1. 76|Harper’s BAZAAR|April 2012 April 2012|Harper’s BAZAAR|77
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LULWA AL AMIN
Manufacturing in Baharin and
designing in London provides the
perfect dual-continent solution for
a growing Gulf designer
idway through Paris Fashion
Week, Lulwa Al Amin is
rearranging racks of samples
from her Autumn/Winter 2012
collection. “I’m making mental notes of my bestsellers,”
confides the London-based Bahraini designer. “Dealing
with clients is such a big part of the business, and each
collection is a learning process,” she adds,
having just presented to a store buyer.
Last month the young designer
decided to set up camp at the Hotel
Lotti, steps away from the rarefied
atmosphere of the Place Vendôme.
“As a designer it makes sense to show
in Paris because the world comes here
and it exposes my collection to a
much larger audience,” explains
Lulwa who launched her own
label in 2010 shortly after
graduating from London’s
Central St. Martins.
That she should
choose to show her
collection in the
French capital is
no coincidence. Far
from the catwalks
that dominate the news at
Paris Fashion Week, the real
business of fashion takes place
behind the doors of rented hotel
suites, studios and showrooms scattered
throughout the city. Despite elaborate
catwalk presentations, New York and
London-based designers such as
Alexander Wang and Marios Schwab,
will regularly fly their collections to
Paris to be shown to international
buyers and editors.
Yet in a competitive industry
dominated by Western names, Lulwa
Al Amin, 25, stands out as one of a
handful of designers from the Gulf
region with a visible presence on the
international fashion scene. “Although
I’m a big believer in supporting young
talent from the region, I picked up
Lulwa’s line last season because it was
well made and had a unique point
of view,” says Deena Aljuhani, founder
of the D’NA store in Riyadh.
Since launching her label, Lulwa has
been quietly gaining attention for her
whimsical use of prints. “She was always
very keen to bring together references
from her different cultural experiences.
As a student, she had a particular love
M
“Ipicked up Lulwa’s line last
season because it was well made
and had a unique point of view”
Deena Aljuhani of D’NA
Line sheets are
provided for buyers to
navigate the collection
A moodboard is
on display to entice
buyers into the spirit
of Lulwa’s A/W
collection
Dana Al Khalifa of
blog The Overdressed
wears short dress (left),
Dhs3,092 and long
dress, Dhs10,211 (right)
from Lulwa Al Amin’s
S/S12 collection
A suite in Paris’
Hotel Lotti was
Lulwa’s gateway to
international buyers
during last month’s
Paris Fashion Week
The designer’s
A/W12 prints present
a kaleidoscope of
intense colour and
a new direction for
the collection
Lulwa Al Amin
wearing a look from
her S/S12 collection
Words by alex aubry
“Arab designers are not supported
by the likes of the CFDA in New York.
They are left to create, fund and market
their work twice as hard”
Dana Al Khalifa of The Overdressed
photogrpahy:phongfloresfortheoverdressed.com.alexaubry.illustration:nikkinewman
➤
Textile prints inform
Lulwa Al Amin’s
designs, as in this
A/W12 two-piece
for the craftsmanship and textile techniques of Bahrain
and would experiment with ways to insert them into her
textiles. Her combination of colour, technique and
pattern created a style that is very unique to her,” recalls
Joanna Pierce, her textile design professor at St. Martins.
Her eye for colour and pattern continues to inform
Lulwa’s design practice. “I begin each collection by
visiting Première Vision, the Paris textile fair where many
designers select fabrics. But for the most part my
collections are driven by the prints I create each season,
and I experiment with different techniques,” explains the
designer, who works closely with a London-based print
studio to bring her hand-crafted creations to life.
“I love creating feminine clothes,” says Lulwa who
lines all her pieces in silk printed with her custom designs.
“For me there is nothing more luxurious than stepping
into a garment and feeling the fabric against your skin.”
For next autumn, the young designer turned her
attention to photography; capturing images of personal
mementos that inspire her and abstracting them into
prints. “My textile designs often convey messages about
what inspires me at a particular moment in time,” she
explains while holding up her violet-hued wool coat.
Turning it inside out, she reveals a kaleidoscope of vibrant
colours. “I used this pattern for my last autumn
collection, but it’s a very intense process that involves
a lot of steps. I do everything from sketching and painting
the patterns to mixing the dyes for the samples,” she

2. 78|Harper’s BAZAAR|April 2012
alexaubry
newsThe
explains, illustrating the attention to detail which is
attracting a loyal fan base.
“I fell in love with her spring collection when I first
saw it. There is something fresh about the way she
combines modern streamlined shapes with her naïve
pastel prints. It’s a very personal approach to expressing
fashion,” says Dana Al Khalifa, the influential Bahraini
fashion blogger behind The Overdressed, who also
believes that Lulwa points to a new generation of
designers emerging from the Gulf region.
“It’s important to support a designer like Lulwa, who’s
creating desirable clothes that can speak to an
international audience. Arab designers are often
challenged to excel and prove themselves because they are
not supported by the likes of the CFDA in New York,
NewGen in London or the French fashion council. So
they are left to create, fund and market their work twice
as hard,” adds Dana.
Such realities are not far from Lulwa’s mind, as she
faces the challenges of running her own label. “School
doesn’t necessarily provide you with the tools to run
a fashion business. I really began to gain experience when
I interned with Matthew Williamson and at Browns.
At Williamson’s I was able to work in every department
and follow a collection from the design board, to
production and marketing. At Browns I worked with
their online sales division, which gave me valuable retail
experience,” recalls Lulwa.
When it came time to produce her début collection,
she tapped a London-based factory known for working
with a number of designers in the industry. Although the
pieces were beautifully made, she soon realised the cost of
production was too high for her small business. “Having
your own fashion line isn’t simply about designing
clothes, but becoming a problem solver. I wasn’t willing
to compromise on quality and had to come up with an
alternative to sustain my label in the long term.”
The solution came in the form of a factory in Bahrain
that had been working for over three decades with major
high-street brands around the world. Today Lulwa
divides her time between London, where she designs her
collections and prints her textiles, and Bahrain where she
will spend hours in the factory making sure each piece
is produced to her specifications.
“One of the biggest challenges for any designer is
finding skilled patternmakers. The patterns are the
foundation on which you build a collection. I work very
closely with a few individuals in London to bring my
initial design sketches to life. I will then take the toiles or
the prototypes to the factory in Bahrain, and work closely
with them to explain what I want,” says the designer
whose bi-cultural business reflects the fashion industry’s
increasingly global reach.
In a saturated market where emerging designers
must often compete with established labels for
the attention of retailers and editors alike, Lulwa’s approach
to marketing her collection has also helped her stand out.
“I often find myself wearing many hats. Whether it’s
dealing with PR or sales, I’m constantly thinking about
how to connect to new audiences,” explains Lulwa.
With a stockist base that includes S*uce in the UAE,
D’NA in Riyadh, Gojiboutique.com in Kuwait, and
notjustalabel.com, the designer is also exploring alternative
avenues of distribution and recently opened a pop-up
store in Bahrain, where she showed limited edition pieces
together with her spring collection. It’s a retail model she
hopes to emulate in other locations around the world;
one that is right in step with her own philosophy.
“As a designer it’s not only important for me to connect
with the women who wear my clothes, but also show that
fashion is a universal language that can make an impact
no matter where you are in the world.” ■
Prints from the A/W collection
(above) draw inspiration from Baz
Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet, with
mirrors, lavendar, candles, skulls,
roses and hearts, to give a soft
romantic, yet sharp and gothic, feel
Lulwa Al Amin shows off the
custom print-designed linings
of her new autumn collection
The spring collection by
Lulwa Al Amin is inspired
by orientalist photography,
Toiles de Jouy textiles and
Marie Antoinette’s boudoir.
Blue dress (far left),
Dhs3,475. Strapless dress
(left), Dhs3,475
“Having your own
fashion line isn’t simply
about designing clothes, but
becoming a problem solver”
lulwa al amin