Rendezvous with a Fashion Expert: Ramya Mohan, Fabric Designer

Hey everyone, It's great to put up a post after so long, we've been really busy testing and giving our website last minute feature updates before we launch our business later this year (Get ready for swapzaar.com, the fun platform to swap fashion & lifestyle items in a gamified way! We're coming really soon.) and also organizing our upcoming event.

As a run-up to our event next Saturday, Beluxed Fashion did an interview with Ramya Mohan, a young and peppy freelance Fabric Designer based in Bangalore, who is going to be the speaker at our upcoming Bangalore Fashionistas event: "Rendezvous with a Fashion Expert"; the first in a  series of weekend fashion meetups, that we are initiating in collaboration with JD Institute of Fashion Technology.

The event will be held on May 4th at the JD Institute of Fashion, Lavelle Road, Bangalore.
You can sign up here if you are interested in attending the event.
If Bangalore based bloggers would like to attend and cover the event they can write to us separately.

Read the interview below...

BF:  What motivated you to get into the fashion industry, especially textile design?
Ramya:  I have always been passionate about drawing and working with colours. When I was finishing school, fashion designers were really making their mark in the industry. Fashion was entering mainstream movies that brought out concepts like styling and innovative design in a way that it hadn't earlier. Moreover the hands on approach that design schools offered was what really motivated me to pursue a career in design.

BF: What aspect of Textile Design excites you the most?
Ramya: Colour plays a huge role in textile design. it is often challenging but very exciting to work with. Pattern design and the ability to create various textures on fabric is what I find very appealing.

BF:  What do you do to stay in touch with the latest developments in your field, where do you look for inspiration?
Ramya:  I surf through a lot of blogs and websites and have a set that I follow closely. I also scout around for trends on an ongoing basis from trend forums, fashion and colour magazines. I also find a lot of inspiration from photography, craftspeople and contemporary artists and my travel experiences.

BF:   What is the biggest challenge and the most exciting thing, about being an Indian textile designer today?
Ramya: The most exciting thing is the endless possibilities and ideas for designs because there are new materials being made, techniques that are constantly being re-invented. India has a huge repertoire of handmade crafts and textiles that is unparalleled in the world. The challenge is to channel those to make something that is unique yet meaningful. It is about making the right choices to create something that is iconic, that people will remember for a long time :)

BF: What would you advise young designers who want to enter the field of Textile Design?
Ramya: Textile design has always been a lucrative field because of its ability to blend seamlessly into many other fields like industrial design, interiors, fashion..etc. I think people who like to explore and are looking for a hands on experience will find it an exciting field to work in.

BF:  If this celeb were a fabric which fabric would he/she be?
For example: Bruce Springsteen:  Shredded & Faded Blue Denim
Ramya: That sounds like fun let's go!
o   Angelina Jolie -- Red satin
o   Justin Bieber --  leather with a little bling, studded rhinestones?
o   Vidya Balan -- A lovely colourful saree made from kanchipuram silk
o   Lady Diana -- White lace
o   Karan Johar -- a shade dyed chiffon in pink and cream :)

And finally, here's a small Video clip of Ramya, saying 'Hi' , and if you are keen to meet her sign up for our event on the link provided above.

If you want to connect with Ramya ,you can find her on Linked-in: in.linkedin.com/in/mohanramya

All-in-all, we think, the event is shaping up well and promises to be interesting, we even have a fun T-shirt motif design contest and a fashion quiz activity planned with prizes to be one. So signup if you are in Bangalore.

Just "Phat" Fashion

As evangelists of "Fashion Democracy", we love it when fashion touches the lives of "real" women, who, believe it or not, come in all shapes and sizes. And we mean that in the least patronizing way imaginable. Being real women ourselves.

To be honest, of late we feel, the whole "size zero with a thigh-gap" phenomenon is getting out of hand, and the focus has entirely shifted away from having a healthy and fit physique that looks amazing, to having an almost unhealthy and stick-thin figure that photographs well in fashion & styling pictures (our lives are half-lived on Facebook, after all).

The fashion Industry has been facing a lot of flak for this phenomenon for the past few years and has been making some amends, check out Vogue's Curvy Blog for instance, and their cover dedicated to shapely women below... but the fact remains, that slim (thin) girls are considered more attractive.

Vogue Italy's Curvy Cover

But what is really great is that despite the overall trend of "thinness", more and more curvy women are realizing that they don't want to feel trapped by an external diktat of what someone thinks they should look like.
We are sure they want to be healthy and happy, but they don't want to wait till they are slim, to dress well and feel great, they are feeling more body-confident and are making "no bones" about flaunting their well-endowed sense of style.

Here is a digital magazine we came across recently, for "curvy or plus sized" women, and we think it is just mind-blowing in the way that it has been edited and styled.
Kudos to these fantastic and confident women for the effort.

Style is not about size, it is about attitude, and this is proof undeniable.