Soutache’s summer line ties into Gaurika Sharma’s love for Japanese textiles

Her label Soutache pays homage to the Japanese textile heritage by modernising traditional clothing like hakamas
Soutache
Soutache

Summer wardrobes are incomplete without breezy silhouettes, and New Delhi-based designer Gaurika Sharma’s Spring/Summer collection Nihon Kara (translates to ‘Inspired by Japan’), follows suit. All while her label Soutache pays homage to the Japanese textile heritage by modernising traditional clothing like hakamas. Focusing on incorporating techniques like printing, embroidery, block printing, the collection extensively features the designer’s interpretation of the shibori tie-and-dye technique, while the silhouettes are flowy and layered. Launching her collection this week at Collage, find a range of tunics, tops and blouses.


Twisted ties


“The whole collection is hinged on the use of shibori patterns. This technique, however, is indigenous to Japan and is expensive to recreate in India,” says the designer. Replicating the patterns using hand blocks, screen printing and digital prints, expect to find two-toned scarf tops (indigo and white), 
layered off-white tunics with bell sleeves, grey flowy wrap pants with pintucks and dip dye cold shoulder tops. 


The designer, who showcased at the India Runway Week in April,  also unveiled a range of sari blouses with the collection. “We have experimented with the silhouettes of the blouses. Blouses are something that many designers tend to overlook,” says the 41-year-old. The collection showed an array of blouses — Turkish style print bell sleeve blouse with frills around the neck which was paired with a white and blue sari, a khadi cotton blouse with border slits and flowy tassels at the back, and a high and low blouse with kantha stitching on the back collar. “The blouses were an attempt to give a new dimension to the sari,” 
she adds.  


Hey jute


Nihon Kara also features a one-off nude linen sari with a floral ruffle border, puff sleeve blouse with jute buttons. “Jute ties the entire collection together,” Gaurika reveals, adding “It could be in the form of surface embellishments or in the case of the saris as buttons on the blouses.” Keeping detailing to a minimum, find embroidery in the form of swirls, buttons in the guise of rosettes, macrame on apparel sleeves, and tassels.


Au naturale


As the creative head of her family’s 20-year-old textile export business, the designer tells us that the entire collection is made from natural fibres like cotton, linen, silk and cotton-linen blends, all woven specifically for the collection by weaver clusters in Bengal and at textile mills at Amritsar. As for her future plans, she is working on an Autumn Winter collection which will feature the design label’s high-value luxury cashmere and woollen products in a vintage theme.
 
Rs 5,000 onwards. At Collage. Details: 28291443
 

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