{"product_id":"ardazaei","title":"ArdAzAei","description":"\u003cp\u003eA new name on the Paris couture scene, Bahareh Ardakani is a mathematician and engineer by training, which generally means that when she decides to delve into something - whether it’s setting up a couture atelier from scratch or getting into the finer points of couture techniques - she’ll approach it like a problem solver.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut when she dove into “The Folded Sea,” as this collection is called, she said she had to resist a natural urge to try to make every finishing perfect, opting instead for raw hems and a more organic flow. “The sea has always brought me a sense of harmony, so that made this collection very personal for me,” Ardakani explained as she took a giant pair of scissors to a trailing panel of iridescent chiffon on an ornately pleated gown.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe microcosmos in the depths, notably sea urchins, became a focus “because they do protect our ecosystem and help it breathe. I think there’s such beautiful meaning and poetry around not only what they do but also their spinals.” In her show notes, the Swedish-Iranian designer noted that that creature’s pentaradial structure is believed to have talismanic powers, both in Scandinavia and around the Mediterranean, since antiquity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eShell-like structures and mother-of-pearl, iridescent, watery, or gill-like finishes were the highlights in a strong lineup that moved from simple to full-on barnacled: A metallic cotton fabric was hand-crunched and tailored into a sharp-looking suit with a wrap-around jacket detail and flared trousers (that shape, one of the designer’s ready-to-wear signatures, was very much in evidence around the front row).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHand-pleating techniques were showcased throughout, creating ripple effects on a GOTs-certified evening gown or tiers of ruffles in gradient charmeuse. “Seahorse” spirals in pink silk cascaded down a corseted minidress. A bustier gown was made of black cotton guipure lace placed over two layers of pink silk organza that took five months of R\u0026amp;D to create because it reprised scanned imagery of a sea urchin’s skeleton. Further along, the designer engineered the triple A in her brand name into corsetry, and its logo into urchin folds embellished with real fish scales, dyed pink and beaded like sequins. Bioluminescence, too, is micro-trending this season, and Ardakani obliged with a black evening gown - a new iteration of an earlier design, now embellished with 168 “sea flower” petals embroidered by Lesage.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The Leger","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56987132133758,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0950\/8192\/2942\/files\/dc8bfd0aabc5d673bf2b31f3d1bfe6ffd425830b-5504x7706.avif?v=1774974585","url":"https:\/\/www.the-leger.com\/products\/ardazaei","provider":"The Leger","version":"1.0","type":"link"}