Stepping away from lawn staples

Designer Zara Shahjahan shows latest collection featuring elements of Asian art and culture.

LAHORE:

As the sweltering heat of summer approaches, lawn has become the fabric du jour. In the wake of this latest trend, Zara Shahjahan recently unveiled her lawn collection for 2015 to a selective crowd in the city.

The lovely March evening saw a garden party with an innovative display of lawn. Hung from the ceiling were select frames of Shahjahan’s prints, adorned with flower arrangements. The designer’s friends and supporters could be seen wearing her prints, which gave a much better idea of what they would look like, as opposed to them being swathed over a mannequin.

Shahjahan said she drew inspiration from various cultural elements of Asian art and culture, specifically Indian and oriental. However, one could also see some tribal, boho-chic and animal-print influences on her collection. The line featured three-piece lawn suits with intricate machine embroidery, particularly focused around the neckline. Among the most refreshing pieces were plain lowers with white embroidery, which gave a much-needed break to the print extravaganza many other lawn designers have been delivering. The neutral lowers complemented the striking prints rather than bringing them down.



The colour palette featured blues, yellows and pinks on white, which will remain a summer favourite. Prior to the exhibition, it was expected that florals, a Shahjahan staple, would be seen in her collection but this year, she managed to curb her inclination towards them. “Florals will always be an integral part of our design philosophy at Zara Shahjahan but, for our lawn collection this year, we added floral-border side-panels to create an interesting fusion of prints,” she said.

When asked what’s different about her latest collection, Shahjahan stated, “Last year, our lawn had floral dominance and featured Indian motifs. This year, our influences feature Indian and Oriental elements, with outplayed florals and traditional inspiration.” She added, “Our Balochi-inspired design has heavy Afghani influence, with Balochi cuts fused with Afghani embroidery patterns, so that design, in particular, featured an interesting fusion of aesthetics from a specific region.”

A particular favourite from the collection is the print Shahjahan herself chose to wear to the launch. It featured a traditional Balochi design. Commenting on her price-range, she said, “Pricing is done on the basis of the value we offer to our patrons. We feel we are following industry standards in this regard and our price reflects the quality and diversity we provide in lawn.” The lawn is priced between Rs6,496 and Rs7,295.

This year, some designers have kept away from delving into the lawn market, either because they’d prefer to be exclusive or have too much on their plate. However, it cannot be ignored that lawn is gradually seeping its way back into the industry, with multiple billboards spread across cities with local and cross-border celebrities sporting designer pieces.

Multiple lawn exhibitions are kept alive with the help of lawn enthusiasts. Ladies are often overheard complaining of the hefty price tags but still continue to buy them. It’s not uncommon that they buy a three-piece designer lawn print only to create multiple outfits out of one. With price tags ranging from Rs6,000 to Rs8,000, every woman can’t afford them but that doesn’t stop some from wanting them. Zara Shahjahan’s lawn was launched in shops and on her official website on March 21.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 24^th, 2015.

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