Swarovski Fashion Forum: Glittering crystal from head to toe
Muara Bagdja, Contributor, Jakarta
To many people, crystal remains best known as a material for fancy interior decorations such as chandeliers, glasses or ornamental statuettes.
However, in the last few decades, Australia-based Swarovski has created crystal beads for the fashion industry to decorate dresses and their accessories. Swarovski, a legend in the crystal business, has also created crystal tattoos.
In Indonesia, crystal is more frequently used for exclusive jewelry and wedding gowns. As crystal is very expensive, it is popular only among limited circles.
When a dress design includes crystal as one of its components, the product will have an added value in its appearance.
Crystal, therefore, cannot be compared in use with other ornamental items like plastic or resin-made beads or sequins, which are cheaper and more popular because they are often used today by local dressmakers.
"Crystal makes a dress look more luxurious and glamorous," said designer Didi Budihardjo, who claims to have used crystal in his designs for 13 years.
This luxurious quality was demonstrated along with other designers such as Sebastian Gunawan, Mira Leonardi of Bridal Image and Andrea Sutisno, in a spectacular crystal-studded fashion show at Borobudur Hotel, Jakarta in late May.
Luxurious glamor emanated not only from the gowns but also from the eye-catching jewelry designed by Rolla and the various footwear made by Ruddy Walakandou, such as shoes with crystal- encrusted heels.
Crystal head dresses and hair pins also lent beauty to the hairstyles arranged by Peter Saerang. Peter even used crystal to cover the eyebrows of some of his models to create a glamorous look.
With the stage background covered with the sparkling of crystal lights, the show was really a demonstration of how crystal can be used from head to toes in the fashion world.
"Crystal ... crystal ... crystal ...," said Lim Phek Jin, division manager of the Southeast Asian components division, when illustrating the show's mission in his welcoming address before some 700 invitees.
Just like dresses, Swarovski crystal alters its style annually. For the upcoming year 2003, four crystal styles will gain prominence.
Each designer is given a chance to develop and apply one crystal style in their works.
Sebastian Gunawan presented plain-colored crystal in his traditional-looking designs. This included modern kebaya, kemben or romantic blouses combined with batik cloth. The batik motif was sprinkled with crystals and beads so that it looked luxurious without removing the batik impression.
"I've combined crystals and beads to produce a richer effect," Sebastian said.
Sebastian's fresh and prominent design that evening was a mermaid's gown applied with the batik motif, which he transferred from batik cloth. This elegant batik gown displayed traditional and modern nuances.
Bridal Image, a wedding gown producer, featured "non-white" wedding gowns to suit the types of crystal used, which were either bronze or maroon red in color. The design was Gothic influenced, producing a mystical and mysterious impression.
One of the wedding gowns, which swelled like a balloon, looked outstanding and simple in comparison with other designs that were rich in cutting styles and used a lot of crystal.
Andrea Sutrisno presented interesting designs. Unlike other designers, she introduced crystals in a geometric pattern in her dynamic and slightly radical ready-to-wear designs, in which elegant and street styles were combined.
A patchwork jeans dress, for example, was combined with laced kemben, a combination creating visual freshness.
Didi featured natural-colored crystals in soft and romantic gowns. His chiffon dress, provided with oval frill details, looked charming when combined with a bustier covered with sparkling crystals. The impression created was one of gentleness, lightness, prettiness and softness.
In the last stage, every designer featured two designs that freely exploited the use of crystals and dress design.
There was Andrea Sutrisno's combination of a pair of torn jeans trousers studded with crystals and a laced blouse, or Sebastian's work comprising a gown and crystal-covered G-string panties that became visible from behind the transparent broad gown.
In this crystal show, both the dress designers, the accessory designers, the footwear designers, the hair-stylists and face make-up men seemed to wish to maximize the use of crystal.
As a presentation of recent trends in crystal design, this was of course an effective way and was in line with the mission of the show itself, as one could read in the press release: "Swarovski would like to popularize to the public its crystal component products, the way to apply these products and its product design variety".
However, because the product is addressed to decorate the present-day women, the total look -- the use of crystal from head to toe -- is indeed "too heavy", not to say excessive with the likelihood of the elements clashing with one another.
"If we look at the elements individually, they are good but overall, all the elements look crowded," said a teacher at a fashion school in Jakarta, when asked to comment on the show.
In fact, as crystal is transparent, shiny and exclusive in nature, it stands out among others and does not need to be used for all aspects of appearance.
A simple gown will beam beautifully if it is matched with footwear encrusted with crystal. Or, if the dress is rich with crystal ornaments, it will appear elegant if it is matched with plain footwear.
Will crystal ever become popular here? Price remains the main constraint. A gown designed by an expensive designer will be even more expensive if it uses original crystal ornaments.
Didi said, however, that the high price would also depend on the quantity and type of crystal used for a dress.
"But I believe a woman is ready to spend more money to get something that will in the end make her look exclusive," Didi added.
For an accessory designer, the show provided fresh inspiration. Ruddy Walakandou, who designed the footwear for all the models that evening, has certainly benefited from this crystal show.
Before, he would only use ordinary beads or sequins because of his unfamiliarity with crystal. His cooperation with Swarovski gave him fresh ideas.
"When crystal is used in footwear, the outcome is different. You get the impression of an expensive item, so you can sell your product at a higher price," he said.
Another constraint you may face when using crystal is its fragility. Sebastian said that one had to be really careful when using thread to sew the crystal on the dress. Silk thread is the perfect choice because it could not be easily cut off by the edge of the crystal, he said.
"Therefore, I prefer flat back, hot-fix crystal as it will easily stick on the dress when heated," he added.
For Ruddy, his difficulty when using crystal lies more in creativity. "I must ensure that the crystal is well-placed to ensure an attractive appearance. It takes time," he said.
From 'Cristallo' to tattoo
* In 16th-century Venice, people began to produce colorless glass from crystal stone, called cristallo in Italian, from which the word "crystal" was derived.
* It was not until the 17th century, however, that the first clear and pure crystal was created in England.
* When cutting machines were invented two centuries later, Daniel Swarovski established his business as the first crystal producer. A tradition of over a century has associated Swarovski with crystal, class and good quality.
* At first, crystal was more often used for interior decoration. Graceful, shiny crystal chandeliers have long been known as part of the luxuriousness of European palace ballrooms.
* It was not until late last century that crystal began to be used in the fashion world, following the production of crystal beads, which can either be sewn or stuck on dresses and their accessories.
* Today, quite a few world-famous designers use crystal as part of their haute couture collections, wedding gowns, ready-to-wear and even dress accessories.
* In 1999, Swarovski introduced its new innovative accessory, a crystal tattoo, self-adhesive crystal jewelry stones applied to the skin. So, a new generation of body jewelry has been born. -- Muara Bagdja