Lyla Jarn

If you didn’t hear already, LYLA JARN was at New York Fashion Week! 

It truly was a dream come true. I still haven’t completely recovered from the excitement of the whole thing. Our luxurious and feminine dresses generated much interest from the thousands of fashion industry innovators that were present. Why? Maybe it was the energizing textures and the glamorous feel that LYLA JARN encapsulates? Maybe it was my Aussie accent? Or maybe they loved my 1 year old business partner? My guess is on the unique “surprise factor” of our signature pleat.

Everyone can appreciate things that are unique and different. In the fashion industry, innovative designs are applauded. Renowned designers dedicate a whole collection to haute couture designs, of which there is no strict commercial purpose. These pieces are meant to stun and wow the crowd, much like a piece of art.

I went into my experience at fashion week wanting to incorporate a high fashion, or haute couture, element to LYLA JARN’s already sophisticated garments. During the Project SUBWAY fashion show, I chose to play up the signature LYLA JARN pleat that is featured in many of our dresses.

Inspired by my days as an Indian classical dancer, the pleating in LYLA JARN dresses is an element of surprise and beauty. I always thought the pleats in our dance costumes were a clever way to manipulate the fabric. Whether you’re spinning in circles or walking down the street, pleats move with a unique grace. I love it!

I love the pleat not only for aesthetic reasons, but I wanted it to really be a symbol of women and our individuality. Both are beautiful, layered, and sophisticated. Upon first impression, you can’t tell how long the pleat extends or how many layers there are. Only when we open up, can you really start to understand how much substance there is. There is always more to us than meets the eye.

My favourite piece displayed at Fashion Week was the LYLA JARN “Liberate the Pink” Dress. It’s not only sophisticated, but there’s an element of edginess with the juxtaposing black and white patters, and the feminine pink pleat. Of course, I love the surprise element of the pleat, and the way it fits just perfectly in all the right places.

I was SO pleased to be able to present at Fashion week. The fashion industry feels so right to me; it’s so much fun! I love that I am able to collaborate with such creative people who are reveling in their own artistic worlds. Designers, models, make-up artists, photographers… Just being around these creative and brilliant people is so inspiring and fascinating.

It’s been such a whirlwind of a week for us at LYLA JARN! We were honored to be asked to participate in the NOLCHA Fashion Week “veggie couture” challenge. The competition was for up-and-coming designers. As contestants, we were asked to construct one of kind pieces inspired by vegetables found at Subway® restaurants.

The panel of judges was chocked full of talented celebrities; from professional basketball MVP Russell Westbrook, to Nastia Liukin – Olympic Gold Medalist. Other judges included actress Bella Thorne, Entertainment Tonight host Rocsi Diaz, and celebrity stylist Johnny Wujek. It was so exciting to be able to work with them!

For the challenge, we were graded based on design creativity, originality, beauty, and the best representation of the various vegetables.

The olive was our veggie muse throughout the competition. By staying true to our aesthetics of silk and custom printed designs, our olive inspired outfit was a huge hit with the panel of judges. We created a custom olive printed silk crop top with a collared neckline. The silk skirt was designed to flirtatiously drape with the signature LYLA JARN pleat. We even were able to sneak in a wink to the judges with a subtle Subway® logo. To top off our design, a chic hat was added to symbolize a black olive, elegantly perched to complete the design.

Even though our olive design didn’t win the overall best design, we are proud to have had the opportunity to complete the challenge and be part of such an incredible experience.

NOLCHA Fashion Week is an award winning event which enables independent fashion designers to showcase their collections to a global audience of press, retailers, stylists, and industry leaders. Continuing into the seventh consecutive year, NOLCHA Fashion Week has established itself as a platform for the discovery and promotion of innovative fashion designers. The event is an officially recognized New York Fashion Week platform by New York City Economic Development Corporation. Thank you SO much for letting LYLA JARN be a part of such an amazing production! Check out our NOLCHA Fashion Week profile here.