Mithila Mehta talks to fashion designers venturing into the realm of home interiors and accessories
In a trend led by the biggest Indian and international names, we are increasingly seeing fashion designers move beyond designing just fashionable attire to take on accessories, home interiors, furnishings, automobile interiors and more. Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla, who have expanded into interior design tell us, “For any artist, there are no boundaries. Creativity is free flowing, it will spill over onto new mediums until it finds new expression. As individuals, we believe in a beautiful life, whether it is through fashion, interiors, architecture, art, jewels, food or travel”.
Neeta Lulla agrees, “Diversification and extending creative ability into lifestyle segments appeal to me. I have worked on fashion choreography, films, jewellery design and travel bags—and now being able to extend into designer bed linen, specially for a bridal trousseaux, has been a fabulous experience”.
More than a trend
Giorgio Armani's Armani Casa offers furniture and furnishings, created in the brand’s classic style—minimal lines in monochromatic shades—as well as customised creative decor solutions. They have also now ventured into designing hotels and luxury residential complexes. Meanwhile, Hermès effortlessly combines aristocratic designs with a contemporary touch, bringing its distinctive designing flair to various canvases, including clothing, accessories and home decor. Missoni, known for their signature style of knitted and printed fabrics, brings the same vivid designs to home accessories, while Roberto Cavalli’s home decor collection—which includes furniture, tableware, linen, luxury tiles, rugs, wallpapers and glassware—is a reflection of his love for bold colours, exotic bright prints and ethereal silhouettes. Gucci, on the other hand, has worked with Italian car-maker Fiat on the limited edition Fiat 500 model.
Designed to accessorize
Closer home, fashion designers are taking similar creative leaps of faith. What better way to complete your outfit with a bag, minaudière, belt or scarf by the designer who has put together your ensemble? Ritu Kumar, who recently launched a range of fashion accessories shares, “Accessories add to the beauty, convenience and effectiveness of an outfit and are an essential part of dressing up. Creating a new line—bags, clutches and wallets—gives the design studio a whole new dimension and accessories give me a three dimensional area to experiment on”.
Accessories by Ritu Kumar
That said, designing accessories comes with its own set of challenges. “The creative process for designing may be similar for both apparel and accessories, however, the execution differs. In accessories, one has to think of newer materials—in bags alone there are fabric, leather and metal, all needing to be designed and put together. Further, the embossing and embroidery, which is a specialty of our leather range, is a highly skilled practice,” Ritu tells us.
Fashionably at home
Fashion is increasingly turning to home decor to satisfy creative expression. JJ Valaya’s cutting-edge, yet classic home decor collection boasts of furniture, furnishings and home accessories with an emphasis onbespoke designs. Sabyasachi’s design philosophy ‘personalised imperfection of the human hand’ is seen in his home decor designs as well. From vintage clocks to fine chinaware and colourful upholstery, the collection is replete with vibrancy.
SP Home
Launched under the label of Satya Paul, SP Home aims to adorn your home. Nikhil Mehra, COO, Genesis Luxury states, “Creativity cannot be restricted. The realm of design is now growing to become more seamless. Both fashion and interiors are a casual, yet artistic way of expressing one’s self. There is a strong focus on themes, key elements and colour story when designing”.
Whether it is fashion or home design, it’s all about the vision. At the same time, the focus on functionality is much greater. Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla explain, “We work closely with the client to understand their lifestyle, personality and spirit. A space, product or furniture piece needs to be functional as one lives with it daily, that’s why it’s even more challenging to create this than a single outfit. Whether it is couture or interior design, we don't believe in creating merely what's trending; it should remain eternally stylish and forever beautiful”.
“We are keen to design—we don't define what. Definition limits us. We wish to explore more projects including boutique hotels, airports, museums, product design, furnishings, furniture and tableware—the list is limitless!” sign off Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla.
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