Deepali Nandwani
Editor
Those belonging to my vintage will remember the effervescent, dressed-to-put-their-best-foot-forward British duo, Trinny and Susannah, who, through their BBC cult show, What Not to Wear, taught an entire generation of women where we were going wrong in the way we dressed.
After a couple of books and columns on pretty much the same thing, the two called it a day. But not Trinny, who through her social media videos, continues to dish out advice to a new generation of women, on what exactly they need to wear to not resemble fashion disasters.
A couple of months ago, on a boring evening, I watched with fascination as she packed for a trip to India, right there on Instagram. She threw together a long summer dress — “great for Rajasthan weather”, a scarf — “just in case I am going to a rather busy public place and need to keep Indian sensibilities in mind”, sensible, but oh-so-glamorous shoes — “for walking through all those forts and palaces”, a white dress — “because it is hot in India and white always works on the sunniest of days”, not to mention a few decadent saris for the wedding she was attending. She rolled up her clothes, spread them out and within 30 minutes, she had the most delicious India holiday wardrobe ready.
I had never, in my life, seen anyone plan a holiday wardrobe in such minute detail, not just keeping the season, but also the culture and country in mind.
Dressing up is an art. We know that and most of us go that extra mile to dress up for a party or a wedding. But if making an impression at all times — even when you dine out or are on a holiday — is what gets that bounce in your step, turn to TravelDine and our columnist, the dapper Arnesh Ghosh, who rescues you from horrifying fashion mistakes that will stay forever on your Instagram.
Our video feature this week offers up an alt guide to pub dressing. There is more to this newsletter, of course: The reopening of Miami’s iconic resort in Coconut Grove and the ancient, intricately carved, stepwell Rani-ki-Vav in Patan. Here is to all the travel inspiration that you may need.