LUXURY  STATEMENTS!

By Wendell Rodricks

The concept of luxury is  so relative that it is impossible to define the word, unless it is  put in a context of sorts. While city dwellers consider a walk on a lonely beach the supreme luxurious indulgence, those residing near the sea may define luxury as a day out in the energetic frenzy of a bustling city. Often luxury is not  related to money. This can be true even in fashion. One can have all the money in the world but try purchasing  a Birkin bag at Hermes in Paris. At Rs.20,000/- a bag, you would need to know “someone” to move your name up the five year waiting list!

In the fickle world of fashion, luxurious statements come and go as quickly as hemlines rise and fall. At a time, perfume, champagne, caviar and orchids were sufficient to lure the “A list” crowd to a show. Now, it requires clever ideas, bizarre marketing and a touch of exclusivity to draw people to an event. Chanel once said “Luxury is not the opposite of poverty. It is the opposite of vulgarity!” How very true. In today’s world of excessive logos and clan behaviour, a stylish person does not need to flash a Vuitton bag or wear the latest trouser. Instead, luxury is becoming increasingly a personal indulgence at a personal level. The rarity of Tibetan silk purses, wild cotton woven in remote villages and shoes that fit like a glove by an unknown cobbler are considered more luxurious than an Yves Saint Laurent gown or a  Chanel bag.

In a world where money and eccentricities do not normally live separately, the following are all items of luxury :

1.Personal acquaintance with a designer.

2.Personal attention by a designer.

3.Flying a designer overseas to purchase fabric for your ensemble or alternately flying to Paris only for couture.

4.Having your measurements in a designer file.

5.Having your body dummy or mannequin made and kept at a couture house so that you do not have to go for “trials”.

6.Silk underwear for winter and the  softest cotton for summer.

7.Handmade shoes in the colour and fabric you desire.

8.A “one off” created only for you…… without any copies.

9.Employing a professional stylist to put together your look.

10.Flying your staff with you on holiday to maintain your style statement.

11.Filling your party with white orchids to match your new dress for the evening.

12.Fashion  magazines taking your photograph at non-fashion events.

13.Leaving a store with over a lakh of garments with the unspoken understanding that you will settle the bill later.

14.Having your travel clothes wrapped professionally with acid-free paper.

15.Reserving an entire day, weekend  or week exclusively for shopping.

16.Accessing the best shows………without presenting your invite at the entrance.

 17.Buying a designer garment that you know you will only wear to lounge around the house on Sunday.

18.Possessing different walk-in closet rooms for clothes, lingerie and shoes.

19. Purchasing a swimsuit knowing that you will never put foot in the sea or enter a pool.  The swimsuit is only for “show”.

20. Wearing a couture gown once and donating it to a museum the day after.

If all the above seem too extreme (and there are people who indulge themselves in this ridiculous manner), consider a few luxurious statements that are inexpensive or free:

1.A walk in the hills on soft grass without sandals and breezy clothes.

2.Drying a white shirt on dry grass to give it that special “country” fragrance.

3.Admiring the stars at night sleeping on the beach in your pyjamas.

4.Putting a fragrant, fresh, wild flower in your hair.

5.Spending Sunday in bed with your favourite book and the softest cotton quilt while you sip on hot chocolate or spiced tea and nibble on platefuls of hot “bhajee”.

6.Have a two hour long bath while you pamper, clean and buff your body in the best bath products.

7.Putting jasmin or lavendar in your bed linen.

8.Dressing up a flea market dress with a smile to make it look like a million dollars.

9.Having a wardrobe full of white clothes.

10. Doing your yoga in the finest cotton on the beach at sunrise.

11. Watching a sunset with champagne wearing just swimsuits or trunks and a cashmere shawl or angora sweater.

12. Enjoying a candle-lit ambience in solitude, while the music of a soulful fado or dramatic Wagner fills the room.

13. Saving each month and finally buying the garment of your dreams.

14. Carrying your old comfortable slippers with you on holiday……even abroad!

Ultimately, luxury is a state of mind. It is up to you to find your own concept of luxury and enjoy it. When one finds the beauty of the moment in an object of desire or in an ambience of dream-like quality, it is the ultimate luxury statement. I know many people who believe that being naked on a secluded beach is the best luxury compared to being clothed in the finest silk at the most expensive party on earth.

Find your own luxury…….and then enjoy it as only you can!!