Rinaldy's 'Sedimentation': An extravaganza of dazzling accessories
Rinaldy's 'Sedimentation': An extravaganza of dazzling accessories
Muara Bagdja, Contributor, Jakarta
Indonesia's world of fashion has numerous renowned designers but
ironically there are only a few accessory makers. Fashionistas
maintain that one's performance will not be perfect without the
accompaniment of matching accessories.
It is good to know that amid the scarcity, we still have
Rinaldy A. Yunardi, a gifted accessory designer who featured his
great collections at Plaza Bapindo, South Jakarta, early this
month.
His Sedimentation solo performance surely reflected his
maturity in terms of creativity and design. It was totally
different from his previous exhibition two years ago which
predominantly featured ordinary crystal chokers. Almost every
single piece of his creations were attractive, making his show
the most thrilling to see among others exhibited during the
Jakarta Fashion Week, which began in early October.
This time Rinaldy not only proved himself capable of designing
jewelry, binding and combining various types of stones but he was
also expert in making fur bags and hats. His other masterpieces
that highlighted the show were jewelry that adorned the chest and
wrapped the body of his model and a feather hat in the form of a
fountain on her head, giving the model the combined impressions
of Josephine Baker, the cabaret dancer of the 1920s and the
styles of Hollywood stars of the 1950s.
"My mission is to feature new collections, especially in the
use of ethnic stones of various colors combined, studded and
arranged in a modern way. Besides, I want to show unlimited
creativity with bags, hats and jewelry designs. It's up to the
taste of the customers. I just want to show them that they are
works of art," he said, still giddy from all the praise he
received one day after his show.
The performance began with models wrapped in white gowns
carrying various types of square bags studded with stones or
feathers.
"I deliberately feature handbags with new designs shaped in
hard cases. We already have them in Indonesia but not created by
local designers," he said.
The show continued with necklace designs and belts.
Rinaldy showed his creativity in combining a wide variety of
natural stones of different characters in a beautiful string.
Amber, moonstone and turquoise were all combined with carved
stones from China and American diamonds to make them more
glamorous. Then out came five feather hats to accentuate the
atmosphere.
The audience gave a thunderous applause when he presented his
unique design: Three small bags terraced according to their
sizes. Then a model appeared wearing a necklace of various stones
covering her shoulders and lower parts of her body like African-
style skirts.
A crystal belt designed like a wreath suddenly drew the
attention of a fashion magazine.
"I will wear the belt with simple cloth and sleeveless
undershirt. It's cool, isn't it?" he said.
"I really love the black feather hat," designer Susan
Budiharjo said, pointing to a hat made of eagle feathers shaped
like two spreading wings with part of them covering the face of
the model.
The show became more attractive when it featured wedding gowns
and evening dresses by famous designers such as Sebastian
Gunawan, Didi Budihardjo, Susan Budihardjo, Eddy Betty and Adrian
Gan. All these glamorous gowns sparkled with accessories designed
by Rinaldy.
The cooperation that Rinaldy has established with fashion
designers manifested total creativity. Take, for example, the
crystal necklace with stems protruding towards the face of the
model, which was worn by the model demonstrating a colorful gown
designed by Didi Budihardjo. On each of the stems one sees a
butterfly. This accessory was very impressive because as the
model walked on, her face seemed to be surrounded by butterflies.
How romantic ......
Rinaldy began his career in 1997. His name began to be noticed
when he designed accessories for the show of the collection of a
number of top fashion designers in the next year. Since then, he
has established a reputation to be reckoned with in the fashion
world.
At first, his glamorous style attracted would-be brides and
women needing special accessories for their evening dresses. Then
he began to attract people in the entertainment business. The
head dress that he has designed, for example, can be seen in the
video clip of noted singer Titi DJ when singing Sang Dewi (The
Goddess). "The Goddess" herself sang two songs in the show of the
accessories that night.
Today accessories have played a considerable role in women's
lives in major cities. They are worn not only to improve a
woman's appearance but also to make her feel more beautiful. They
are also part of the effect of a sparkling stage. Previously,
accessories were worn only by primitive people to indicate their
social status. The head dress made of the feather of a bird of
paradise and worn by a member of a particular tribe in Papua, for
example, shows that he is a tribal chief.
Accessories have shown an increasingly good prospect recently
although there are still a few designers of accessories.
"Accessories have become more acceptable now. But I have
created accessories whose image is not only to give support but
become the focus of appearance. So, you only need to put on a
modest gown and lend prominence to your accessories," he noted.
Unfortunately, for the time being he has decided not to
enlarge his collection. The constraint is the type of the natural
stones, some of which he purchased abroad and spent a lot of
money for. For this reason he has designed only one accessory
made of the feathers of a parakeet.
"I got the feathers from my friend's dead parakeet. So, I
don't known when else I can have the same feathers again. Of
course, there are synthetics but they are available abroad at a
very high price.