Gehna, jewelry, adornments, Abhushan, call them anything you may, Jewelry has been and continues to be one of the most prominent part of a woman's solah shringar since thousands of years. No attire is complete without the perfect combination of jewelry. It not only adds beauty to the attire but also completes the graceful look. A trend that started almost 5000 years ago has been going strong till date.
Such has been a craze for jewelry that even Prehistoric men and women adorned themselves with wooden ornaments and other materials that were available naturally. With time, jewellery was refined and was given a traditional look. Today we have different forms of jewelry in India like traditional jewelry, ethnic jewelry, fashion, jewelry, gold and silver jewelry, etc. Any social do or special occasion requires one to deck up in the stunning finery that traditional Indian jewelry offers. From necklaces to haslis, maang tikas to kangans, women want it all and honestly, they do look dazzling in them.
Every state in India is renowned for its own exclusive style of jewelry. The south is famous for elaborate temple jewelry, the west is famous for mirror and stones jewelry, the east is famous for beaded jewelry and the north is famous for its carvings and designing.
There is a beautiful significance on why every bride or married woman wears ornaments- bangles, nose-pin, maangtika, toe rings and mangalsutra. Let's talk about how women adorn their wrists and hands with beautiful bangles popularly known as churi, kangan, kada, pacheli, hasli or valai and various other names.
A mother, a wife or a sister, hands of a woman are where true love rests. And these hands look even more beautiful when adorned with bangles, the favorite ornament and accessory for most Indian women. In India, Bangles also symbolize family or marriage. In a lot of communities & regions it is considered inauspicious for a married woman to have bare arms without bangles.
Figure 1 Shop this at Peachmode
Pacheli bangles, also known as Gokhru, are one of the most significant pieces of Rajasthani jewellery. These bangles, which go up to 10cms in outer width, have a series of small projections often embellished with clusters of seed pearls or diamonds. Adorned with meenakari work on the metal, these bangles are magnificent pieces of jewellery by themselves, but usually are worn as a pair with a series of bangles or bracelets between them.
Figure 2 Shop beautiful kadas such as this vintage pair only at Peachmode
The term kada, which is used very casually today, actually refers to a bangle with two skillfully studded animal heads meeting at the fount, with a small studded screw that can be unscrewed by the wearer. Various animals and birds, most of which symbolise specific qualities, feature on the kada. The most common are peacocks (used for their feminine beauty), elephants (for their strength) and crocodiles (for courage).
Vintage jewelry is something to not just possess and flaunt temporarily, these items are classics that can be passed on to generations as heirlooms. They never go out of style and are now being teamed up with even western wear for some innovative looks.
With so much variety to offer, who can possibly resist buying those glittering pieces of exclusive Indian jewelry! Shop some of these dazzling designs at very reasonable prices only on Peachmode , where fashion is a way of life!
