“Macao Fashion Festival 2024”, the annual gala event of the local fashion industry, was held from October 16-19. Over 60 designers and brands from Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao and the Greater Bay Area cities gathered at the event. Held concurrently with the “29th Macao International Trade & Investment Fair (MIF)” at Venetian Macao Cotai Expo, the theme of this festival was “Feast of Fashion”. Through an amalgamation of different cultures, artistic elements, and fashion, the festival allowed the public to experience a unlimited feast of local fashion talent. Through this annual event, Macau Productivity and Technology Transfer Center (CPTTM) and Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) hope to showcase Macao’s original-designed fashion clothing and accessories to the outside world. The event also aims to exhibit Macao’s fashion power to society and the world, improve awareness for designers, and create more business opportunities for the brands.
ella épeler
The design concept of this collection comes from the works of the greatest artist of the 20th century, Pablo Picasso. At different stages of his life, Picasso incorporated his own different feelings into his works, and then through continuous pursuit, innovation and experimentation, he broke through the limitations and imagination, and created works of far-reaching influence.
Picasso’s most widely known works are surely his cubist works, with elongated limbs, eye-catching colours, mysterious faces, and a blend of cubism, impressionism, post-impressionism, fauvism and other styles. Picasso’s cubism is basically not purely aesthetic, it is towards rationality and abstraction, reconstructing and combining objects to bring people newer and deeper feelings.
My latest collection extracts the structure, lines and colours from Picasso’s cubism paintings, and then integrates and reconstructs the regular objects to depict the original illustration patterns that can highlight the brand’s special style. The overall colour scheme makes reference to the three periods of Picasso’s works’ transformation: the blue period, the pink period, and the black period; and the fabrics made of different materials are put together, such as denim, linen and other fabrics with coarse textures, to imitate the strong brushstroke textures on the canvas. The use of colourful fabric edges and handmade embroidery simulate the lines in the paintings, coupled with straight and curved lines in irregular cuts, creating a free and wild atmosphere and a strong sense of sensibility.
Founded in 2016, ella épeler sells fashionable clothing with original illustration style patterns. The target market is medium to high-end female consumers who pursue individuality. The word ‘épeler’ in ‘ella épeler’ is a prepositional word in French, which is used when you need to put something together or link something together. The brand’s motto is ‘Bring Your Attitude To Life’, and it tries to experiment in many ways, by not limiting the tailoring and combining different elements, and integrating them into the fashion with original illustrations, art, etc., to bring more fun and choices for the clothing, and to show the diversity and uniqueness of the fashion, with the goal of making every single piece a treasure in the wardrobe. The goal is to make every piece a wardrobe treasure. ‘ella épeler’ is a collection that is not limited by the season, but rather by the way people wear it, which inspires the brand to be more creative and experimental.
No.42
Our new collection is called “4.2% of the Ocean” because actually we have only explored less than 5% of the ocean and the rest of it is a mystery, so we want to bring that vibe to the collection. We made the percentage 4.2 like our brand No.42
The collection is about discovery and the ocean, so you can see a lot of like jellyfish and coral patterns and some fading like wave patterns in the in the collection.
In the past we’ve used a lot of blue for our collections, but this time, we mixed some purple and also white, the purple is a new colour for us. We are using this colour because we want to bring the mysterious, beautiful and colorful vibe of the ocean into our collection.
In terms of fabric, we have added more embroidery this time, and also some knitwear. It’s our first time to include knitwear so we found new venders and suppliers, and we’ve mixed a lot of asymmetrical patterns to give an uneven, wave-like appearance. And we are we using some very elegant lace with sequins and embroidery.
This is our third year at MFF and over the years our style has changed and evolved. In the beginning our target market was women around 18 years of age. Now maybe because we also getting older, after seeing a lot of exhibitions and we joining a lot of events, we are finding that our customers are more like 30 something, so we are targeting those customers. Now we are making more jumpsuits, dresses and skirts, office wear and items for special occasions. We try to make items that are versatile so customers can mix and match; it can be a casual look, or it can be a special event look, so it’s more practical.
Currently the fashion market is tougher than before. Because of the economy, people are more cautious with their spending and they really want something practical and good value for money. And there’s a lot of competition from mainland China who can produce on a larger scale with lower costs.
DEMI*D
My brand Demi*D signifies independent, mature and strong contemporary women, conveying a positive and upward thinking concept. It encourages the belief that contemporary women are brave to pursue the life they want. It is a designer brand with high-end customisation as its main product; My design philosophy focuses on exploring and integrating elements related to Chinese culture. By reinterpreting and innovating traditional elements, I hope to combine the aesthetics of Chinese culture with modern fashion trends to create more unique design styles.
The theme of this season’s collection is ‘TIMES SUNSHINE’, which is a set of fashionable clothing designs inspired by the ceramic artefacts of Anhui Museum and the sun pattern of Chengdu Sanxingdui Museum, combined with elements of motorbikes and leisure. The ceramics unearthed in Hefei were damaged due to soil problems, and have been restored by modern technology and restoration processes. It is a collision of ancient and modern artefacts, and my design process for this set also incorporates elements such as lacing and stitching as inspiration.
I am committed to using high quality fabrics and meticulous craftsmanship to ensure that each piece is not only beautiful, but also comfortable and wearable. I like to utilise simple lines and high quality materials to create a feminine and elegant look that is still modern. My designs often have a touch of ingenuity in the details, allowing each piece to express the individuality of the wearer. I like to challenge the traditional boundaries of fashion and blend different cultural elements. My goal is to express confidence and courage through my designs, so that everyone who wears my clothes can feel empowered.
I like to create outfits for career women as well as fashionable casual and simple styles that can show femininity. I also create semi-customised designs with my clients.
In recent years, there has been a higher demand for both sustainable fashion and personalised customisation. I endeavour to find a balance between meeting customer needs and maintaining my personal identity. At the same time, I also take on some commercial work design and production including uniforms. In these works, we take into account the functionality and comfort of daily wear while adding a few design elements, such as simple patterns, logos and other elements, to add some personal style.
Erin Cheung
This is my second time participating in Macau Fashion Week and this is also my first time showcasing my own personal collection. Previously, I exhibited with Maconsef’s works, so I am excited to exhibit individually alongside other talented local designers this year. It is a very valuable experience for me. Actually I haven’t yet launched my brand on the market, but the target demographic is likely individuals who appreciate Chinese traditional culture and Hanfu attire.
The five outfits showcased at this year’s Macau Fashion Festival included three pieces from my award-winning collection “Reflection of Flying Sand” from the 13th Da Lang Cup Chinese Women’s Wear Design Competition. The inspiration for these three pieces is drawn from Chinese tea culture. When Chinese people enjoy tea, there are usually some tea leaves discarded after use. I aim to maximize the value of tea leaves themselves. Additionally, the concept behind these designs is a fusion of Chinese tea culture and Taoist philosophy, which advocates for retreat, tranquility, respect for nature, and the concept of effortless action. The shape and pattern of the clothes design are inspired by the form of sand.
The remaining two outfits extend from this theme. Therefore, the theme of the collection showcased in this fashion festival is “Reflection of Flying Sand – Bamboo Rhyme” – inspired by Chinese bamboo weaving techniques.
The “Reflection of Flying Sand” collection primarily uses materials such as silk and linen, derived from natural plants or eco-friendly sources. No chemical dyes are used; instead, traditional Chinese heritage dyeing techniques like tea dyeing, batik, printing, and immersion dyeing are employed. The extended collection, “Bamboo Rhyme,” utilizes leather materials made from recycled sources like apple and pineapple peels, alongside natural elements like gemstones and buffalo horn for accessories. The designs incorporate Chinese cutting techniques, upcycling of scraps and waste, weaving, patchwork, and texture transformations. Yarns are recycled from garment factories and hand-sewn to modify textures on some fabrics.
Establishing myself as a local fashion designer in Macau is a challenges due to the smaller market size and intense competition. It’s not just about designing clothes. We also need to establish effective sales channels, marketing strategies, leverage local culture and resources, and explore collaboration and promotion opportunities globally.
JYB
JYB (Jesus You’re Beautiful) is the women’s label to my AMEN men’s fashion brand. I started the JYB brand in 2022 and this is the first time I’ve presented it in Macau and at MFF, although I have presented it at fashion shows in Dalian, Zhuhai and Hong Kong.
When I started designing I was more focused on women’s fashion, but then I opened up my store for AMEN because I saw that men preferred to buy tailor-made suits. Even though it’s a men’s fashion store, some women customers would come and ask me to make suits for them and they would give me very positive feedback. I realized that if I wanted to continue making suits for women I would need to create a separate brand, and that’s why I started JYB.
My designs all come about from what customers want. This JYB collection is mostly suit designs with a very classic feel but also very versatile and adjustable. By removing one piece or adjusting the size of another, you can create different outfits that you can wear every day and can fit many different body shapes and sizes.
I have been coming to Macau Fashion Festival for many years, although I missed last year because I gave birth to my third child. Every year I try to do something different and this year I created my own music video for the catwalk fashion show. This is the first time that I’ve made the video by myself and mixed the music. If you listen to the song, you and hear the lyrics “Jesus You’re Beautiful” and there are even some Bible verses in the music video.
The local fashion market is currently very difficult I think, but regardless, all the designers here at MFF this year have come with a lot of passion for their projects, and I can feel everyone is following their dreams and trusts that their dreams will come true.
I will never stop chasing my fashion dreams!
