The attention to the gold’s tonal quality evokes when brought along with pastel palettes of azure, opal, mint, turquoise, mauve and queen purple as light gold accents might fade into the background, in its iridescence, yet its charm remains. This designer’s collection depicts finely embellished intricate hand embroidery on naturally dyed and hand-woven textiles.
It’s the age of gold, at least for weddings in India, or at least, it’s the traction we see on Instagram during weddings, anyway — city-based fashion designer Arvind Ampula’s latest collection is golden, but it isn’t just bland golden. There is more to it. At the Varenyam bridal fashion show, CE saw the designer’s collection of the luminescence of gold in its myriad shades.
Designer Arvind proved that gold could be iridescent when combined skillfully with fabric and textiles. His latest collection brought a harmonious effect on plush silk in the bridal wear, complemented by the gold’s softening, magical iridescence that can hit any bride or groom with an intense sensation. Sometimes, two colour extremes are juxtaposed in his work to create a unique shade; he mixes pastel peach pink with coral red and intricate golden embroidery patterns, which appear as if white gold on peach pink and bright yellow on coral red.
Adorning his collection, which showcased clean-cut maximalist yet simple design, models walked the rose-carpeted ramp at Taramati Baradari. The attention to the gold’s tonal quality evokes when brought along with pastel palettes of azure, opal, mint, turquoise, mauve and queen purple as light gold accents might fade into the background, yet its charm remains. His collection depicts finely embellished intricate hand embroidery on naturally dyed and hand-woven textiles.
The pastels are soft and bright and lend the smoothness of velvet-like shade to the billowing pallus. The designs were indeed an attempt to create something original; designer Ramya who showcased her temple-inspired bridal collection at the show appreciated Arvind’s work and added, “A unique blend was used, those colours which evoke a sudden delight, in anyone who wears it to anyone who looks at it.”
"The rich flora and fauna inspire intricately embroidered embellishments with tinges of gold and silver accents,” says Arvind, who showcased his collection Hyderabad Fashion Week 2015 and Hyderabad Couture Week earlier. “Rich shades of grass-grazed green, unclouded blue, fruity berry red and peach that dominate the festive palette are drawn from the harlequin orchards of the Himalayas. Mystique Himalayan orchards are pivotal in the collection’s inspiration that bustles with feminine bow tops paired with drop crotch dhoti’s donned with a patchwork cape with a riot of rich colours.”
The collection celebrates the fine art of creating classy, unique and timeless fashion/outfits by balancing and innovating the traditional elegance of Indian wear in terms of silhouette, design, colour combinations and styling. “It is a contemporary and fresh take on tradition such as flowy anarkalis with caped backs and corsets, clouded silk dresses with knots flowing through seams. The fluidity and the timelessness of the glistening and pure Himalayan river serve as an inspiration for our silhouettes that one sees in my work,” the designer added.