Fusion of Fashion and Tradition

8/7/2019 Fusion of Fashion and Tradition

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Fusion oFFashion

and tradition

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ccording to Diana Karaatanassova, Sales and

Marketing Manager of NBK fashion, which is

the Qatari holding company that created Zai:

The reasoning for the introduction of these

new collections is to motivate young designers

and expose their talents. We want them to

showcase their collections in our store and

build up a reputation where peoples fashion expectations are catered

for at a local and international level.

The brightly lit, ultra chic store is spread over three levels, dedicating

space to numerous specialized luxury boutiques which can be found in

different themed corners of the store. You can enter a room with walls

decorated in jewels or one with a tropical theme whatever one it is,

the magical ambience guarantees that its a pleasure to view all the

collections.

According to Karaatanassova: Zai has changed the luxury fashion

scene in Qatar with its expertly edited assortments, sumptuous

surroundings and brilliant customer service.

Redaa by Amal Murad


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h

er rst name, Amal, means hope in Arabic, and

this lady certainly has no shortage of it with her

aspirations for the future.Amal Murad, from Dubai, is one of the most coveted

abaya designers in the Middle-East; shes worked

as a judge on MBC channel for the famous abaya

competition, styled famous Arabic gures for a photo shoot in LOfciel

magazine, and this year, made one of her dreams become a reality when

she showcased her designs on the catwalk at Rome Fashion Week. It was

my rst step to be recognised internationally and has denitely been one

of the biggest accomplishments on my little journey, she beams proudly

at our meeting in Zai fashion house.

Ever since she was a little girl, works of art adorning the walls of her familyhome have played a huge part of her creative inuences, especially as the

pieces were crafted by a professional painter who is no other than her

father. I have always been interested in fashion design; I used to save all

my money as a child to buy fashion magazines that were imported from

the US and the UK, because at the time, we didnt have them available

in the Gulf.

At 12, with creativity brimming from her young mind, she drew a picture

of a dress which her mother encouraged her to bring to the tailor to make.

Like something you see in a lm; the transformation from a 12-year-olds

picture on the drawing board to a real life piece was created when her

younger sister wore the very same dress during Eid celebrations.

Whilst studying a degree in university, she applied herself on various

fashion courses and regularly attended a prestigious fashion seminar inParis called Class Seminar.

In 2005 she established her brand Redaa and it quickly climbed the style

ranks attracting the attention of some of the biggest Middle-Eastern

celebrities who can often be spotted on the red carpet donning one of

the sought after designs. When I rst established my brand, I tried to

combine traditional and contemporary elements; I wanted to represent

our identity from the GCC whilst at the same time creating something

trendy in which the younger generation can express themselves.

Her designer inspirations change every season but a big inuence on

her style was as a result of her style icon, Yves Saint Lauren, I learnt tohave passion for fashion looking at his wonderful collections. Every year

I make sure to attend all the fashion shows to gather ideas for colour

combinations. I also love Marc Jacobs and Lanvins draping designs.

The latest abaya collection is very stylish with its careful attention to

detail; belts nip the waistline for denition and outts are accompanied

with gorgeous matching bags and shoes, whilst delicate detailing of gold

and red lace dazzle on other Abayas. I want to create Abayas that are

recognised across the world as they are a beautiful symbolization of our

culture. For years we have been importing things from other parts of the

world, now is our chance to export a part of our culture to the West.

RedaabyamalmuRad

Zaihas

changedtheluxuryfashionscenein Qatarwithitsexpertlyedited

assortments,sumptuoussurroundingsandbrilliantcustomerservice.


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Redaa by Amal Murad


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wearing one of the pieces from Mariam Al

Mazros latest collection youre guaranteed

to feel like youve left reality and entered a

magical realm of fairytale fantasy. The new

lines theme is inspired by the popular second

movie, Alice in Wonderland, which sees Alice

grow into a woman. This theme is represented in the clothing with cutesy

designs dominated with girly pinks and pale blues on silk material.

Al Mazro, from Sharjah, is quickly making a name for herself across the

Middle-East; with four fashion shows in Dubai under her belt and the

unveiling of this new whimsical collection she looks set for a stellar career.

Her own fashion fairytale began in the summer of 2006, I made a top for my

sister who was actually studying fashion design at the time; she encouraged

me to carry on making more pieces for friends and things just took off from

there, Al Mazro reveals.

With rm support from her whole family, she started designing dresses and

tops and eventually caught the eye of some industry insiders when she was

invited to attend the Sharjah bridal show in 2007. Since then, she has been

busy discovering her own sense of style before making her rst collection at

the end of 2008.

This current collection is the one that has really caught the attention of

the crowd. I thought the inspiration of Alice in Wonderland was the best

representation of my collection; the transition from childhood to adulthood

really attracted me as these dresses are directed at the younger generation

and will hopefully capture their minds too.

With inspirations from designers like Etro and Christian Lacroix, Al Mazro

crafted a plan and some tting designs for her rst collection in Doha, There

are only eight pieces available here. Before I came, I did some research into

the market and found out that people really love exclusivity. I usually make

around 30 pieces per collection; however, I tailored these eight exclusive

and exquisite designs especially for Qatar.

The range is versatile and appeals to a variety of tastes and different

nationalities. In our culture, women having gatherings in houses for

different occasions like weddings and henna parties. And for women who

dont wear Abayas, these dresses can be worn to glamorous events.

It wont be long until Al Mazro has positioned herself globally as a successful

designer and captured the attention of an international audience, At the

moment, Im happy collaborating with boutique stores like ZAI and in the

future I will hopefully have my own store, obviously this is a dream of every

designer. Im actually more inspired by the people I work with as I think

when you interact with encouraging people your own personal creativity

expands.

mimiFashiondesigns

bymaRiamalmazRo


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MIMI Fashion Designs by Mariam Al Mazro

Despite the fact its her rst ofcial collection, the creativeshoulder Jewel themed range of abayas by Qatari born

Aisha Al-Naemi, look like theyve been created by someonewhos been in the business for years.

The 24-year-old student of Mmarketing student is startingoff exceptionally well for her rst exhibition, It all began

when I created some designs for my friends and family, andwith much encouragement and support from everyone, I

decided to bring my designs to the public,Al-Naemi shares.

The unique collection combines traditional andcontemporary designs with its emphasis on shoulder

detailing in beautiful beading and embroidery.

She counts Lanvin and Valentino as her designerinspirations and is extremely proud to be showcasing hercollection in a store which carries such elite brands. One

of the reasons for collaborating with ZAI is because I adorethis shop. Lanvin is one of my favourite designers, to havemy clothes available in the same surroundings is a dream

come true and one day I hope to be just as successful.

Fe Q leaz by a a. al-nem

wellgoodluckaisha, mariamand amal, glam lovesallyour

designsandwishesyouallthebestforthefuture!

Fusion of Fashion and Tradition

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