Review: Blueprint

Over the years, the annual Blueprint trade show earned a reputation for being one of the leading fashion expos in Asia. From a humble display of 56 brands back in 2010, the Blueprint trade show has grown into a large-scale exhibition with more than 200 emerging local and international labels.

Held at the Suntec City hall, the trade show was intended to impress buyers from department and multi-brand stores. This year also marked the conception of Baby Blueprint, a new category launched for childrenswear with brands such as Gia Moda and Marc & Molly’s.

The trade show opened with a runway exhibition featuring several new designers’ Pre-Spring 2015 collections. Despite the curious lack of Asian models, the show surprised with a curation of notable labels.

Here were some of UrbanWire’s favorite looks:

FABITORIA

Opening Blueprint’s runway show was Taiwanese label Fabitoria, capturing the essence of spring in their 2-piece ensembles – think luxurious shades of emerald and gold printed onto sharp tailored lines. We also spied crossed bands of textured fabric sewn onto each straight-cut skirt made for interesting contrast on the digitally patterned bottom. UrbanWire loved the playful exposure of the midriff, a current spring trend that might actually last a while.

The collection was somewhat reminiscent of Dolce & Gabbana’s Spring 2014, especially when paired with shoes from fellow Taiwanese designer Abcense. Fabitoria’s potential was evident in their debut show.

 

RÊVASSEUR

Local label Rêvasseur was owned by Gilda Su, a self confessed lover of experimental fashion, who raised the level of quirkiness with slogan tees and innovative hats. UrbanWire felt that the sequined hoodie bedazzled the most with mouthwatering peacock hues and fur-lined back. Various caps, including one with an explosion of black and white feathers and another with an Ursula applique tacked onto it, also caught our attention.

While the pieces might not be considered as ready-to-wear, they were definitely statement pieces to look out for.

 

MORPHE

Skillfully tailored and saturated with detail were pieces by Morphe, a designer hailing from New Delhi dedicated to creating womenswear with a touch of modern femininity. Their collection drew inspiration from artists such as Katsushikai Hokusai and abstract expressionist Mark Rothko. We love how the artwork was interpreted into layers of translucent stripes, overlapping pleat details and scalloped edges.

These ultra feminine pieces, made mostly out of pure silk organza, had the crowd talking and are the perfect embodiment of spring.