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Beautiful Handmade Statement Necklaces and other Fabulousness from Neena Shilvock - Inspirations and Designs From the Week Gone by
Hello readers, the holiday is over and I will be back at work on Monday morning, back to life and reality with a bang! I've done a lot in these last four weeks - been to a wedding, had a jewellery show, met loads of relis and old friends, been on a short trip to Malaysia and spent time with my mother. Apart from this, there has been shopping, visits to the cinema, massages and facials. After all this, I will probably find it more restful at work! I certainly need to go back on the Slimming World diet as soon as possible.  I did not forget to do a bit of jewellery shopping myself! Every year, I go to this tiny store on Commercial Street where I find the most beautiful silver. Before the era of the mall in India, Commercial street was the only place to shop and one could buy everything there. In spite of the malls that have sprung up all around Bangalore, as you can see from the picture, the place is still heaving! Everyone has their chauffeurs drop them off to shop, and then when they have finished, a phone call brings their ride home to pick them up and whisk them back in air conditioned splendour. Once you get used to the tightly packed street, there's loads of fun to be had. Messrs. SuryaNarayana Rao have a tiny little shop, not much bigger than 15 square feet, festooned with silver jewellery, and I've been shopping there since the 70's. It has become a habit to go back there every year to see what else they might have in their tiny shop window, and they never disappoint. 
All old Bangaloreans know this shop and we've all been there at one time or another. The walls are covered with silver and as if that's not enough, if you show an interest in a particular type of jewellery, boxes of similar stuff is produced as if by magic from the dark recesses behind the shop which, as it turns out, is where the extended family lives in a vast, cavernous Tardis of a Hobbit Hole. These are the two pieces of jewellery I bought - both are made of 0.925% silver, and have a very ethnic feel to them. I don't wear ethnic clothes very often, but I'm sure I'll find a way to use them.   That's me for this week, folks. I need to sleep off the jet lag before I start work on Monday. Mike has filled the place with flowers as a surprise - I think he missed me! Have a fabulous week and I'll catch you next weekend, same time, same place.
Until then xx
7 Comments
loner
25/2/2017 07:45:39 pm
what is the red dot on the forehead mean. did you ever find your lost cat. i sure hope you did. thank you for your time and keep up the outstanding work you do. thanks loner 25/2/2017 08:11:39 pm
Hi loner, unfortunately Charlie hasn't shown up and I am beginning to lose hope although I read just today about a cat being restored to it's owners after two years. Even though I have shopped at commercial street many a times and brigade road too many times to count, and lived in Bangalore for over 2 years I have never come across this little silver shop. Maybe because non Bangaloreans associate these places with bargain roadside shopping for cheap trinkets? The only place I have bought anything precious (gold) at Bangalore has been Jayanagar 26/2/2017 12:02:37 pm
Divya, this shop is bang in the middle of Commercial street and the entrance is so tiny, if you blinked, you'd miss it. They have so much stuff inside, it is unbelievable. There's also a Jeweller's Street, running parallel to Commercial Street which has a load of small jewellers selling silver and beads etc, but all of them put together don't have the stock that this guy has in that little space.
Lakshmi
28/2/2017 06:45:33 pm
This time I discovered a tailor in Commerical Street - Royal Tailors and in a generational change - it was for my son who designed himself a sherwani/nehrujacket that he could wear for formal occasions. I also seem to somehow gravitate to Commercial Street for everything from saris to dresses. This time I found that there were nicer Western clothes in stores like Westside and Max than what you get in the US. Old habits die hard! 28/2/2017 10:08:06 pm
Yes some of the shops are fabulous - I always go to Biba and Global Desi - I love their colours. Commercial Street has changed so much since we were young - I really miss Ceylon Traders, their jewellery was beautiful too. I really don't tend to wear ethnic clothes too often although I love them, this year I bought my first saree in over 20 years.
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