What I find interesting about fashion and beauty is how it ties into history so seamlessly. Trends in both the fashion and beauty space serve as a looking glass into the setting of the time they came to pass. 120 years ago when the Father Of Haute Couture Charles Frederick Worth, sowed these cut crystals into his creations that clothed the likes of Queen Victoria, Swarovski Crystals were used for royalty. This is not hard to imagine obviously because intricate embellishment paired with luxurious fabric made the attire look grand, opulent and regal. From there, it trickled down to fashion houses as they caught on to the drift that the use of crystal as a creative ingredient, whether as a loose stone to be sewn into garments or worn simply as jewellery was here to stay.In the ’50s it found its way to Chanel and Balenciaga before forming firm roots in the Houses of Prada, Valentino and Dolce & Gabbana who use Swarovski in most of their collections. Fast-forward to 2016 and you see how far the sparkly embellishments have come and how they’ve evolved.
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and Swarovski has many of those. Nowadays, because of the countless copy cats, they ensure that every garment with genuine crystals has a unique tracking code and a holographic tag so that one can rest easy knowing for certain that the piece they own is an original.
Creative Partnerships
Recently, at the Paris Couture Week Jean Paul Gaultier also joined hands with the sparkly brand to create their Fall-Winter ’16-’17 collection that was inspired by nature and the forests and featured a lovely earthy colour palette. The cut-crystal embellishment served as a great way to boost those colours and make them come alive so much more than they would’ve otherwise. It also swiftly elevates a creation into something awe-inspiring and aspirational, like nothing else can. Three opulent Swarovski crystal-embellished gowns and bespoke crystal jewellery lit up the runway, recalling natural woodlands and forests.Here are a few behind the scenes images.
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15 Years Of Swarovski
This year, they are celebrating 15 years in India! Over the course of these many years, they have collaborated with designers like Shantanu & Nikhil, Suneet Verma, Manav Gangwani and JJ Valaya. Here’s a look at some products of these creative partnerships.
SuneetVarmaXSwarovski, 2014 (Source: Naina Redhu)
ShantanaAndNikhilXSwarovski, 2014 (Source: Naina Redhu)
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TTXSwarovsvki, 2014
In commemoration of their 15 year anniversary, they have come together with 3 of the Indian fashion industry’s biggest names – Gaurav Gupta, Rohit Bal and Tarun Tahiliani, who they partnered with in 2014 as well. It comes as no surprise that Swarovski quickly made a name for themselves in India, considering the country’s penchant for bling and shine. Although the days of the maharanis are behind us, there is still a niche here that is tailor made for them- and it’s called bridal couture. Anything desi that is festive has to have the requisite amount of sparkle and shine, right? Enter Swarovski. There are some masters of the trade that have perfected the art of embellishment so well (like the ones mentioned above) that their garments are now in a league of their own. And we can’t wait to see the final products! Check out the gallery for a sneak peek at what India Couture Week 2016 and these designers have in store for us:
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This is the beauty of Swarovski. The craftsmanship and innate qualities of the cut crystals makes anything that it is attached to even more magical! We can’t wait to see these clothes up close and personal and get whisked away into the land of sparkle and shine and everything fine. Sigh.
For more updates, don’t forget to check out Swarovski Crystals on Facebook.
This post is in partnership with Swarovski.