Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tbilisi

FASHION WEEK TBILISI WEEKEND ROUNDUP: AN ORCHESTRA AT TAMUNA INGOROKVA, THEATRICS AT DATUNA, AND MORE

FASHION WEEK TBILISI WEEKEND ROUNDUP: AN ORCHESTRA AT TAMUNA INGOROKVA, THEATRICS AT DATUNA, AND MORE

Day three of Fashion Week Tbilisi got off to a harmonious start with Tamuna Ingorokva, an ESMOD-trained designer who is on the cusp of breaking out internationally. A household name in Georgia, she had one of the week’s most sophisticated setups, with a performance by the Georgian National Philharmonic Orchestra and a stylist in the form of the Tbilisi-born, New York–based Ketevan Gvaramadze. Ingorokva’s well-known connections aside, the collection of classic staples stood on its own. There were double-faced silk slip dresses in panels of black, blush pink, and light blue, and a carwash skirt that was sliced and diced in the same color palette. The coolest piece, though, was the one that veered furthest from the pretty, eveningwear theme: an oversize, shiny silver-and-black Windbreaker-style jacket.

Next up was Eloshi by Lela Eloshvili, who has a knack for understated embellishments. D-ring straps on a black-and-white aquatic-print tank were a cool detail, similar to the buckle straps on dresses seen at DKNY’s Spring 2016 show. On the more feminine front, a billowing collared dress with slits from shoulder to wrist smartly revealed an armful of tonal blue beading. Platform trainers had exterior tongues for a fun appeal.

Saturday’s closing show was the stellar Ukrainian export Lilia Litkovskaya ofLitkovskaya, who sells internationally at Opening Ceremony. An attention to texture has always been her standout feature. This season she slathered blush pink, lavender, and citrine sequins onto everything from slouchy white trousers to sculpted minidresses. But her real shining moment was the collection’s knitwear. Litkovskaya can make a loose, gray off-the-shoulder knit dress look expertly tailored yet still cozy and lush. Fingers crossed that it will land in Opening Ceremony next season.

Sunday kicked off with Janashia by Gvantsa Janashia, whose show was set in the historic National Scientific Library. The Kills provided the bass-thumping soundtrack. Matching the beat were flashy gold Lurex tank dresses and long-sleeved shirts. More subtle pieces like clingy flared trousers with slide slits were also nice.

George Pantsulaia showed riffs on the little black dress, deconstructing a shirtdress with open-slit shoulders and layering slips over white collared shirts (a ’90s style we saw a lot of on the Spring 2016 runways).

At U.G.L.Y, Lasha Mdinaradze focused more on covered-up than flesh-baring. Just how covered-up? Beyond the waist-length braided peyos, there were echoes of ultra-Orthodox fashion in the form of short-sleeve takes on the sect’s traditional white shirt and a blue-and-black-striped version of the long wool rekel coat. A deconstructed black shirt made into a sweeping evening skirt would be a sure buy—modest, yet chic enough for stylish, observant enclaves in Brooklyn.

Datuna by Datuna Sulikashvili was the dramatic last show of the day, held in the romantically eerie, abandoned early-20th-century Apollo Theater. Standouts included a cropped blazer sliced in half with a lower portion made from raven black feathers and a slinky black slip dress with the straps fastened in drooping bows. A black knit robe was punctuated with traditional Georgian floral patterns, woven with reds, greens, and yellows. “Take a bow,” it seemed to say.

http://www.vogue.com/13369465/tbilisi-fashion-week-tamuna-ingorokva-datuna/