Colour me secular

beauty

This week, You! brings the stunning jewellery collection by Saima Haq. Make a statement this season with these sparkling beauties....

Although diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but those diamonds are nonetheless embedded in some fine piece of jewellery. Hence, the love affair between girls and jewellery is as old as time itself. Be it exquisite and delicate pieces or big chunky ones, it’s the best way to get a glitzy makeover. This time around, we bring you a unique collection crafted by the talented Saima Haq; so, why not make a statement this season with these sparkling beauties!

Entrepreneur, educationist and jewellery designer, Saima Haq, created a stir at the recently organised fashion show with her off-beat truck-art inspired jewellery and accessories collection themed ‘Colour me Secular’. Having launched her brand ‘Reflectodeco’ recently, Saima is focused on producing stunning pieces.

Talking about her foray in the world of fashion, Saima shares, “Although my primary profession is teaching, I have always been inspired by our local craftsmanship especially the ones that are a part of our own heritage. Truck art is multi-dimensional and Repousse and Reflective Sticker work commonly known as Chamak Pati - which is far more labour intensive. I have been trying to work with these artisans for the last few years by making home decor pieces for export. My recent jewellery collection is a collaboration with the fashion design house, that specifically represents the local and cultural individuality of Pakistan.” Talking about her jewellery collection, Saima apprises, “In this collection we wanted to use the symbols representing the religions that are commonly practiced in the Asian subcontinent... these were predominantly Islam, Hinduism, Sikh, Zoroastrian, Christianity and Buddhism; so we incorporated these symbols in the jewellery and accessories. I used the elements that were representative to our partition i.e. steel trunks and repoussed biscuit tins found in every household to store buttons, sewing supplies, etc, and let the artisans use their own aesthetic to refurbish them. Then we added chains and latches to contemporise them into bags and purses.”

For her collection, Saima experimented with brass instead of the typical silver to give new life to her pieces. She also hopes that people will appreciate the craftsmanship of how the truck art has inspired delicate and artisanal beauty.

When asked if she had worked with these techniques previously, she replies in the affirmative. “Yes, for years I was a customer of the artisans - their reflective decal which we use in the vocational programme I run for the intellectually challenged. But over the years, I have come to learn that this art form is slowly being replaced by computers and the new LED lights are now replacing the reflective tape whose sole purpose was to help the visibility of the trucks on the dark roads.”

The most interesting feature is that Saima worked alongside the skilled labour to give shape to her jewellery line. “I have been working with them for several years now but since the jewellery has come into play, it’s fun to see their excitement who never imagined that their craft would enter this new world of fashion. It was so endearing to see the look on their faces when I showed them the pieces worn by models on the runway. One of them even asked me if they could make it for their wives and another one for their daughter,” she enthuses.

When asked to name her favourite piece, she quips, “I would have to say my favourite piece was the Buddha bag because it showed me how talented the artisans really are! They replicated the image without the use of a computer, pen or pencil... it seemed as if their hands were a computer itself.”

As for her favourite look by the talented stylist Amal, she tells, “My favourite look was definitely with the first piece when the model wore the belt under the Sedreh, a very light Muslin tunic, which is symbolic to what Parsis wear on a daily basis. Yet she was able to pair it up with earrings that symbolised other religions without losing the essence of the Zorastrians.”

Talking about her fashion debut, Saima shares, “It was very exciting to see my designs on such a huge professional and glamorous platform which is a natural part of the fashion industry. But for me, I was much more overwhelmed and moved by what this collection represented for our nation and its people.”

Buoyed by a positive response at the show, Saima is now busy working on her next collection that she plans to launch in Ramazan. “This has opened up a whole avenue for creativity and it may help globalise this particular art form. We will continue this journey behind ‘Reflectodeco’ by trying to contemporise it by taking the beauty of the trucks and bringing it into the homes and the hearts of our own people as well as people around the world.”