Of opulence and fine jewellery

Kiran Aman launches flagship store after working via appointment for ten years.

KARACHI:

After working via appointment for ten years, coveted jewellery designer Kiran Aman recently launched a flagship store for her brand Kiran Fine Jewellery at Ocean Mall, Clifton, Karachi.

Aman launched her label Kiran Fine Jewellery in 2003, but it was not until recently that she decided to showcase her one-off opulent pieces in a standalone boutique for her label.

“It was a natural next step,” she tells The Express Tribune. After working for a regular clientele, her magnificent, carefully crafted pieces are now accessible to all in a luxurious store that is a reflection of the pieces available, in itself. “Attention to individual detail has always been a hallmark for KFJ (Kiran Fine Jewellery) and in this vein, the boutique’s ambience and interior has been stylised to reflect a manifestation of my jewellery and design aesthetic,” says Aman.

In small space tucked away in a corner of the mall, with walls painted in deep red, she has showcased her pieces tastefully. A narrow corridor leads to another cosy room, which is her consultation room, and the space also houses a larger room reserved for her graphic and jewellery designers, and publishing company, Markings Publishing.

“It is difficult for me to juggle between two places for my jewellery brand and publishing company, so this way I can look over both at the same time,” she shares.

Aman has, for the first time, hired designers to help her with her brand, while she develops concepts and supervises designs.

Despite the launch of the store and accessibility to all mall patrons, her collection will remain as exclusive and personalised as before, as only a limited selection of the pieces will be available in the store at a time. “Not more than three or four of each piece will be stocked,” she says.

Along with the brand’s signature textured gold pieces, the store will house two of Aman’s other lines, the ‘So KFJ’ and ‘Kino’. The ‘So KFJ’ line showcases classic signature style with textures and beaten gold in 22-23K gold. ‘So KFJ’s’ first collection, ‘Barzakh’, was previewed in Ponds Gold Radiance Gold carpet at PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week 2012. ‘Kino’ is a platform to launch an aspiring designer every year under the brand name. “We did a collection labelled ‘Shavings’ alongside fashion designer Maheen Karim in 2012,” elaborates Aman on the debut collection of the brand ‘Kino’.

She has decided to launch an aspiring designer, a photographer or visual artist under this brand each year. “Every year, under this label, we will launch a designer who will design and we will manufacture,” she says.

Aman is set to introduce two collections in 2014 at her boutique under her line ‘So KFJ’, namely ‘Esoteric’ and ‘Nau’. ‘Esoteric’ will be a collection made of 22K gold pieces representing an assemblage of small symbols  to create a larger form while ‘Nau’ will be an extension of the Barzakh collection previewed in 2012, with advanced laser cutting technique on beaten gold. The KFJ Kino line will also launch its next collection in March 2014.

Crafted with the finest materials and starting at Rs20,000, the pieces by the jewellery designer are must-haves.

The store’s unique layout, along with the carefully detailed and unique designs, make it one that must be visited. Keep eyes open for the new collections.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 6^th, 2014.

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