Seasons India collection two at the Asiana Bridal Show Birmingham

After dazzling the audience with their first collection at Birmingham's Asiana Wedding show, Seasons India had a lot to live up to with their second show. It was definitley different, and they started off with saris and long cigarette holders:





Unfortunately I didn't manage to get any clear shots of these saris, cause the models were dancing too much! But you can get an idea of the designs, all with tiny blouses. (you can get a closer view of the black sari from the last picture by checking out the Seasons India website by searching for product id 11-1220)




Next up was this blue dress, which I really liked. It looks elegant and the design is quite original. I like the way it hangs and the skirt swishes when she walks. (The product id for this outfit is 11-1226)






The next two outfits were pretty. I'm liking the white with a hint of green and gold colour scheme, although I'm not sure about the fitting of the top...the way it looks depends on your chest size I suppose!


They ended the show with the same outfit they finished with at the London Asiana Show, it must be one of their most popular outfits! What do you think?

Spring 2008 trends from the Suits Me catalogue

At the beginning of the year I posted a review of online catalogue Suits Me, (you can check out the review by clicking here).
Since I made my first and only purchase, I now receive their catalogue through the post. I was having a flick through their latest catalogue, issue 8, and two things stuck out to me - boleros and babydoll sleeves!

Boleros


As you can see from the three outfits above, there's a big difference in how you can wear a bolero. Here's what I think about the Suits Me designs!
The first outfit (green) is the front cover of the latest catalogue, but sadly it's my least favourite of the 3!! I think there's too much detail underneath the bolero and I don't like the way it closes at the front.
Outfit number two looks slightly better from afar, but close up it's just not that nice! Again, I don't like the way it ties up at the front.
Finally, outfit three is what I think looks best - it's minimal, chic and doesn't cover up the design of the suit.

Babydoll sleeves


I'm undecided on whether I like the babydoll sleeves look. On the first outfit, it's almost hard to notice they're even there because that flower print takes all your attention! You can see them more clearly on the second and third outfits. What do you think?

Mairs at the Asiana Bride Show in Birmingham

Red is probably the most popular asian bridal colour, and the Mairs collection at the Asiana Bridal Show in Birmingham started off by filling the stage with red dresses!!



Luckily, they gave us a chance to check out each outfit individually, so here are some modern dresses in a traditional colour:


I like the idea of the outfit above - a fitted corset top with a flowing skirt, although I've seen nicer corset tops than this one and there's no jewellery/accessories. Perhaps they were hoping the red veils and hairpieces would be enough to complete these bridal looks.



This next outfit was more of your traditional asian bridal outfit. I liked the skirt, with it's train but as with the corset outfit, I think the top really let this outfit down - I'm not keen on the square neckline.



Up next was this dress. I really like the shape of the dress but think the embroidery could have been more distinctive - it looks a little bit too standard and boring!



The first thing I have to say about this outfit is that it's badly fitted! I'm not sure how the top is supposed to look, but it doesn't look right to me. I like the embroidery details on the back, although the red veil looks scary!!



Finally, an outfit which I can find no fault with :) Perhaps the skirt might be considered too plain for some brides, but I like it anyway.




This was probably the most traditional of all the outfits from Mairs. As far as full-on traditional bridal outfits go, you could do a lot worse, but I think you could probably get something nicer than this one.



The last two outfits, showcased a bit of menswear. The bridal outfit above is so-so in my opinion, but I like the menswear a lot, even though I think the bright white looks a bit too sharp in contrast with the red...perhaps cream and red would be easier on the eye.


Finally, there was this pink outfit. After all the reds it seemed a bit odd to me to end with quite a plain pink outfit. The show started very strongly with all the reds on stage at the same time, however the ending didn't have as much impact.


So, what's the verdict on Mairs? Well, it appears they know how to create a great shape, with their full skirts and dresses with netting underneath, however the details on the accompanying tops aren't so great. If you can afford made-to-measure than you've got no problem - you can chop and change the tops to suit your own preferences, but if I was buying readymade from Mairs I'd make sure the outfit, especially the top fit perfectly before buying.
For more info on Mairs, visit their website, it doesn't have much in the way of outfits/pics, but it can tell you the address of their stores if you fancy a visit!

Khushboo's at the Asiana Bridal Show in Birmingham - part two

For their second slot on the catwalk at Birmingham's Asiana Bride Show, Khushboo's by Chand showed some lighter coloured shimmery outfits, which were a big change from the deep solid-coloured collection in their earlier catwalk show. They also had a bit of dancing...




It's a shame I didn't manage to get any better shots of the first four outfits,cause I love the sparkliness of the fabric, and I think they were gorgeous.


The rest of the outfits were just as sparkly, but with much shorter tops, and open backs:






This light blue off-the-shoulder outfit was my favourite:




I liked both collections from Khushboos, although this second set of outfits had more of a spring/summer feel to them whereas the deeper colours from the first show looked like they would work well for a winter wedding.
I think the styling with matching hair pieces worked really well too, but what do you think of flower bouquets for asian brides? Is a bouquet a better accessory than a matching handbag?