So you are getting married? While the knots tie and untie themselves in your tummy and while everyone around gives you a tip everytime they say hi, don't forget to take a look at these. Visit some good exhibitions in your city or town, preferably those dealing with home art, lifestyle, décor etc. You would get great ideas on doing up your new home or maybe just your room after your marriage to start with. Try and get your fiancé to go with. Think ahead together.

If you are in Mumbai, look at stuff in:

• Beautiful Boulevard, 59 Nepean Sea Road:
  The new look Beautiful Boulevard is open again. You'll find everything from chocolates to watches or jewellery in this premium lifestyle store. They have also fashioned an exclusive Perfumerie, which has a wide range of perfumes and cosmetics from Lancôme; and toiletries and perfumes from Crabtree and Evelyn. The prices of the products range from Rs 55 (perfumed soap from Crabtree & Evelyn) to Rs 11,00,000 (Lalique crystal table)
  
  

• The Bombay Store, Sir PM Road, Fountain:
  Goods ranging from lamps, Indian handicrafts, books, ties, women's clothing, men's shirts to plants are found here in a pleasant ambience. The variety may not be immense but items are in excellent taste.
  
  

• Central Cottage Industries Emporium, Apollo Bunder, Colaba: Again a spacious, albeit not terribly well organised shop that sells Indian style goods. Toys, furniture, clothing, silks, jewellery, linen, handicrafts, decorative bric-a-brac, brass, copper, woodcrafts available. Prices are reasonable and the CCIE stocks some of the finest crafts.
  
  

• Benzer, Breach Candy:
  Benzer stocks everything from towels, bed sheets to decorative bric a brac. They have kitchen equipment and china sets too. They have the classiest range of costume jewellery and trousseau outfits.
  
  

• Anokhi, opposite, Kemps Corner:
  A variety of linen and fabric items for the house in typical Indian prints kalamkari, block prints. Tablecloths, napkins, bedspreads, cushion
  
  
• Good Earth, Kemps Corner:
  Plenty of ceramics and glass. Giant pots. Crockery. Linen.
  
  
• Queens Road shops, Near Churchgate:
  Roop Milan, Kala Niketan, Kala Mandir. These shops are the perfect destination for Indian wedding sarees trousseaus.
  
  

If you are in Delhi, look at stuff in:

• The Next Shop at N-block market, Greater Kailash - 1, New Delhi.
  
  
• The Good Earth outlets at Santushti Complex, and Qutub Colonnade, New Delhi.
  
  
• Must take a peep at things in The Home Store, Qutub Colonnade, New Delhi and at Good Things at Atta Mkt, Sector -18, Noida.
  
  
• If you are shopping for saris or wedding clothes, the Meena Bazaar outlet at Ansal Plaza, Khelgaon Marg.
  
  

• The Cottage Industries Emporium at Janpath, New Delhi is one place you must check out before you complete your wedding shopping. For trinkets, unusual ethnic and traditional jewellery and lovely handloom saris besides artistic gifts, this is the place to go.
  
  

• Casa Paradox at Lado Sarai, Delhi. An amazing place home accessories. The elegant objects that you find here cast a breathtaking spell--shells, spices and flora, lamps mixed with metal shades, paper cuts meshed with natural wood and so much more that you don't know what to leave and what to pick up.
  
  

• House of Ishatvam on Mathura Road. Another Delhi underbelly of designs for home. Under one roof you see a repertoire of unique designs with names like Aviva, Bandhini, Candlemania, Designer Home, Frammage, Michael Arram, Paintworks and Silk Forest. The things are expensive, but if you shop here with sensibility and a sense of mix n match, you will find everything from musical instruments, wooden pedestals, baby Ganeshas, antique style cushions and unusual pieces in decorative art.
  

FOR YOUR BOOK SHELF

Marriage is all about how you work at it. And it is never too early to draw your boundaries. Good books (if you're a book lover) will always leave words and tips with you that few people will.

Titles on Sex and Relationships:

• John Gray's Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus (which despite its repetitive mention here and there) has a lot of meaningful advice on relationships.
  
  

• Mars And Venus In The Bedroom by John Gray.
  
  
• Smart Women, Dumb Choices by Dr Connell Cowan and Melvyn Kinder.
  
• The Dance of Intimacy by Harriet Goldhor Learner.
  
  

• "Aunt Erma's Cope Book" by Erma Bombeck. This is one of the old favourites that tells you "how to come to grips with domesticity" and "why unmade beds should not cause shortness of breath."
  
  

• Finally, for all your sex-related queries that you haven't asked your best friend or your most trusted aunt, The "Joy Of Sex" by Alex Comfort, is an exhaustively informative and erotic book. A must read before set out on the road on marital intimacy.
  

Other titles:

• Beauty Wisdom by Bharati Vyas It's an expensive title but tells you everything you need to know about inner and outer beauty with simple and easy-to-follow home care routines.
  
  

• All Around Fitness This do-it-yourself manual certainly pumps some gym-inspired wisdom into your body. Bonus: pictures of beautiful people. There are yogic exercises besides a chapter on right eating. Usual fitness stuff that is inspiringly put together. (Konemann, Rs 450).
  
  

• The Joy of Vegetarian Cooking:Jasleen Dhamija's cookbook is even for 'people who can burn water'. Simply written, it has unique recipes collected from Turkey, Iran and Africa. The book concentrates on healthy eating bases on the Indian Ayurvedic system. A good and easy one.