Shopping Abroad for India

Hi friends,

Hope this is the right place to keep my query.

Here it is-my hub's cousin(male) is getting married in India. And, can you pls suggest gifts to buy from here? Since it is HE, I am totally confused on buying; otherwise, I would have gone with kitchen stuff or any coral set!! Sending money is the last option.

Pls do reply soon.

Thanks.

Dear Ami,

As a matter of fact, you have no worry. There are loads of things for men and to entice men in US!
Look at stores like Sharper Image. They have so many gadgest and handy things for men. They are all sleekly designed and very attractive. Check this out as an example:
http://www.sharperimage.com/us/en/ca...10/s__11/e__20
or go to their main page:
www.sharperimage.com
..to check out further products.
Apart from this, there are the usual ties, shoes, tie pins, suits etc in your regular men stores.
Have fun browsing and hope you find something that is apt for your relative.
Best of Luck.

L, Kamla

Hi kamla,

I am really happy to note down yr msg becoz, have not received any of the ideas so far. But, here it is..guess yr msg or URL will put a full stop for my search!!!

Thanks once again.

Rgds.

Dear Ami,

I am glad that the info was of some help to you. Believe you me, my hubby spends hours in this shop and even I am fascinated with their products. Besides this shop, there is a vast choice for men in electronic shops and the men's section of almost all the famous lines. Do share with us as to what you have finally selected for this groom:)

L, Kamla

Ami,
Also try fabmall.com.
It is an Indian retailer who can ship gifts to your relativesin India. You save on transportation costs.

You can try Amazon.com for electronic goods and men's products.

Bye and happy shopping.

HI

We are winding up and going to India soon. COuld you pls suggest the foll?

1) Kitchen items that needs to be bought and taken to India
2) Crockery set? Is it is necessary to buy from the US , and if so, how to pack it back to India ensuring that they do not break?
3) Any House decor items?
4)Electronic items like DVD player, digicam etc

Not only the above, anything which you guys think is not available /way too expensive in india pls do suggest. also if you are particular about a brand/shop, pls do mention the same also.

I would REALLY REALLY appreciate any help in this matter. Also we are building our own house So keeping that in mind , i wuld like to take stuff back home ! :)

Thank you all so much in advance!!

Purnima

Hello Purnima,

Lookslike you will have busy days ahead . Here are my suggestions:

1. Kitchen items: Definitely buy gadgets ( knives, peelers, mandolin slicer, potato mashers, whisks, specialty tools like cake server, pizza slicer etc. ) I find the knives here are superior quality. And the same goes for any of the other ones. Look for stainless steel items. If you go to an outlet shop like Farberware, you will get good quality as well as reasonable price. As for pots and pans, you get nice cookware in India itself, so i would not recommend that.
2. Crockery, you could invest in Correlle dinnerware. They are very long lasting and are supposed to be break proof. As for packings these things, if you get bubble wrap and pack each one of them in enough of this, and put it in cardboard boxes with those popcorn fillings( made out of thermacoal, which you will get in any packing supply store or Home depot). It should be okay. I have carried these dinner ware in my soft luggage to India and they came without any mishap!

3. Since you are building your own house and have little one, i would suggest scouting around for nice wall paper( disney, other cartoons), wall plates which have decorations on them for covering the plug sockets and switches, themed hangers etc... .
4. Electronics: Go in for a really nice digital camera if you dont already have one. Digital video cameras are cheaper here too. Same goes for Laptops.DVD players. What ever you buy please do make sure that the it supports universal power supply. Also with electronics, you will want to check with Indian customs as to what can be brought duty free.

Hope this helps. I f i think of anything else will let u know.

Vandhana

Thank you soo much for your valuable inputs. Most of the points which u have mentioned willbe very useful for me. Regd digicams, camera etc would u suggest any good brand . when we go to these electronic shops , we find soo many thusands of models. Now we have a Nikon Coolpix digicam. We are looking for an upgrade.

Also any kitchen ingredients -- like badam Flakes, Whole Milk powder etc, we dont seem to get in India.

My daughter is 21 months old .Also i would like to know whether we can take any health drinks/food from here, at least for the first few months in India.

Also with regard to knives, some say that u never need sharpening etc, is it true? Is there any particular brand for knives? So sorry to be bombarding you with questions like these, since i myself kinda new to the US, dont know what things to buy etc.

Please keep pouring in your views!

Thank you once again,
Purnima

Dear Purnima,
Hope you have a good move and wish you good luck. These are the things I usually buy for my sister in India and she finds it very helpful. I have been doing this for sometime.
Since you have a little one I would suggest cups they are sure to be leak proof for milk etc. Onesies,sleepwear,tylenol[for fever etc],and swimsuit for girls. My sister lives in Bangalore she finds light dresses [full length] useful when it gets chilly.I have been doing this for both her kids.
I have also given corningware to some friends and family members. They find it functional since it goes from stovetop or MW to table.
Hope this helps and of course Vandhana has given some nice ideas. Will write more if something else comes to my mind.
Love,

I am late in seeing your post. But you seem to have had wonderful tips from Vandhana. Anjana too had good suggestions. I would be a little at loss to know what is and is not available in India today. My recent impressions of India has been that almost everything is available for a price!
I think the electrical goods from America will not be suitable for usage in India due to the obvious voltage reasons. Crockery is defenitely of superior quality here as also flatware..cutlery..if you so wish. Thermos flasks from here were aslo very appreciated in India.
I would also recommend the tailoring accessories like seam rippers, threaders etc. So look into the handicraft sections of your local stores for many such small but useful items. The other suggestion being handyman's kit and tool set. They always excite my bil and are really useful to fix things at home. Although these things may sound uninteresting, in the long run, you will appreciate it. Shall add to this if I can think of anything else. Have fun shopping:)

L, Kamla