When malls are saturated with sickeningly trendy items that practically everyone owns, it becomes difficult to stand out among the crowd. Local boutiques are great when looking to freshen up a wardrobe with unconventionally stylish pieces. Downtown Princeton’s Zastra is the perfect example of such a boutique; the store specializes in skirts, dresses and accessories that incorporate South Asian cultural motifs with Western silhouettes. I had the opportunity to chat with owner and designer Aruna Arya, who provided great insight as to everything Zastra has to offer.
Name: Aruna Arya
Role: Owner and designer at Zastra
CollegeFashionista: How do you curate the items in your store?
Aruna Arya: I use my personal inspiration, which is based on the colors and patterns I see and love. Sometimes, I look at fabrics and decide what I can do with them to make them unique. My customers also give me input as to what they want: low waists, above-knee hemlines, below-knee hemlines, etc. The colors, patterns and silhouettes in the store are based on what is inspiring me during the current season.
CF: What brings you the most happiness from owning your own clothing store?
AA: Seeing a happy customer; the biggest reward for an artist is when someone truly appreciates the creations, enough to want to spend money for them so that they can enjoy them as their own. Seeing my customers being wowed by my designs and posting pictures wearing them on Facebook—that is what I love doing on an everyday basis.
CF: Does your store have a signature aesthetic or do you base the setup off current trends?
AA: No, I never follow the current trends. In fact, I hardly read or follow what’s going on. Everybody’s style is different, every body is different and every mindset is different. What you see on the ramp is never going to work for everybody. I always design to suit a little bit of every style. I do have my own sense of style—I focus on streetwear clothing.- I have a few party dresses in store as well, but they are done in my signature silhouettes. I pay close attention to detail, always using the best fabrics. Colors are my forte. My style involves pieces that are not too out there, but not too conservative either. I like to think of my pieces as timeless classics.
CF: What are your three wardrobe must-haves?
AA: I love a nice knee-length well-fitted black dress. Also, a beautiful patterned, loudly colored scarf is a must. I also seriously think everybody should have a long dress because it is very feminine, will never go out of style and you can wear it on any day, good or bad.
Learn More: The next time a wardrobe refresh is in order or a special event is around the corner, head to Zastra, located in Palmer Square in downtown Princeton, for truly one-of-a-kind pieces.
