Lawn and Summer

Who are you wearing? A question now not only reserved for red carpets but a regular conversation starter among “desi aunties”. As summer is approaching, and being a Pakistani, you will no doubtedly be already familiar with the very popular and publicized “lawn madness”, a term most commonly used to explain this phenomenon. I like to call it “tug of war” between desire and necessity. Don’t get me wrong, I still love it. Be an avid consumer, however, probably not. Main reasons being residing outside of Pakistan and preferring to wear kurtas as opposed to full three piece suits. It’s the anticipation of the campaign, “who have they chosen to promote their brand”, and the designs of course, “have they added anything new”, that makes me look forward to it every year.

Now that this trend has escalated immensely since the past few years the list of designers is endless, from renowned fashion connoisseurs to emerging new talent to Amir Liaquat, who made his debut this April. Each brand has its own signature style but due to the increase in competition coming up with new and creative ideas can be a pickle at times, why many designs end up having a run-of-the-mill approach and being rather dull. Instead of going through every designer lawn collection out there I want to highlight some of my personal favourites who I believe kept it fresh this year.

Nida Azwer, Zara Shahjahan and Élan, three names that be it any collection always make my list. Each have their own distinctive style and amidst all the loud and garish designs they bring femininity with easeful grace. Whats more is their exclusivity due to being limited edition. Élan inspiration, however, doesn’t stop here courtesy of the new and extremely exciting Sapphire-Élan venture. Khadija Shah, being the creative head at Sapphire, does not disappoint as per usual. The lawn designs are an extremely fresh change to the usual mish-mash of prints and that too at a very affordable price! Almost at the door? No judgement at all! Next I’d like to mention Farah Talib Aziz Lawn featuring Ainy Jaffri for Lakhany Silk Mills. I immediately fell in love with the entire campaign and designs brought forth. Shot in London, the chinoiserie prints and floral aesthetics make me a solid fan. Lastly, my very short list ends with Sana Safinaz, a name hugely responsible for growing this “madness” with its early contributions that is still making its mark effectively. The mix of traditional and basic is what I always enjoy about SS, and the choice to play around with the design when getting it stitched.

Even while typing this several other names pop up in my head but if I were to splurge in lawn it would be for these designers, hence the very short and personalized list. This overgrowing phenomenon is why I coined the term “tug of war”, as mentioned earlier. The necessity of owning one with the desire of having it all. So pick and choose yours carefully and look trendy this summer, not conventional or boring.

On that note, happy shopping!