64 THE QUEENS COURIER • BUZZ • AUGUST 2, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
buzz
Owner of India by Thread connects Desi people with
their roots, all while adding a touch of sparkle
Photo courtesy of Nirvana Singh
Indulge yourself at the Wine & Sweets Fest in LIC this weekend
Get your staycation going right and let
the vineyard touring come to you at the
LIC Flea and Food Market’s second-annual
Wine & Sweets Festival will take
place this Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 4-5.
Th e Wine & Sweets Festival is your
chance to sip a selection of wines curated
by a NYC wine professional and
indulge in unique off erings curated by
Food Writer & Dessert Enthusiast of
DessertBuzz Niko Truantafi llo from 20+
local sweets vendors.
Admission to the market is free, but if
you want to enjoy global wines curated
by a NYC wine expert, then grab a ticket
for unlimited tastings of whites, rosés
and reds.
Included on the roster of wines
are Juve y Camps Rose Sparkling
wine, Bridge Lane Rose, Bridge Lane
Chardonnay, Loimer Rose, Ravives
Riesling, Clean Slate Riesling, Francios
Montand Sparkling White, Elsa Bianchi
San Rafael Malbec, Black’s Station
Cabernet and more.
Indulge in Italian pastries by
Vaccaro’s Bakery, Brazilian truffl es
from Delicacy Brigadeiros Craft , gourmet
cupcakes from Caked Up, sweet
blueberry kolaches from Kings Kolache,
cookie cups from Savory2Sweet and
much more.
Also this Saturday HGTV’s No. 1
rated show, “Flea Market Flip,” will be
fi lming at the LIC Flea. See the action
live, negotiate for a unique piece at a
killer price and maybe even get your 15
minutes of fame on camera.
As always, in addition to the festival,
the Flea will be serving up the very best
unique vendors with handcraft ed, vintage
and curated items and the LIC Flea
Beer Garden featuring local craft beers.
LIC Flea & Food located at 5-25 46th
Avenue in Long Island City. Tickets
are available at www.LICFlea.com/special
events. Enjoy a 15 percent discount
with the code COURIER.
BY JENNA BAGCAL
jbagcal@qns.com/ @jenna_bagcal
Nirvana Singh loves sparkle.
“I am absolutely obsessed with sparkle,”
said the founder and designer of India by
Th read, which runs operations out of both
Jackson Heights and South Ozone Park.
“Not just sparkle in clothing, but in personality
as well.”
Her company’s slogan is “sparkle is our
thing,” and the founder shared that she
wants customers to feel the “sparkle” in
their attitudes when they wear her clothes
and accessories.
Growing up, Singh said her family, who
is originally West Indian from Guyana,
did not have a lot of Indian clothing, save
for the outfi ts that they wore to special
occasions like weddings and services.
“It wasn’t part of our culture early on,”
Singh said.
But a desire to preserve the culture of
her Indian ancestors for Desi people — a
person of Indian, Pakistani or Bangladeshi
birth or descent who lives abroad — was
one of the factors that led to India by
Th read’s creation. She added that she oft en
experienced overpaying for low-quality
products and wanted to make higher quality
items for her own customers.
Another factor that led to her company’s
creation was a noticeable void in
the Indian clothing market for plus-sized
women.
“Th e plus-size market isn’t there,” said
Singh, who added that most Indian clothing
available for purchase are for petite
body types.
She fi rst began designing for herself and
her sisters two years ago. Th e following
year is when she said she started designing
professionally for her own business.
On her website, Singh sells a variety of
traditional and modern Indian clothes,
shoes and accessories. According to her,
she designed 20 percent of the items on
the website, while the bulk of the items are
things she curated from diff erent regions
in India.
“Curated products in the Indian fashion
world are known as ‘ready-made,’”
she said.
Singh said that the ready-made items
come from places like Delhi, Jodhpur and
Rajasthan, which she said is known for its
well-craft ed, intricate designs.
“Every state in India has diff erent looks
and even diff erent ways to drape their
clothes,” Singh said.
When it comes to the products she
designs, she said she draws inspiration
from several sources, including Bollywood,
Indian art, architecture like Hindu temples
and the Taj Mahal and her own travels.
In addition to designing and curating
products, Singh said she also takes the
photos seen on her website and social
media. Most of the photo shoots take place
at her family home in South Ozone Park.
She said that being located in Queens
has been a benefi t for India by Th read and
has given her the opportunity to learn new
techniques and processes from people in
the clothes-making industry.
“Queens is the most amazing place in
the world. Th ere are things right at your
fi ngertips,” Singh said.
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