Hi-fashion extravaganza

KATHMANDU: Thirteenth is supposed to be an unlucky number — people go out of their way to avoid this number, hotels refuse to have rooms or even floors of this number, but for the fashion conscious of Nepal, 13th is the date they have been waiting for eagerly. September 13 marks the start of one of the biggest fashion parades the country has ever seen — The Himalayan Times TGIF Nepal Fashion Week 2010 (NFW).

With over 50 designers ready to showcase their creativity on the biggest haute couture stage here, for the next four days they will be speaking colours, fabrics, cuts and flows. And not only that — they will have the best models — both national and international — sashaying down the catwalk swathed in the designers’ creative visions. Plus there will be celebrities who will add oomph to the entire event.

While last year TGIF-NFW focused on creativity, this year it will showcase collections under two categories — Pret-a-porter (ready to wear), and Diffusion (a mixture of ready to wear and haute couture).

“We have higher expectations from the designers for this year’s TGIF-NFW,” said Shailaja Adhikari, Managing Director of IEC, which has been organising Nepal Fashion Week since 2004. “We have very varied themes and have tried our best to move the focus of the designers and buyers from Indo-Western styles to more of Western trends.”

One can rest assured of the perfect fit as two well-known designers — Monika Agrawal from India and Maja Soerensen from Denmark — have selected the designs, said Adhikari. So get ready to see more precise Western cuts and subtle style.

Becoming more couture-oriented was a conscious move by IEC. “This year the show will only have invitees, which means most of our targeted customers will be checking out the designs,” explained Adhikari.

Along with some of the best students of IEC from Kathmandu, Dharan, Butwal and Pokhara, various boutiques will be participating in TGIF-NFW, while a guest designer from Bangladesh, Ameela Haq, will be the international designer for the event.

For such a grand couture week, the setting should be as grand and Soaltee Crowne Plaza is just the ‘perfect place to meet’.

“We will be doing what we are known best for — providing world-class service and hospitality. From cocktail menus to the comfort of every guest, whether it is venue or parking, we will be paying the greatest attention to every small detail,” assured Sony Chaudhary, Assistant Manager - Marketing and Public Relations, of the hotel.

Any fashion show is incomplete without an after-party that beats the oomph on the catwalk. And the pioneers of making people party to their tunes, PartyNepal will be ready to make to boogie and shake a leg till you say ‘more’.

The Himalayan Times TGIF Nepal Fashion Week 2010 is organised by IEC in association with Chivas Regal and supported by San Miguel, Invenio Wines, Diva and Timex, with Kingfisher Airlines as the official carrier and Soaltee Crowne Plaza as the hospitality partner. The creative partner is Echoad, and FHM and Andpersand are the magazine partner, with Mudra Max as the brand alliance partner. Sound design and after parties are done by PartyNepal.