Dima Ayad showcased her Autumn Winter 2016 collections on Day 2 of the #DubaiCollections at the Burj Khalifa Annex, organised by public relations firm Faux Consultancy for which Ayad is part of a local based stellar roster.

Ayad who has previously shown at Fashion Forward, has for some time followed the advice of the fashion talk panel who spoke before her show at the Annex on tips of how ‘media supports emerging talent in this region’.  It was emphasised here that the designer must really know their audience, their customer, and one better, get personalities who exemplify, to wear your creations.  This can certainly be said of Ayad in that some incredible women have worn her clothes, not least starting with the ‘Sex In the City’ legend Sarah Jessica Parker, but style notables and influencers within the middle East region; Kat Lebrasse, Shoestova, Lady Fozaza, Diala Makki, Shereen Mitwalli, Zhara Lyla to name but just a few.

The Lebanese descent Ayad, having lived in in the UAE all her life, is very good at creating quickly identifiable and memorable detailing, fabric textures and shapes, and palettes which are immediately recognisable as hers.  Ayad has been deploying tiers of tassles into her work that swing when you walk or dance, in dresses and separates.  Her use of stark monochrome with an accent of camel and caramel tones, the colour of sand dunes, have been very flattering to the skin tone, immediately making you want to grab a pair of nude heels to go with.   Ayad’s ‘Squares’ dresses, looking like a delicious honeycomb has been a recent detail that has drawn customers and media in, in that the pieces are photogenic and welcoming.  And who can forget her “camelia” patterning from her 2014 collections.

Ayad does an interesting thing, she celebrates the shoulders and decolletage well with a good range of pieces that begin below and across the shoulder, the kind of details Jackie Onassis or Audrey Hepburn could appreciate.

This A/W 16 season Ayad entered some new tones;  such a Tiffany turquoise blue, amethyst purple, gold, beige, vermillion red, burgundy, and rose. We see so much texture;  sequins large and small, the larger disc-like fish scales in pink that will be a great success easily in editorial shots, a great deal of lace, and a variety of glossy fabric.  There is a new geometric pattern a bit like the ‘Squares’ but more in diamond form that again will be fast to recognise to showcase the line.

Stockists wise, it would be worth looking at the recent venue Design 971 in The Village, Dubai Mall where recently Dima Ayad has had a pop up shop home and for further information on Instagram.

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