What you see – Ism, though housed on the first floor, attracts your attention from the 12th Main Road in Indiranagar, Bangalore. As you climb up the stairs, an array of Madhubani paintings on the wall charms you and the white pebbles placed on the floor along the glass panels give a calm countenance to the store. The wooden flooring, large glass panels all around and products displayed in large spaces give an aesthetic look to the store.

What you get - Ism is the retail venture of JKM Overseas Pvt Ltd. and the brand specializes in kids' garments, home accessories and fashion accessories. This store in Bangalore stocks a wide range of kids' party wear, kids' casual wear and kids' traditional wear. Women's casual wear and accessories like stoles, scarves and shawls are also available. Besides, the store has a collection of quilts, cushion covers and blinds made of silk fabric.

The kids' clothing section at Ism features designs that are a fusion of traditional Indian textiles and weaving techniques with contemporary style. Designed by Shruti Kaura, each product at Ism is noteworthy. For girls above 6 months old, there are dresses, tops, tunics, frocks, ghaghra choli and more in silk, cotton, cotton jersey and silk cotton fabrics. Sequin works in party wear and hand embroidery in kids’ casual wear are a specialty of the designer and a must buy at Ism. For little boys, we suggest you buy white colored embroidered shirts in cotton that are not run-of-the-mill. These shirts are available Rs. 400 onwards; otherwise the kids’ collection at Ism is priced between Rs. 300 and Rs. 1,500.

For women, Ism has printed dress materials (Rs. 1,500 to Rs. 2,000) in silk and cotton that are made at their manufacturing unit. A small collection of casual gowns in silk and cotton for evening get-togethers are also available for Rs. 700 onwards. Then there is a wide range of fashion accessories for women that mainly include shawls and stoles in multiple colors, stylish patterns, contemporary designs and variant fabrics. There are Kashmiri woolen shawls, silk shawls, pashmina shawls and pure woolen shawls in a price range of Rs. 350 to Rs. 4,000. All these come with embroidery work and printed pattern.

The home decor collection features quilts (Rs. 1,200 to Rs. 7,000), dohars (unlike quilts, these are without polyester fiber fillings), cushion covers (Rs. 400 onwards) and blinds in fabrics ranging from cotton, cotton silk to pure silk. In fact, the blinds at Ism are very innovative as they are made of silk fabric with hand embroidery. These would make bamboo blinds seem passé. They also undertake orders for custom-made blinds in silk, organza or any other fabric of your choice. Rates of blinds are from Rs. 70 to Rs. 80 per square feet. Customized quilts are also made at Ism. Besides, Ism in Bangalore also has a small but worthwhile collection of antique wooden home décor pieces like pots, photo frames, boxes and so on. These are available at Rs. 450 onwards.

Our verdict - Ism certainly has unique products and makes you own something out-of-the-box. The staff is courteous, calm and very co-operative with customers. There is a trial room as well. Parking space is available on the roadside.

Anytime between - 10 AM - 7 PM (Closed on Sundays)