Fasteners have always been a major part of garmenting. Buttons, zippers, lace ups, ribbons are some of the fasteners which have helped in putting a garment together since the very beginning. With fasteners getting more and more attention and being visible on the surface, designers each season try and induce something new to these trims. A garment is incomplete till the time it is not finished with fasteners or closures; interestingly in the quest of being creative, trims have become a crucial design element as well. We have talked about, how trims are used involving aesthetic placements to be used as value addition, but now the fasteners are gaining popularity by being used vividly while continuing to being used as a closure only. Moving ahead from the simple ribbons, laces, cords, buttons and zippers from last year, the Summer and Fall of 2017 will bring with it fasteners which will impress fashion enthusiasts in the upcoming seasons…
Starting off as just a functional viability in a garment, the regular ribbons, laces, cords, buttons and zippers can now be seen as surface ornamentation in assortment of designs and patterns. Driven by innovation, these value-added accessories are ruling the fashion shows and are predicted to continue impressing the world by their innovative design concepts and applications in the upcoming seasons as well. Dheeraj Pajni, Senior Merchandiser, Kimo Clothing Design Concept Pvt. Ltd. says, “Laces, ribbons, drawstrings, cords – dangling loosely along sleeves, at the neck or up the back, are the design detail of choice this season. As a result, clothes look a little undone, with dangling cords and have plenty of subversive attitudes.”
Delpozo showcased garments with simple pragmatic touches like cuffs and collars, embellished to the hilt with couture-level beading, snapped off so that blouses could be more easily cleaned, and crop tops came knitted out with built-in boning and concealed hook-and-eye closures for ease of wear. On the other hand, Hervé Léger by Max Azria used zippers to control dress silhouettes creating conceal-and-reveal apertures (zip down for a fitted skirt, zip up for flare) and ruffles within the dress. The recently concluded Resort 2017 runways showcased a wide variety of ways, fasteners were shown retaining their functionality but at the same time when high on aesthetics.
Button Closures
Edun, emphasizing the continuation of ideas from previous seasons that worked well, presented knits with fringed hems, artisan-carved buttons. Edun added a touch of tradition in its collection by adding organic cotton canvas from South Africa, the striped pullovers from Madagascar, and hand-carved mother-of-pearl buttons by a Kenyan artisan. Vaguely ’80s blouses with funnel necks straddled the runway with buttons running from chin to wrist, allowing a window onto the shoulders for cocktail hour at Theory. Meanwhile, Ohlin rounded out his line-up with denim, rendered in a superlight wash, and silk separates, including a pastel pink bell-sleeve blouse and an asymmetrical sleeveless top with a ruffled hemline and iridescent buttons. Anima Singh, Assistant Designer, Sult Exports, discussing about buttons used as closures but still being fashionable says, “We box pleat the fabric and place the buttons within the in-fold, so that the design is only partially visible, but is appealing. Now studded and shank buttons are being used as a replacement to normal buttons. We use iridescent buttons for pocket closures and sometimes get 3-D buttons or placate closures. The Russian market that we work in does not experiment so much, but they require very fancy trims, therefore we mostly work on shapes and textures of buttons.”
Lace Up Ties
Lace up ties is basically a lacing technique where the fabric ends are decorated with grommets and then the lacing are passed through to create interlaced closures. Apiece Apart’s latest collection reiterated most of the signatures that they have worked so hard to establish in the past few years – versatile knitwear, denim and tailoring, and relaxed separates and dresses infused with a southwestern aesthetic and a sense of romance, complete with lace up ties. Cushnieet Ochs’s strongest looks were the high-waisted flares and palazzo pants paired with taut tops, which despite their simplicity, vis-à-vis silhouette, didn’t lack compelling detail and were complete with lace up ties on the neckline and sleeves. Put together in a line, to join at the ends and create a peek-a-boo effect, lace up tie shave entered spring collections as well. “We are putting together lace up ties on a lot of blouses and top styles. Here lace up ties are not only being used as fasteners but are put together as necklines and back detailing as well,” said Niraj Pugalia, CEO, Silver Apparels, talking about his latest collections.
Toggle Fasteners
Toggle fastenings are often made of wood, buffalo horn, metal or plastic. In contrast to the disc-shaped button, the toggle is usually long and narrow. The duffel coat features four toggle fastenings, sometimes known as “walrus teeth”. The toggle fastenings insert through loops of rope or leather to help fasten the front of the coat. A person wearing gloves is able to fasten and unfasten these toggle fasteners. Designers like Apiece Apart utilized toggle fasteners in places where they were used as fasteners and also aesthetic elements. Goonjan Kumar, Designer, JJ Expo Impo, discussing about toggle fasteners said, “Toggle closures are garnished on the seams, where the slit is created by unfastening the closures. The hoops and loops are used in decorating the hem of the tops and blouses as well whereas the button is placed on the top hem of the bottom wear, so that the fastening makes the top and bottom into one garment and the unfastening makes those separates.”
Frog Closures
Inspired from military clothing articles, a frog closure is an ornamental braiding for fastening the front of a garment that consists of a button and a loop through which it passes. The purpose of frogs is to provide a closure for a garment while decorating it at the same time. Tops with a mandarin collar often use frogs at the shoulder and down the front to keep the two sections of the front closed. Frogs are usually meant to be a design detail that “stands out”. The same frog closures were seen in collections of varied designers in the Resort 2017. Jenny Peckham showcased a range of garments taking inspiration from India. She mixed classic sequins with flower-shaped palettes and paisley motifs that added a playful feel. A perfect closure was put to these garments by inclusion of frog closures.
