“I believe that capes are now in. Capes are trendy, easy to wear"
On January 31, 2016, the Asiana Bridal Show 2016 celebrated its 15th anniversary, right in the heart of London’s West End, The Lancaster London Hotel.
The glamorous show was devoted to the latest trends for brides and grooms to enjoy, including everything you need to plan the perfect Desi wedding.
Without a doubt, the days of the ‘traditional’ Asian bride and groom are long gone.
Now as Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshi’s are becoming more and more embedded into British culture, we are seeing a shift in consumer trends.
This has resulted in the recent boom in popularity of the Asian wedding fashion industry.
The Asiana Bridal Show perfectly represents this, as the day presented the chance for brides-to-be and their families to meet over 100 of the UK’s top wedding service suppliers under one roof, from bridal fashion designers to caterers and florists.
Bob Bajwa, presenter at Sunrise Radio noted that the atmosphere of the show was fantastic:
“It had everything you could need for your wedding under one roof … be it from mandaps, DJs and caterers to quirky things for your wedding like the tuk-tuk photobooth accessories.”
Walking around the exhibition, it was clear that the venue and the catwalk show were extremely popular – with many couples and their families speaking to wedding designers, tasting wedding cakes and canapes in anticipation for their big day.
When asked what décor and styles his customers are looking for, Bav Patel from Mystique Events noted: “Families are going for clean, modern and contemporary finishes with crystal based/white concepts.”
Additionally, Neha Gudka from The Langley Banqueting Suite highlighted that more and more families are looking for a ‘hassle-free’ day.
With this in mind, there are more wedding planners offering wedding event management services in-house and a ‘one-stop shop’, so families can deal with one person.
Even more so, there was the spectacular opportunity to view the ‘Asiana Bridal Show Catwalk’ which showcased the new lines of Kyles Collection, RDC London, Khushboos, Anjalee and Arjun Kapoor, Soltee, Raishma, Tehxeeb London, Aamir Naveed, Hoor and Mongas.
The catwalk offered a demonstration of the classics as well as the new trends to look out for Bridal Fashion in 2016.
Bilkis Siddat, Director of Soltee (based in Birmingham) said: “The Soltee fashion collection demonstrated a line of regal and royal wedding outfits.
“The collection itself followed our theme of ‘heritage revival’ of delicate embroidery work, pearls and new colours.
“I believe that brides are now willing to push themselves out of the boundaries, and steer away from the set traditional looks.”
“This is why the Soltee collection did not use velvet in the designs. We also used new softer colours such as oranges and mints.”
Soltee’s trademark burnt orange was a big success on the runway. Their use of delicate detailing and modern cuts was refreshing to see.
One outfit saw a cropped lehenga top in orange-red with a heavy green toned skirt with gems and crystals.
Conversely, the men’s fashion line continue to remain traditional, Bilkis mentioned: “Men’s fashion continued to follow the Rajasthani and regal look.”
Akriti Monga, of Mongas UK, said of her line: “What makes Mongas unique is that we cater to a wide range of people – from designer products to medium-range. The new collection shows a variety of designs using velvet fabric, nets and gowns.
Akriti’s collection welcomed royalty to the runway with heavily embellished lehengas and ghararas. Men’s kurtas and sherwanis were also covered in crystals and embroidery for a very traditional look.
The mix of pastel greens with gold detailing were stunning additions to the men’s collection:
“The key colours remain red, emerald green and navy blue; but pastel colours are getting a lot of attention too, we are now designing with mint greens, baby pinks and peaches – softer colours are becoming more attractive,” Akriti adds.
She took this further and identified a growing stylistic trend which was showcased in her line:
“I believe that capes are now in. Capes are trendy, easy to wear and it follows the growing urge for brides who wish to move to contemporary from the traditional.”
For the 2016 wedding season, brides should look out for lehengas, sarees and anarkalis in soft and pastel colours such as mint green, baby pink, orange and peach.
In terms of cuts and styles, the light saree with a heavy embroidered blouse piece – is becoming increasingly attractive and allows for greater mobility on your wedding day.
For the more daring and trendsetting brides – try adding the cape accessory to your attire!
Makeup trends saw bold lip colours for Spring and Summer. Bold eyes and highlighting remain popular among brides-to-be.
Up do’s with delicate flower arrangements are also popular hairstyles.
While artificial jewellery has been a popular bridal trend, Kyles Collection welcomed back the traditional heavy gold sets.
Overall, the Desi bride has much to look forward to in 2016. From stunning venue details, wedding favours and elegant lehengas, there has never been a better time to get married.
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