Into the woods: Fashion designers foray into furniture
Designers Asifa, Nabeel and Mickey to introduce ‘Lifestyle Couture’ line on November 17
The line will feature tables, mirrors and hand-painted chests, among other pieces. PHOTOS: PUBLICITY
LAHORE:
Fashion designers have recently been spreading their creative wings. By being open to exploring other mediums, a few local designer heavyweights have extended both their reach and appeal. And one of the transitions slowly gaining popularity is from fashion to furniture. From creating clothes for the closet to actually making the closet, designers have been broadening their spectrum. Sana Safinaz, for instance, are known for translating their luxe couture aesthetics to interior décor. Sara Shahid of Sublime collaborated with The Orange Art Company, which has now become a permanent feature of her store. Another fashion and interior design collaboration, although relatively short-lived, was between HSY and Yoca.
The latest designer duo keeping us on the edge of our seat with their foray into the world of furniture is Asifa & Nabeel. The two are set to explore the path in partnership with friend and interior designer Mickey. “Classic, timeless pieces that exhibit antiquity with a few modern elements” is how Asifa Imran describes the furniture line, which is set to launch on November 17. Having been glued to the design board for eight months, Asifa says, “What sparked my interest were students doing furniture design in our local institutions. They’ve been doing such interesting work.” She adds, “Designing took a long time and was a little frustrating as clothes don’t take this long to be produced.”
The line called ‘Lifestyle Couture’ will feature wing chairs, coffee tables and hand-painted chests, among other pieces, that the duo has fashioned with bronze or gold finish. “There’s a lot of carving, high gloss finish and you will find less of the wooden look to it,” she notes. They plan on launching the collection in their concept store because that’s where their bridal clientele visits. “The point is to buy everything under one roof.”
Bridal Couture Week soon to be back
The design process, she shares, isn’t too different to that of creating clothes, as fashion and home décor both involve the know-how of textile and design. She sees her brand’s foray into furniture as the next logical step in its quest to create synergy between the various design-related fields that tend to overlap. “It seems as if we’ve taken pieces of our clothes and created furniture because the motifs and finishes are very similar,” she explains. This is also why venturing into interior decoration poses a relatively low level of risk in terms of category extension for fashion brands.
Asifa & Nabeel have been a part of the fashion scene for 19 years and earned themselves a loyal clientele for their formals and bridals. The fashion label is popular with many Lahoris, as it caters to their fondness for heavy embellishments and flamboyancy. Asifa adds that the sub-line of the brand will be in harmony with their aesthetics, so if that’s anything to go by, it’ll most likely be commercially successful, at least in their hometown.
Shaan-e-Pakistan unveils designer line-up
On the international front, the fashion-furniture dichotomy is more prevalent, but that’s exactly what Asifa & Nabeel are set out to do with their eponymous label. Pierre Cardin, whose colossal empire extended well beyond fashion into products that included furniture, was one of the predecessors of this trend. Following that, we’ve seen the rise of Ralph Lauren Home Collection, Armani Casa, Missoni Home, Bulgari Home, and Versace Home Collection to name a few.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 10th, 2015.
Fashion designers have recently been spreading their creative wings. By being open to exploring other mediums, a few local designer heavyweights have extended both their reach and appeal. And one of the transitions slowly gaining popularity is from fashion to furniture. From creating clothes for the closet to actually making the closet, designers have been broadening their spectrum. Sana Safinaz, for instance, are known for translating their luxe couture aesthetics to interior décor. Sara Shahid of Sublime collaborated with The Orange Art Company, which has now become a permanent feature of her store. Another fashion and interior design collaboration, although relatively short-lived, was between HSY and Yoca.
The latest designer duo keeping us on the edge of our seat with their foray into the world of furniture is Asifa & Nabeel. The two are set to explore the path in partnership with friend and interior designer Mickey. “Classic, timeless pieces that exhibit antiquity with a few modern elements” is how Asifa Imran describes the furniture line, which is set to launch on November 17. Having been glued to the design board for eight months, Asifa says, “What sparked my interest were students doing furniture design in our local institutions. They’ve been doing such interesting work.” She adds, “Designing took a long time and was a little frustrating as clothes don’t take this long to be produced.”
The line called ‘Lifestyle Couture’ will feature wing chairs, coffee tables and hand-painted chests, among other pieces, that the duo has fashioned with bronze or gold finish. “There’s a lot of carving, high gloss finish and you will find less of the wooden look to it,” she notes. They plan on launching the collection in their concept store because that’s where their bridal clientele visits. “The point is to buy everything under one roof.”
Bridal Couture Week soon to be back
The design process, she shares, isn’t too different to that of creating clothes, as fashion and home décor both involve the know-how of textile and design. She sees her brand’s foray into furniture as the next logical step in its quest to create synergy between the various design-related fields that tend to overlap. “It seems as if we’ve taken pieces of our clothes and created furniture because the motifs and finishes are very similar,” she explains. This is also why venturing into interior decoration poses a relatively low level of risk in terms of category extension for fashion brands.
Asifa & Nabeel have been a part of the fashion scene for 19 years and earned themselves a loyal clientele for their formals and bridals. The fashion label is popular with many Lahoris, as it caters to their fondness for heavy embellishments and flamboyancy. Asifa adds that the sub-line of the brand will be in harmony with their aesthetics, so if that’s anything to go by, it’ll most likely be commercially successful, at least in their hometown.
Shaan-e-Pakistan unveils designer line-up
On the international front, the fashion-furniture dichotomy is more prevalent, but that’s exactly what Asifa & Nabeel are set out to do with their eponymous label. Pierre Cardin, whose colossal empire extended well beyond fashion into products that included furniture, was one of the predecessors of this trend. Following that, we’ve seen the rise of Ralph Lauren Home Collection, Armani Casa, Missoni Home, Bulgari Home, and Versace Home Collection to name a few.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 10th, 2015.