Bradford Asian Bridal and Lifestyle Exhibition 2011

Last weekend I attended the Asian Bridal and Lifestyle Exhibition at the Hilton Hotel in Bradford. As someone who isn't planning a wedding at the moment my main reason for going was of course the fashion show, but I also took a look around at the exhibition stands to see what was on offer for the brides and grooms-to-be of 2011.

I felt this event was a lot smaller than some of the magazine-sponsored shows...but then again the entry price of £5 was also a lot cheaper than Asiana Magazine's bridal show and Asian Woman Magazine's show.

This event had collections by Bombay Stores, Ishy's Boutique, Khushboos by Chand, Harkirans, Kyles Collection and asian fashion blog favourite Ziggi Studio.

I'll be posting more detailed photos of the indivual outfits from the fashion show later on this week, but in the meantime here's a sneak preview. Photos have very kindly been provided by Aliway Photography, to view more photos from this event visit the Aliway Facebook page.

Bombay Stores

They had two slots on the catwalk and showcased both bridalwear and more casual/partywear outfits. I liked most of what I saw from their collection, but considering how big their store is you can imagine that they'd have something to suit everyone's tastes.

Ishy's Boutique

I'm afraid everything I saw from Ishy's Boutique got a big thumbs down from me! Sure the outfits look ok in these photos but having seen their collection up close and in person, there wasn't one single outfit that made me think "I want that" or "I'd wear that".

Kyles Collection

I love love love Kyles Collection, I wish I had an excuse to go out and buy more of their jewellery. The interesting thing about their catwalk show was the styling and the choice to showcase how you could wear their jewellery with a hijab...although to envision how a real hijabi bride would look you'll have to pretent the model isn't wearing a strapless gown and exposing her arms and shoulders!

Ziggi Studio

You know I don't have a bad word to say about Ziggi Studio and yes we've seen these outfits before on the catwalk but up close I'm still amazed by all the intricate details that go into each sherwani. I can't wait to see the new collection which will be debuted at the Asiana Bridal show on the 30th January.

Did you attend this show? and did you find it useful? Leave a comment and share your views!

 

Bombay Stores catwalk at Asian Bridal and Lifestyle Exhibition Bradford 2011

As promised, here's a more detailed look from the fashion show at the Asian Bridal and Lifestyle Exhibition which took place last weekend at the Hilton in Bradford. A big thanks to Rafyl from Rafyl Photography for allowing me to share these pics with you.

I thought I'd start with Bradford's very own Bombay Stores, who had both bridalwear and casual/party suits to show off, starting with this trio of traditional reds:

I like the middle outfit and the one on the right, but I don't like the top on the left outfit - I feel like it overemphasizes the chest a bit too much for my liking.

I loved the addition of purple into this bridal outfit, it still have that very red bridal feel to it even though the top is purple.

Next up were some full-on purple outfits:

I'm fascinated by the vertical lines style of embroidery on this outfit, and as I recall this embroidery style was also on the back too - I think it looked better as a train compared to how it looks on the front of the lehnga.
After reds and purples come...greens! I loved the shade of these two outfits, they looked so much more vibrant in person and I'd definitely wear something like this first one:

The final bridal look was this interesting multi-layered outfit, definitely different to your normal lehnga - what do you think?

Now onto the casuals, purples were the main colour for this part of the fashion show:

Which were your favourites from Bombay Stores?

Kyles Collection at the Bradford Asian Bridal and Lifestyle Show 2011

Kyles Collection at the Bradford Asian Bridal and Lifestyle Show 2011

Here's the catwalk show from Kyles Collection at the Bradford Asian Bridal and Lifestyle Show which took place on the 16th January 2011. A big thanks to Rafyl Photography, Shot by Shahed and Aliway Photography for use of these photos.

I think it's always a bit difficult to showcase a jewellery collection on a catwalk, but I think Kyles have got it right by putting the models in plain gowns to show off the sparkle of their pieces.

They had both traditional bridal pieces in gold and red as above, and more contemporary registry/engagement style pieces:

The showstopping pieces were the hijab look and this crown-style piece which trails all the way down the back. According to the Kyles Collection website this "Parisian couture set" was created especially for the catwalk and it costs £740! I'd take a guess that this is probably the most expensive item in their range.

 

Ishy's Boutique at the Bradford Asian Bridal and Lifestyle Show 2011

I hadn't really heard of Ishy's Boutique before seeing them on the catwalk at the Bradford Asian Bridal and Lifestyle exhibition, but having already seen collections by all the other designers at this show I was keen to see what this Birmingham based store had to offer.

Sadly, my first impressions weren't very good. These first 3 outfits weren't very inspiring at all, and the middle red lehnga was very badly fitted (which I know isn't the fault of the designer, but if you're selecting outfits for a fashion show presumably you'd check with the organiser about what sizes to send!)

I didn't really like any of the other outfits either - usually I'd say purple and gold makes for a nice colour combination, but in my opinion this lehnga below is overkill on the gold!

If I had to choose one outfit as a "favourite" and (I use the term favourite very loosely here) it would be this light pink gown, however again it's really badly fitted - there's no shape to it and it almost looks like it's falling off from one side showing off the model's bra.

A big thanks to Rafyl from Rafyl Photography for these photos.

Would love to know your thoughts on this shop because the impression made on me from the fashion show wasn't very good! Are they better than this?

Asiana Bridal Show 2011 London - First Look

Asiana Bridal Show 2011 London - First Look

This year's Asiana Bridal Show took place at their usual venue, the Rivebank Plaza in London, on the 30th January.

I made the trip from Manchester to London just for the show and I have to say it was worth it! There's so much to say about the event, from some of the lesser known fashion exhibitors I met, to the lack of asian models on the "enchanted forest" catwalk.

I'll be posting my full reviews of each fashion show designer very soon, but here's a first look/preview from the catwalk, starting with my two favourites - Ziggi Studio and Ekta Solanki.

Ziggi Studio's Raj Gharana Collection

As a big fan of Ziggi Studio I couldn't wait to see their new 2011 collection and was instantly blown away when they started off their section of the fashion show with the green and gold sherwani (seen on the right in the photo above), modelled by Asiana Magazine veteran Cameron Khan. There was a very regal look to this collection.

Ekta Solanki

I was impressed by Ekta's collection not just on the catwalk, but up close in her exhibition space. It's the colour combinations which you'd think wouldn't go together, but they do, and the big bold embroidery patterns. My favourites were the blue and gold outfits.

Truphae

I knew very little about Truphae before this event, and I believe this event was the launch of their brand. I didn't really feel there was a theme to their collection as the outfits didn't seem to go together. Individually though, there were a few outfits which I liked the look of.

Gul's Style

Gul's Style closed the show, and they were one of the few fashion show designers who didn't have an exhibition stand where visitors could get a closer look and touch the outfits for themselves. They had some pretty outfits though, including the finale piece seen above which one of my non-asian work colleagues described as "a technicolour dreamcoat".

Khushboo's by Chand

Khushboo's always put on a good catwalk show, but like Gul's Style I don't think they had an exhibition stand so I didn't get a chance to see for myself what their customer service is like!

Kyle's Collection

This was the showpiece of their catwalk show - the necklace was impressive (if you could call it a necklace - it was so much more!) although probably very difficult to be the person wearing it at a wedding/party - imagine people trying to greet you with a hug/kiss whilst wearing that! However I'd love to wear the headpiece and play princess for a day.

Mongas

As well as featuring in the main fashion show, Mongas also had a mini-catwalk in their exhibition space which was a nice touch.

RDC

Sonas Couture

I had high hopes for Sonas Couture - having loved what I'd seen on their website and in the magazines. Sadly their fashion show outfits were a bit hit and miss for me. I liked this gold outfit though, especially the detail on the sleeves.

The Asiana Fashion Show Models
There were a few comments made about the ethnicity of the models at this year's fashion show. The first segment by Roshan's was a stream of non-asian models, and sadly it stayed that way for most of the event. I counted 3 asian models out of all the girls (including pakistani model and recent Asiana Magazine cover star Mehreen Syed) and just 2 out of the guys.

Getting a seat for the fashion show
Having been to the Asiana Bridal Show before, I knew from experience that to get a decent seat for the fashion show you have to start queuing up early - and if you're at the front of the queue, somehow a stream of people always manage to get "priority" entry before you. The same was true this year, and even though I had my seats reserved (big thanks to Manni at Asiana), the majority of the front rows were reserved for sponsor's and exhibitor's guests rather than the public who had paid an entry fee to see the fashion show, which I thought was a little unfair!


Did you attend the exhibition and/or the catwalk show? What did you think overall?

 

Roshans at the 2011 Asiana Bridal Show in London

Indian-based Roshan's kicked off the 2011 Asiana Bridal Show in London with their collection of red asian bridal dresses.
A big thanks to Rafyl Photography and J Dhillon Photography for these photos.

I say that Roshan's started the show, but before their catwalk officially started a few non-fashion sponsors got their 2-minutes worth of advertising first - which is why this male model is carrying a tray of sweets, courtesy of Royal Sweets. (For anyone who attended the 3pm show, the lucky lady who got some sweets from this tray was my mum!)

These definitely weren't your typical red bridal lehngas, and seeing them all in one go was a bit overwhelming!

I'd find it difficult to pick a favourite out of all these, as each outfit has certain elements I liked and others which I didn't. For example I love the sheer shrug with this outfit above but don't like the design of the top at all, and this maxi dress below - love the top but not to keen on the shape of the skirt (too much volume??)

The menswear in the first two photos was by asianfashionblog favourite Ziggi Studio - look out for my full review of the Ziggi Studio collection coming soon.

In the meantime, leave a comment and let me know your thoughts on these red hot bridals!

Asiana Bridal Show London 2011 - Kyles Collection

Tuesday, 8 February 2011

Asiana Bridal Show London 2011 - Kyles Collection

Here's the jewellery catwalk show by Kyles Collection at the London Asiana Bridal Show 2011.

Before we get to the fab jewellery photos, I wanted to share an in-store experience that I had with Kyles Collection in the Green Street showroom the day before the Asiana Show. Now in the past I've always experienced top notch customer service from the Kyles team, but sadly on this occassion I think most of the staff were busy setting up for the Asiana show meaning they were down to a minimum. I picked out a jewellery set which I liked the look of and an assistant took it out of the glass case so I could get a closer view. I love Kyles jewellery and it only took me a few minutes to decide I wanted to buy it, however the assistant was nowhere to be seen and there didn't seem to be anyone else around who could help.

Whilst I was waiting patiently at the counter for an assistant to turn up so I could pay, I decided to try the necklace on, at which point someone who I *think* was a bridal consultant told me off in a very snooty way for trying the necklace on - "you're not supposed try things on without an assistant", I put her straight and informed her that our assistant had disappeared. She eventually found a different assistant, I bought the set and I love it, but I wasn't very happy that I got told off by the snooty bridal consultant!
A word of warning to anyone else who visits - don't touch anything unless an assistant is present!

Rant over...now onto the pics!

As you migth have seen in my preview post, the main showpiece was worn by Pakistani model and former Asiana Magazine cover star Mehreen Syed.

I managed to snap a photo of the back - which I think has even more impact than the front. I'm not sure how much this would cost, or how you put it on and take it off, but judging by the prices of the other "couture" pieces by Kyles, I'd guess a minimum of £1000!

The new thing for me from Kyles in this catwalk was the mens pieces which complimented the traditional bridal jewellery (again the menswear in this section of the catwalk was by Ziggi Studio)

I think the male models are really working the look, but do you think an ordinary guy would be up for wearing jewellery like this?

Just like the Kyles Collection at the Bradford wedding show earlier on this year, they had a hijab look.

My other main observation was the back details on the necklaces - a smaller pendant which trailed down the back:

A big thanks to Rafyl Photography and J Dhillon Photography for these photos.