Maybe you’ve exhausted your lawn fetish this year or maybe you’ve just gotten into the groove; either way, if you’re anything like the average Pakistani woman then you probably have invested in ample lawn and have started making those frustrating trips to the tailor to have it ready in time for Sunday lunch with the in-laws. While Instep has been reviewing lawn collections regularly, here’s a recap of some trends that you may want to keep in mind when putting your lawn wardrobe together.
Keep your lower solid
Designers have offered many printed options and several have taken the shalwar/trouser a step ahead by adding embroidery or a motif on the trouser cuff. However, if you’re anything under 5’6" we strongly advise you to NOT break up the length of your leg by adding print or embellishment to it. It will only make you appear shorter and possibly stunted. The only exception is if you’re wearing a solid shirt and have the aesthetic sense to balance your printed trouser/shalwar with a solid tunic. Or if you must, then keep it subtle and follow what Faraz Manan has done with his designs for Crescent: understated trouser prints, simple buttons or a very subtle hint of detailing.
Aqua is the colour
Think of the cool, blue waters of a beach resort. Most high-end lawn designers have shot their summer 2015 campaigns in Sri Lanka or Thailand and the beachy influence resonates in their palette. You’ll see a lot of blue, aqua, sea-green, cerulean and the likes. Make sure these tropical shades of blue make way to your summer wardrobe too. You’ll find plenty of the right palette in Elan and Sana Safinaz collections. So be cool and think blue.
Keep your tunics knee-high
The era of longs shirts is long gone. While you don’t want to go vest length, you don’t want to stretch it to maxi level either. Your shirt should ideally cover your knees when you’re standing; your kurta can afford to go longer, especially if you’re pairing it with tights or a churidaar. That said, several designers including Zara Shahjahan have dared to hitch the hemline a little higher, which works for the slender but isn’t advisable for most of us curvy women.
Favour a texture
Lawn is quintessentially lightweight, airy and organic to make summer as bearable as possible. But that doesn’t mean it has to be flat. We love the chikan-lawn that Sana Safinaz has introduced in its summer 2015 collection. It comes in two shades - white and grey - and adds texture to an otherwise flat canvas. Other places to look for some 3D excitement is in the self composed embroideries that Sania Maskatiya is introducing in her collection for Al-Karam (available next week), the velveteen threadwork that Sana Safinaz has worked up or the embellishment that is part and parcel of every ensemble. Work it in sensibly, we say!