Fabric of society

Giulia makes modern Thai designs

By Suwitcha Chaiyong
Photos courtesy of
Tho Fah Pa Thai TV Programme

Traditional Thai fabrics tend to popular among older people, but the TV show Tho Fah Pa Thai (Thai Fabric Fashion Design) was aired recently on Modern Nine TV in an effort to attract young people to the beauty of local fabrics.

Over a period of eight weeks, eight young contestants on the programme competed by making their fashion designs from Thai fabrics like mud mee silk, kab bua silk and Thai hand-woven loincloth.

The recent third season of the show was won by 21-year-old Thai-Italian designer Giulia Peyrone, who majors fashion design at Srinakharinwirot University.

In the final round of the contest, the three finalists did a lucky draw to find out what fabrics they would be using to create a design collection of eight outfits. Giulia designed her collection using Thai silk, and was praised by the judges, who are all famous in the fashion industry, for the way that she made Thai silk look up-to-date. Actress and judge Mai Davika said that she would be proud to wear Giulia’s final collection.

Student Weekly recently caught up with Giulia on the phone. The young designer told us about her designs and her experiences on Thai Fabric Fashion Design.

Student Weekly: How did you become interested in taking part in Thai Fabric Fashion Design?

Giulia: The programme is interesting because it’s challenging to design clothes using Thai fabrics. I’m familiar with local fabrics because I study fashion design and we learn about them. I’m particularly interested in mud mee silk. I like the patterns and the process of making it.

Student Weekly: How do you generally come up with ideas for your designs?

Giulia: I’m interested in art, reading and listening to music. My inspiration usually comes from those things. For example, I read a book about modern art and art history, and I learned that in the digital age, we have many more kinds of media than ever before. Ideas used in new media can be adapted into fashion designs.

Student Weekly: Which of your designs on the show did you like the most?

Giulia: I was satisfied with all of my designs, but if I could, I’d make changes to what I did on the first week. We had to design attire for office workers using hand-woven loincloth. I wasn’t quite ready on the first week, and I think I could do better than what I did.

Student Weekly: Was there any episode where you particularly felt under a lot of pressure?

Giulia: I never felt under pressure, but sometimes it was challenging. In two different weeks I had to design an evening gown and a men’s outfit. I wasn’t good at designing those clothes, but I didn’t feel stressed. I added some artistic techniques into my designs, and I eventually got the highest scores for those weeks.

Student Weekly: What did you think of the judges on the show?

Giulia: Beauty expert Ma Onnapa made me feel tense because she speaks so loudly. But I didn’t get any harsh criticism from the judges. I got compliments from Ma Onnapa and the editor in chief of Thai Vogue magazine, Ford Kullawit, who said that I designed with silk in a way that could attract young people.

Student Weekly: How would you describe your design style?

Giulia: My designs are masculine, and they usually use new techniques. In the fashion industry, designers need to keep developing and stay up-to-date with the latest techniques.

Student Weekly: What did you learn from the competition?

Giulia: The judges helped me to learn about my strengths and weaknesses. The designers also had a chance to see how fabrics are made on the show. I learned that making fabric is a long process. The contestants also developed friendships with one another.

Student Weekly: What are your future goals?

Giulia: My ultimate goal is to have my own brand. After graduation, I plan to start by working as a fashion designer to develop my skills.

comments powered by Disqus