Swarovski Collective designers feature nearly 700,000 crystals at NYFW

By

Obi Anyanwu

Published
Sep 20, 2016

Swarovski Collective designers and brands Creatures of the Wind, Tome and Rosie Assoulin made history at New York Fashion Week this season by featuring almost 700,000 Swarovski crystals during the week. The Austrian jewelry company gave financial support for its Collective designers for spring 2017.

 
Creatures of the Wind drew inspiration from the concept of the angel and the use of the word and image in pop music in the 1950s. The brand used hand-embroidered Swarovski crystals from Victorian mourning jewelry and blended sew-on-stones into patterns.
 
Tome, which presented on the evening of September 11 at Skylight at Moynihan Station, featured Swarovski fishnet banding in its collection that was inspired by optical art illusions of Bridget Riley and the women depicted in the work of Malick Sidibe and Seydou Keita.

Finally, Rosie Assoulin created bold color blocks with Swarovski crystals, which included 142,000 crystals alone. "Swarovski crystal elements take our garments to the next level and capture movement,” said Assoulin. “It's the extra 'oomph!' Finding new applications in the garments comes naturally – it's figuring out how we make it our own that is the most interesting part. We're constantly pushing the craftsmen we work with to try new things with us and the result always is so fun and exciting!"
 
The Swarovski Collective was founded in 1999 following Nadja Swarovski’s collaboration with Alexander McQueen and Isabella Blow. The program encourages emerging and established designers to explore the creative boundaries of crystal use and craftsmanship. The latest edition of the Swarovski Collective program spans New York, London, Paris and Milan fashion weeks and offers the designers year-long financial and crystal product support.

The winner of the annual Swarovski Collective Prize will be announced in May 2017.