Fashion Pakistan Week Winter Fiesta 2015 took flight with high hopes. The designer lineup looked promising, fashion week brunch and lunch invitations helped build hype and social media buzzed with exuberant sneak peeks and Snapchat videos.
Karachi was already in full swing with the onset of winter party festivities, bolstered by the promise of high fashion glamour at the supposed ‘it’ event of the season.
These hopes plummeted dismally with the first day of FPW 2015.
A designer line-up that seemed stellar on paper veered often towards the disappointing, the mundane and occasionally, the downright ghastly. It seemed implausible that some of these collections had been edited at all by the Fashion Pakistan Council before being allowed out on the runway.
Much better than the fashion was the celebrity quotient on the catwalk: Ayesha Omar for Shehla Chatoor, Imran Abbas and Syra Shehroz for Sania Maskatiya, Sarwat Gillani for Gulabo and Maria Wasti and Zhalay Sarhadi for Tena Durrani.
The front row, unfortunately, was not as star-studded. With the exception of the political celeb factor provided by the Bhutto-Zardari siblings, the front rows seated a milieu of journalists, bloggers and sponsors’ friends. Where were the rock-stars and the movie stars and starlets that make fashion week fun?
It’s a good thing social media has developed a predilection for photographing themselves. FPW’s Instagram feed is currently littered with some very well-heeled journalists and bloggers on the red carpet. In the absence of celebrities, just click at yourself!
Moving back to the catwalk, here’s the lowdown on Day One
Shehla Chatoor
Celebrating her two-decade long career, Shehla Chatoor put her best foot forward with ‘All the Raj’, a bridal line inspired by pre-partition British rule and ranging from classic silhouettes to the slinky and the cutting-edge. The designer had hitherto refrained from showcasing her bridals in order to retain exclusivity and it is good to see her step into the limelight with what is, quite evidently, her forte.
In Shehla Chatoor's collection, what stood out was this off-shoulder choli with billowing sleeves (extreme right)
With remarkable flair, Shehla put forward multiple tiered leather skirts, off-shoulder blouses with exaggerated bell-shaped sleeves, shimmering saris, elaborate tunics with wavering hemlines, dhoti shalwars, slinky halter tops, trailing capes, fur wraps for a wintry effect and lehngas, constructed from embellished net stitched over a quilted cotton lining in order to create the requisite fall.
Delicate, painstakingly crafted hand embroideries merged with design elements that are quintessentially Shehla: leather lattice-work, tassels, peek-a-boo slits and a color palette that varied from deep burgundy to green, off-white, pink, gray and black.
New to the ramp were lenghas with leather lattice work accents (left and center). Ayesha Omar (center) was Shehla's showstopper
Just as striking was the jewelry which included spiked teekas, dangling pearl earrings, polki neck-pieces and earrings and matha-pattis. Shehla’s in-house jewelry line may be relatively new but it is certainly a classy, stand-out option for the adventurous bride.
The shoes — high-heeled and hand-embroidered — provided the finishing touches. A riveting, gorgeous respite from the oft-hackneyed bridal market, Shehla Chatoor can be counted on to diligently create complete looks and deliver. With this line-up, she proved herself as a bridal designer powerhouse and set fashion week rolling to a promising start.
Sania Maskatiya in collaboration with Toni & Guy
Quite tangential to Shehla’s bridal finery was Sania Maskatiya’s well-cut, refreshingly young vibe. Treating crepe and raw silk, the designer rocked a line of ruffled, overlapping, color-blocked capes and jackets.
These were absolutely winter must-haves and are bound to sell like hot cakes when the business-savvy brand shortly brings them to their stores.
Minimalism reigned supreme at Sania Maskatiya. Imran Abbas and Syra Shehroze were showstoppers
Ironically, since the show was undertaken in collaboration with Toni & Guy, the hair hardly managed to get as much attention.
Loose side-braids, careless locks and messy, stylish buns were dexterously styled by Saeeda Mandviwala. Celebrity showstoppers Imran Abbas and Syra Shehroz added oomph but even they weren’t necessary to make this line-up a hit – the clothes managed to do it, all on their own.
Gulabo in collaboration with Toni & Guy
In contrast, the hair was possibly the main highlight in Gulabo’s line-up.
Quite unexpectedly, the brand lost out on its much-loved, frivolous verve and ventured into a mish-mash of floral digital print, unflattering fitted net, slinky pants and occasional glimpses of the gorgeous polka-dotted and striped indigenously woven Koya fabric that designer Maheen Khan is working hard to revive.
Fashion Pakistan Week Winter Fiesta 2015 took flight with high hopes. The designer lineup looked promising, fashion week brunch and lunch invitations helped build hype and social media buzzed with exuberant sneak peeks and Snapchat videos.
Karachi was already in full swing with the onset of winter party festivities, bolstered by the promise of high fashion glamour at the supposed ‘it’ event of the season.
These hopes plummeted dismally with the first day of FPW 2015.
A designer line-up that seemed stellar on paper veered often towards the disappointing, the mundane and occasionally, the downright ghastly. It seemed implausible that some of these collections had been edited at all by the Fashion Pakistan Council before being allowed out on the runway.
Much better than the fashion was the celebrity quotient on the catwalk: Ayesha Omar for Shehla Chatoor, Imran Abbas and Syra Shehroz for Sania Maskatiya, Sarwat Gillani for Gulabo and Maria Wasti and Zhalay Sarhadi for Tena Durrani.
The front row, unfortunately, was not as star-studded. With the exception of the political celeb factor provided by the Bhutto-Zardari siblings, the front rows seated a milieu of journalists, bloggers and sponsors’ friends. Where were the rock-stars and the movie stars and starlets that make fashion week fun?
It’s a good thing social media has developed a predilection for photographing themselves. FPW’s Instagram feed is currently littered with some very well-heeled journalists and bloggers on the red carpet. In the absence of celebrities, just click at yourself!
Moving back to the catwalk, here’s the lowdown on Day One
Shehla Chatoor
Celebrating her two-decade long career, Shehla Chatoor put her best foot forward with ‘All the Raj’, a bridal line inspired by pre-partition British rule and ranging from classic silhouettes to the slinky and the cutting-edge. The designer had hitherto refrained from showcasing her bridals in order to retain exclusivity and it is good to see her step into the limelight with what is, quite evidently, her forte.
In Shehla Chatoor's collection, what stood out was this off-shoulder choli with billowing sleeves (extreme right)
With remarkable flair, Shehla put forward multiple tiered leather skirts, off-shoulder blouses with exaggerated bell-shaped sleeves, shimmering saris, elaborate tunics with wavering hemlines, dhoti shalwars, slinky halter tops, trailing capes, fur wraps for a wintry effect and lehngas, constructed from embellished net stitched over a quilted cotton lining in order to create the requisite fall.
Delicate, painstakingly crafted hand embroideries merged with design elements that are quintessentially Shehla: leather lattice-work, tassels, peek-a-boo slits and a color palette that varied from deep burgundy to green, off-white, pink, gray and black.
New to the ramp were lenghas with leather lattice work accents (left and center). Ayesha Omar (center) was Shehla's showstopper
Just as striking was the jewelry which included spiked teekas, dangling pearl earrings, polki neck-pieces and earrings and matha-pattis. Shehla’s in-house jewelry line may be relatively new but it is certainly a classy, stand-out option for the adventurous bride.
The shoes — high-heeled and hand-embroidered — provided the finishing touches. A riveting, gorgeous respite from the oft-hackneyed bridal market, Shehla Chatoor can be counted on to diligently create complete looks and deliver. With this line-up, she proved herself as a bridal designer powerhouse and set fashion week rolling to a promising start.
Sania Maskatiya in collaboration with Toni & Guy
Quite tangential to Shehla’s bridal finery was Sania Maskatiya’s well-cut, refreshingly young vibe. Treating crepe and raw silk, the designer rocked a line of ruffled, overlapping, color-blocked capes and jackets.
These were absolutely winter must-haves and are bound to sell like hot cakes when the business-savvy brand shortly brings them to their stores.
Minimalism reigned supreme at Sania Maskatiya. Imran Abbas and Syra Shehroze were showstoppers
Ironically, since the show was undertaken in collaboration with Toni & Guy, the hair hardly managed to get as much attention.
Loose side-braids, careless locks and messy, stylish buns were dexterously styled by Saeeda Mandviwala. Celebrity showstoppers Imran Abbas and Syra Shehroz added oomph but even they weren’t necessary to make this line-up a hit – the clothes managed to do it, all on their own.
Gulabo in collaboration with Toni & Guy
In contrast, the hair was possibly the main highlight in Gulabo’s line-up.
Quite unexpectedly, the brand lost out on its much-loved, frivolous verve and ventured into a mish-mash of floral digital print, unflattering fitted net, slinky pants and occasional glimpses of the gorgeous polka-dotted and striped indigenously woven Koya fabric that designer Maheen Khan is working hard to revive.
Fashion Pakistan Week Winter Fiesta 2015 took flight with high hopes. The designer lineup looked promising, fashion week brunch and lunch invitations helped build hype and social media buzzed with exuberant sneak peeks and Snapchat videos.
Karachi was already in full swing with the onset of winter party festivities, bolstered by the promise of high fashion glamour at the supposed ‘it’ event of the season.
These hopes plummeted dismally with the first day of FPW 2015.
A designer line-up that seemed stellar on paper veered often towards the disappointing, the mundane and occasionally, the downright ghastly. It seemed implausible that some of these collections had been edited at all by the Fashion Pakistan Council before being allowed out on the runway.
Much better than the fashion was the celebrity quotient on the catwalk: Ayesha Omar for Shehla Chatoor, Imran Abbas and Syra Shehroz for Sania Maskatiya, Sarwat Gillani for Gulabo and Maria Wasti and Zhalay Sarhadi for Tena Durrani.
The front row, unfortunately, was not as star-studded. With the exception of the political celeb factor provided by the Bhutto-Zardari siblings, the front rows seated a milieu of journalists, bloggers and sponsors’ friends. Where were the rock-stars and the movie stars and starlets that make fashion week fun?
It’s a good thing social media has developed a predilection for photographing themselves. FPW’s Instagram feed is currently littered with some very well-heeled journalists and bloggers on the red carpet. In the absence of celebrities, just click at yourself!
Moving back to the catwalk, here’s the lowdown on Day One
Shehla Chatoor
Celebrating her two-decade long career, Shehla Chatoor put her best foot forward with ‘All the Raj’, a bridal line inspired by pre-partition British rule and ranging from classic silhouettes to the slinky and the cutting-edge. The designer had hitherto refrained from showcasing her bridals in order to retain exclusivity and it is good to see her step into the limelight with what is, quite evidently, her forte.
In Shehla Chatoor's collection, what stood out was this off-shoulder choli with billowing sleeves (extreme right)
With remarkable flair, Shehla put forward multiple tiered leather skirts, off-shoulder blouses with exaggerated bell-shaped sleeves, shimmering saris, elaborate tunics with wavering hemlines, dhoti shalwars, slinky halter tops, trailing capes, fur wraps for a wintry effect and lehngas, constructed from embellished net stitched over a quilted cotton lining in order to create the requisite fall.
Delicate, painstakingly crafted hand embroideries merged with design elements that are quintessentially Shehla: leather lattice-work, tassels, peek-a-boo slits and a color palette that varied from deep burgundy to green, off-white, pink, gray and black.
New to the ramp were lenghas with leather lattice work accents (left and center). Ayesha Omar (center) was Shehla's showstopper
Just as striking was the jewelry which included spiked teekas, dangling pearl earrings, polki neck-pieces and earrings and matha-pattis. Shehla’s in-house jewelry line may be relatively new but it is certainly a classy, stand-out option for the adventurous bride.
The shoes — high-heeled and hand-embroidered — provided the finishing touches. A riveting, gorgeous respite from the oft-hackneyed bridal market, Shehla Chatoor can be counted on to diligently create complete looks and deliver. With this line-up, she proved herself as a bridal designer powerhouse and set fashion week rolling to a promising start.
Sania Maskatiya in collaboration with Toni & Guy
Quite tangential to Shehla’s bridal finery was Sania Maskatiya’s well-cut, refreshingly young vibe. Treating crepe and raw silk, the designer rocked a line of ruffled, overlapping, color-blocked capes and jackets.
These were absolutely winter must-haves and are bound to sell like hot cakes when the business-savvy brand shortly brings them to their stores.
Minimalism reigned supreme at Sania Maskatiya. Imran Abbas and Syra Shehroze were showstoppers
Ironically, since the show was undertaken in collaboration with Toni & Guy, the hair hardly managed to get as much attention.
Loose side-braids, careless locks and messy, stylish buns were dexterously styled by Saeeda Mandviwala. Celebrity showstoppers Imran Abbas and Syra Shehroz added oomph but even they weren’t necessary to make this line-up a hit – the clothes managed to do it, all on their own.
Gulabo in collaboration with Toni & Guy
In contrast, the hair was possibly the main highlight in Gulabo’s line-up.
Quite unexpectedly, the brand lost out on its much-loved, frivolous verve and ventured into a mish-mash of floral digital print, unflattering fitted net, slinky pants and occasional glimpses of the gorgeous polka-dotted and striped indigenously woven Koya fabric that designer Maheen Khan is working hard to revive.
