The Extravagance of APPMI’s Modest Gowns

Asosiasi Perancang dan Pengusaha Mode Indonesia (APPMI) or the Association of Indonesian Fashion Designers and Entrepreneurs presented the best works of eight of their designers on day six of Jakarta Fashion Week 2015, 6 November 2014. Four designers presented their latest modest gown collections in the first session of the show which took place in Fashion Tent Jakarta Fashion Week. They were Kursien Karzai, Ria Miranda, Khanaan Salman and Fomalhaut Zamel. 

Inspired by his concern for poor forest condition, Kursien Kazai displayed “The Green My Earth” through twelve modest gowns. The Runner Up of the fashion designer contest Lomba Perancang Mode (LPM) 2009 blended natural colors like green, soil brown, off-white, and beige with graceful chiffon, lace and satin velvet in simple cuts.

Returning with her trademark pastel palette, Ria Miranda also revealed twelve modest outfits in “Dahayu”, which means beautiful in Sanskrit. Miranda provided interesting designs through digital print technique, embroidery, and Swarovski sequin details while still maintaining the collection’s ready-to-wear style. The pastel palette in Miranda’s designs was brighter than that of the first collection, but also offered a feminine elegance with materials like linen, taffeta, silk, viscose, chiffon, organdy, and traditional fabrics of Makassar and Garut.

Meanwhile, batik designer Khanaan Salman came up with the luxury of twelve modest outfits made of light-textured chiffon silk, as well as Thai-silk and crepe-silk which has always been a major element in each of his designs. His creations were influenced by the power and grandeur of the Assyrian empire. “I would like to show a tribal impression in this collection without reducing the luxurious and elegant character. That character can be seen from the use of batik, which is the dominant element in my designs, and also the detail placements that follow the pattern of ancient Assyrian sculpture,” said Salman in the press conference before the show started.

A cold wind breezed from “Double Freeze”, a collection which featured fourteen latest works of Fomalhout Zamel. The modest outfits in Zamel collection was made of Kubang weave, a typical fabric of West Sumatra. Zamel’s designs appeared more dashing with Swarovsky crystal details, beads, metal plates, and embroidery. The color palette—gray shades, soil brown, and bluish white—further added perfection to the “coldly” elegant modest dresses.