In Jaipur, Ken and I did a quintessentially Indian thing. We had clothes made to measure.

Our group visited a factory where we saw how block-printing works. It’s a trade that’s been well established in Jaipur for hundreds of years. Using natural vegetable dyes and engraved blocks, expert craftsmen overlay patterns from the blocks to create colourful and intricate patterns on cotton and silk fabrics. Then the fabrics are used to make clothing, coverlets, tablecloths and other items.

One of the members of our group, Frankie, was chosen to assist with the demonstration. With a bit of coaching from the expert, she applied four layers of dye to create a colourful elephant.

Once the presentation was over, not surprisingly, we were all invited into the adjacent shop to browse.

The shop had a tailor on staff who could make made-to-measure clothing, delivered same day. Ken let himself be tempted by a traditional elephant print which was made up into a shirt for him. I chose a blue silk paisley for a Salwar Kameez, a traditional Pakistani outfit worn by many Indian women

At 9:30 that evening, the clothes were delivered to our hotel. I think we look pretty nice in our new outfits. What do you think?