Masha Ma’s Midnight Blooms

Étiquettes

#pfw, China Fashion, Chinese designers, epiphyllum, Fashion Week, La semaine de la Mode, Masha Ma, Paris Fashion Week

Masha Ma for Fall Winter 2014 went in a bold new direction. Inspired by the ethereal and ephemeral beauty of the epiphyllum, a special cacti flower originally from South Africa but that one can find in China and Singapore. This amazing flower blooms only once every few years, around midnight, exhuding a scent so strong it is said that sensitive souls can faint. Masha Ma sent down the catwalk a strong, directional collection on flower-masked amazons that took the audience by surprise.

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Far from the minimalist mood of her most recent collections with their clean, pure lines, simple cuts and discreet embellishment, Masha Ma chose for her Fall Winter a color palette in strong yet simple tones: Black. Navy. White. The occasional slash of red, a nod to China signature color in stringy necklaces popped here and there. It was a visually arresting collection of amazons with perhaps too many details here or there but quite a strong statement from the Chinese born designer.

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“For the past seasons, I was interested in making feminine clothes, they were simpler, but this season I wanted to push further, explore, I did not want to play safe and will continue in the future to go in that direction. Next season I will go further still. I design for strong women that are taking risks » said Ma. Here she is backstage the day before the show which was shown on the official schedule of Paris Fashion Week last wednesday.

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Last check under the eye of the model.

Before the show

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The workmanship on the sleeves of that apparently simple sweatshirt was absolutely breathtaking. A latrice work of small beads cleverly sewn together into the softest beaded lace. A delightful mix of easywear and haute couture. The « mask » a poetic nod to China’s recurring pollution nightmare was made into an orchid-like flower, theme of the collection.

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This beautiful jacket, made dramatic with the poetic ‘flower mask’.

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Bold mix of textures with the clean crisp white shirt as a canvas.

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The final line up Place Vendôme, ambiance Film Noir.

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It will be interesting to see how the fashion magazines and Masha Ma’s clients will reinterpret such a strongly visual collection in the months to come.

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