The pioneering Pakistan Fashion Design Council [PFDC] and L’Oréal Paris, the world’s leading beauty brand, presented day 1 of the PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week 2012 – a platform that endeavours to define and present contemporary and traditional Pakistani Bridal fashion and make-up trends, fusing to create the ‘look’ for the bridal season 2012 – 2013!
The first day of bridal week was opened with exclusive bridal trend show by Nabila [N-Pro] featuring Zaheer Abbas followed by solo fashion showcases by Misha Lakhani, AZZA and Sonia Azhar Design Concepts respectively as summarised below. Each day of PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week is being styled by a different creative and make-up team and to this end, Day 1 was styled by Nabila and her creative team at N-Pro.
The green room/backstage for PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week was sponsored by L’Oréal Paris with YOC’A, or the Young Collaborative Artists, creating the furniture for the exclusive L’Oreal Paris lounge; the black carpet was sponsored by Zong with Bank Al Falah as the official banking partners for PFDC, associate sponsors PepsiCo, showed production by HSY Events, choreography by HSY, front stage management by Maheen Kardar Ali, backstage management by Asim Naeem, business consultancy by Eleventh Retail, photography by Faisal Farooqui and the team at Dragonfly, The Royal Palm Golf & Country Club as the hospitality partners, Hum TV/Style360 as the official media partners and public relations by Lotus.
Trend Show: Nabila
PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week 2012 Day 1 was opened by the iconic stylist and Creative Consultant for L’Oréal Paris Nabila with her trend show, ’’Paper-Doll’ in collaboration with Zaheer Abbas. Celebrated as Pakistan’s visionary stylist and image maker, Nabila has always defied conformity. She continues to adapt an unanticipated approach, giving fashion in Pakistan a fresh perspective. Zaheer Abbas is a name that signifies graceful simplicity, elegance and luxury. Together they transformed Ayyan into a high-drama, life-sized Paper-Doll. The Key Trends beauty of Nabila’s show were porcelain skin, mannequin like chiseled contours, a bold glassy lip colour, prominent eyes and ombre hair.
Nabila, acclaimed hair designer and stylist from Karachi, first opened up her salon in May 1986. She has since redefined fashion, style and imagery in Pakistan. Throughout her 26 year career in the beauty industry, she has contributed extensively towards refining the image of the media industry.
Nabila clasps eclectic and original styles both in her work and in her own sense of fashion. She is known for her specialized touch, be it hair styling or dramatic make-up for shoots. At Nabila, the creative team works with all aspects of hair, make up and styling, believing that individualism and attention to detail are the key in customizing styles. Each stylist at Nabila has been trained in structured and comprehensive programs that include courses from prominent academies, stylists and constant updating of trends & techniques by none other than Nabila herself.
Nabila and her creative team at N-Pro, a one-stop specialised professional and expert solution focusing on couture-based styling for special occasions, defined the bridal ‘look’ for Day 1 at PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week 2012.
Bridal Showcase: Misha Lakhani
Following Nabila’s trend show, Misha Lakhani made her ramp debut at PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week 2012 with her bridal collection ‘A Colonial Transgression’ inspired by the Taj Mahal’s inlay work, contemporary but timeless silhouettes, the colors of summer going into fall, 17th century embroidery, Rajmata Gayatri Devi, Jaipuri gota and Daphne Guinness’s eclectic way. With fabrics such as crepe, georgette, muslin, velvet, net, satin and chiffon, the embellishments ranged from zardosi, vasli, marori, doree ka kaam, cutwork along with screen prints, digital prints and discharge prints. Misha Lakhani used a rich colour palette for the Colonial Transgression collection including ivory, olive, citron, saffron, blush, hot pink, bordeaux and cardinal red.
Misha Lakhani’s eponymous fashion label reflects a sense of relaxed and timeless elegance, striking a balance between tradition and modern, refining the extravagance of old India by fusing it with an international chic.
Misha creates collections that express a unique sense of personal style. Film, art deco and vintage craftsmanship have been lifelong inspirations for Misha, whose signature style is an eclectic aesthetic. The label is comprised of ready-to-wear and couture, and is crafted in collaboration with master artisans within Pakistan. Misha has studied fashion design at Central Saint Martins and has interned with Bunto Kazmi, Pakistan’s most prolific bridal couturier. She also has an MS in Journalism from Columbia University.
Bridal Showcase: AZZA
The third show of the evening was by AZZA who showcased her bridal collection for PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week 2012 entitled the ‘Holiday & Trousseau Capsule Collection’. With this collection AZZA strived for a modern opulence; bringing traditional embroideries and motifs on to a modern silhouette that was understated yet bold; the collection celebrated the Holidays aimed for the perfect party wear for this time of year as well as seasonality for formal bridal wear whether as a party goer or a bride.
Winter whites fit for a snow queen to rich hues depicting the color of leaves turning for the months of hibernation. The collection bore influences of designer Azeeza Desai Khan’s sub-continental heritage whereby she had used pure silk indigenous to the sub-continent and bold embellishments consisting of antiqued gold wire and Swarovski to draw modernly opulent embellished motifs on her pieces. With menswear pieces also included in the collection, AZZA’s signature aesthetic came to life with billowing frocks, structured blazers, and exaggerated scarves juxtaposed against statement embellishments in a rich fall and winter based palette, ready to sparkle for the holidays and weddings.
AZZA is an expression of Azeeza’s own elegant yet avant-garde aesthetic and commitment to philanthropy. AZZA is produced in the US, India and Pakistan and for each piece sold, AZZA provides a garment to an impoverished South Asian woman or child. In addition, AZZA houses an ‘Artisan’ line that provides economic growth and empowerment to rural South Asian women in regions of poverty and conflict. AZZA caters to a new generation of American women fusing high street with high fashion through billowing fabrics, edgy embellishments and urban cuts.
Emmy Award nominated marketing maven and AZZA creative director Azeeza Desai Khan began her fashion education in India, where she was formally trained through a two year apprenticeship that taught her the fundamentals of creating intricate embellishments. Born and bred in the US, Azeeza’s designs took on a new meaning when she combined Western and European cuts with Indian and Afghan inspired embellishments. The marrying of the two concepts proved successful during Azeeza’s debut showcase at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week New York in September 2011. Most recently, Azeeza was named as a ‘Design Industry Expert’ alongside the Neiman Marcus General Manager by the celebrated Driehaus Design Initiative; she will soon participate in a roundtable panel and mentor students from the world renowned Art Institute College of Design. AZZA made her PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week 2012 debut this October 2012.
Bridal Showcase: Sonia Azhar Design Concepts
Sonia Azhar Design Concepts showcased her bridal week collection for PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week 2012 titled ‘Dark Romance’. Taking inspiration from the allure and mystery of romance and working on that primitive feeling of love inherent in all human beings, Sonia Design Concepts’ Dark Romance collection delved into lighter and darker colour palettes to invoke a deep sense of glamor.
Sonia Azhar of Sonia Design Concepts is an Architecture graduate from the prestigious National College of Arts in Lahore. With fashion design experience spanning over 15 years, Sonia Design Concepts specialises in couture. Under her supervision and guidance, craftsmen work to create timeless pieces. With emphasis on colours and blending these with different embroidery techniques, embellishments and cuts, Sonia Azhar amalgamates Eastern craftsmanship and Western cuts in her bridal wear.
Using hand embroidery and swarovski crystals along with the kora, beads, sequins work, her collections have been well received nationally and abroad and to this end, she has showcased her work in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, London and Glasgow to name a few. This October, Sonia Azhar presented her collection at the PFDC L’Oréal Paris Bridal Week 2012
