, I feel more confident and classically individual.

My personal style has come a long way since I first discovered pleated miniskirts and Doc Martens in high school, but it’s obvious that there have been two constants in my clothing history: COLOR and PRINT. My biggest style influences have always been the 1960s (with Mod London’s use of color and simple cuts to make bold statements) and the 1920s (with an increasingly internationally-inspired silhouettes and motifs and the dedication to artisan details and techniques). Mehera Shaw fits me perfectly since it takes aspects of both of these eras and incorporates them into a modern, polished look; the clothes are bright, colorful, unique, and incredibly well-made. When I look around our store, I find my favorite mod day dress re-imagined as a red paisley print shift, a prohibition-era gamine look embodied in turquoise cropped topstitched trousers, and the modern tunic as a reminder of the inspiration I draw from traditional world costume.

Like many, I’m also increasingly committed to Fair Trade practices and a have a strong preference for buying handmade goods. As a consumer, I want to send my money to the artists and artisans themselves, and I feel positive about buying at Mehera Shaw since I know that it will be fairly supporting everyone involved at our studio in Jaipur. When making a purchase at our store, I’m also supporting the farmers in India who provide the organic cotton and silk used to make our fabrics. Finally, as a former Asian Art major and all around “art geek,” I’m thrilled to be able to purchase contemporary versions of the centuries-old Indian artistic tradition of woodblock printed clothing.

Mehera Shaw has absolutely contributed to me ever-changing sense of style. I really am inspired by being surrounded by such beautiful, fun, and joyful clothing all day, and am always looking forward to what’s next for us!

Siobhan, Minneapolis Store Manager, on Mehera Shaw Clothing

Is there a way to lean back against the wall we have hit in our economy and strike an attractive pose? Might we find novel ways to look outstanding against such a grey backdrop? Let me tell you, those black and brown outfits won’t pop much against that aforementioned wall. That haute tough smirk won’t take you far this year when what we all crave is a genuine smile. What we need now is some color, some fun and delight.

In brighter times, when options and ideas were more profuse, it seemed sensible and somehow grounding to look hard-edged. In the midst of disposable incomes and trends those black outfits appeared nonchalant and stoic, a grand contrast to the hyper-stimulation of advertising and the burgeoning mass media. As the nineties crept forward through the millennium fashion embraced darker and darker cloth and attitudes that continued right through into recent years. The culmination came in skull-and-crossbones motifs in the strangest places- on baby clothes for example. Finally we started to see so much black polish and grey fabric that the nonchalance began to metamorphose into plain negativity, perhaps an uncanny prelude to the recent crash.

So the worst has happened, or so some would say. Here we are rebuilding and reframing our perceptions. Now, rather than a makeover for our home and a new wardrobe every season, we might just be able to commit to one or two new pieces of clothing every few months. Personally I want those pieces to be uplifting and graceful. I want them to be high quality, investment pieces that won’t quickly date and that justify the time I took in selecting them. Mehera Shaw offers clothing that is elegant and classic, with just enough whimsy to make the pieces feminine, and enough color to lift any black mood. The delightful variety of prints are examples of age-old traditions of printing and dyeing, making luxury and history accessible and most of all- wearable.

The tightening of purse-strings has also made many people more conscious of the Global Community and has given us a chance to pause and reflect on what we might do to be better citizens. I find, with less money to spend, I generally make far more conscious and conscientious decisions and think much more carefully about where that money goes when I sign it over. It is time well spent to find places like Mehera Shaw who are committed to Fair Trade and to ecologically sound practices. It comes as a relief to know that I am doing as little harm as possible and maybe even helping someone by considering more carefully where my dollar goes.
This is the perfect time to embrace the beauty that is ours to claim. It is a time to find charm in good company, artistry in that well-prepared dinner and pleasure in smelling the proverbial roses. In the midst of these shaky times I hope, as women, we can still find ways to celebrate and show ourselves in a new light. We need to take responsibility and be the beauty we want around us, be the happiness we still feel, and manifest these ideas not just in our attitudes but in our outer appearances as well.

Welcome To Mehera Shaw

Hello and welcome to the Mehera Shaw blog! If you're not familiar with us, please visit our website to view our collections of organic, fairly made, "decidedly feminine" clothing, learn more about our history, and contact our Minneapolis, Minnesota and Chapel Hill, North Carolina boutiques.

We'll be regularly featuring articles written by Mehera Shaw staff on everything from how to wear our clothing to issues in Fair Trade and Eco-living, plus shop updates, announcements of new merchandise and sales, as well as the sources of our inspiration.

Thank you, and welcome to Mehera Shaw!