A Very ‘Heart’ Summer: It's all comfy and cute with Ilk's new edit!

One might think that an entire collection surrounding the concept of love might be difficult to curate with elegance and grace. But Shikha Grover and Vinita Adhikari’s label Ilk has set out to articulate in complete fluency its true essence. The label had earlier showcased its debut collection at the Lakme Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2012, and now having built quite a name for itself, is unveiling its new Spring Summer collection Love Stories. Having launched earlier this week, Ilk’s new collection deserves detailed browsing this weekend. Shikha, from the label, breaks down all the details regarding the collection in an enlightening conversation with Indulge

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Talking about the inspiration behind Love Stories, she expresses that it “is a deep dive into the meaning of love and how unexpectedly one can find love when it knocks on their door. This is a collection which is gender fluid just as the theme is. Just as love is.” Narrating a brief verse, Shikha amplifies a similar notion of “a love that’s free,” highlighting that this collection also presents similar themes. Further, she underlines what sets this collection apart. The colour palette for the same features a shade of various colours that are “soft and muted.” Additionally, the label has also employed creativity by exploring fresher surface designs like playful combinations of smocking with prints.

Speaking of motifs, Shikha believes, “the best way to narrate love is through hearts.” Hence, these have been presented as the “constant motif throughout the collection.” Running their eye through the collection, one might find many variations of this motif — “From smocked hearts to hand drawn, screen printed, and single thread embroidered hearts!”

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As mentioned before, the shades of the colours for Love Stories are that of a more sombre tone. “Colours such as cloud pink, boy blue, mint green and more pastel shades add soft and calm to the collection’s palette,” explains Shikha. She also adds that the use of green apple and hot pink has been carried out to invoke “playfulness and a sense of pop in the collection.”

An Ilk regular — the Silk chanderi fabric — has also been explored in the collection with its adorable motifs and pleasant colours, as it “beautifully fits” into the spread. Shikha further lists the other fabrics used in this collection. “We have chosen easy-breezy fabrics like chambray, voile, poplin, seersucker, georgette, denim, and dobby striped fabrics,” she says

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Patrons are in for a treat while they browse the silhouettes from this collection. These consist of various “loose-fitted and comfortable” options keeping in mind the Chennai summer, along with “pieces which can be styled for different occasions.” She goes on to list out the various options — “A-line dresses, summer jackets and suits, shirts, tops, tunics, sets and flowy saris,” have been included as the silhouettes for this collection as perfect options for brunches and other occasions influenced by the season. The label has also reworked its previous bestsellers that can be browsed along with this collection. Ask about their future projects, and Shikha responds, “Ideas have already started floating in our minds, soon we will be giving a sneak peek for this too!”

₹6,500 onwards.
At Collage, Rutland Gate 4th St.
Also available online.