2016 has been a pretty awful year and it’s not quite over just yet. It’s been a year characterised morbidly by death. From favourite gorillas to rock stars, the year seems to have taken more than it gave back. However, not everything coming out of 2016 has been a total disaster. We discovered some new brands that made the year a little more bearable, at least style wise. Here’s our round up of brands and designers that stood out for the better.
FASHIONFOCUS
A round up of brands and designers that stood out for the better.
2016 has been a pretty awful year and it’s not quite over just yet. It’s been a year characterised morbidly by death. From favourite gorillas to rock stars, the year seems to have taken more than it gave back. However, not everything coming out of 2016 has been a total disaster. We discovered some new brands that made the year a little more bearable, at least style wise. Here’s our round up of brands and designers that stood out for the better.
Odd and Eve
2015 and 2016 saw a profusion of new footwear brands specialising in hand made shoes while reviving traditional craft. Our favourite to emerge though has to be Odd and Eve, an Instagram and Facebook based business that sells the dreamiest, hand painted Peshawari chappals. While the open toed footwear might be a bit inappropriate for cold climes, the Odd and Eve slipper is the perfect accessory for summer when you can pair it with eastern or western wear for a unique look. We’re particularly bowled over by the attention to detail on their designs.
Esfir
This Karachi based jewellery brand has our heart. From its bird cage earrings that practically every starlet and fashionista wore to its latest collection of fashion forward baubles, Esfir carved a space for itself in our sartorial memorandum. Whether we wanted something traditional with a contemporary update or trendy interpretations of accessories that were the global rage, we could count on Esfir to find what we were looking for.
Karachi Candle Company
We could wax on (pun intended) and on about what makes this brand great. Not only is this local brand a dupe for more expensive candle brands that we tend to import it also only costs a fraction of the price. Though they only stock in Karachi at Ensemble, the brand offers delivery all across Pakistan. Our favourites from KCC include a cucumber and melon scented candle that seems to encapsulate summer in a jar and a jasmine and lotus candle that brings balmy nights into your bedroom with its heady fragrance. The candles are super scented and tend to last forever.
Aura Crafts
We’ve never shied away from admitting that we’re total beauty junkies. Cosmetics, skin care, hair care; you name it and we’re obsessed. It only makes sense then to have a beauty brand on the list. Aura, a Lahore based organic beauty brand, offers naturally enriched beauty solutions for everything ranging from anti-ageing to glowing skin. We can’t live without their activated charcoal soap which keeps our skin clean without stripping it of essential oils.
Blood Orange
We’re definitely glad to see pajamas being relegated back to nightwear but in all honesty we’re quite glad they became all the rage because it gave us one of our favourite sleepwear brands of the year. From Blood Orange’s slinky silk pajamas to their cosy new velvet editions in celebration of winter we love their nightwear so much we’re guilty of wearing it to work and even toothed airport.
