The 23-year-old model was one of the faces of “Exotica”, a show celebrating Katy Nguyen’s 10 years in the fashion industry.
Zakhidova first walked in a black bikini underneath a mesh skirt. Macrame knitting created the skirt. The highlight of the outfit was a large belt with an 18K gold-plated, nano-coated buckle with a sapphire attached. The look was rounded out with a large tote bag, one of this year’s hot accessory trends, and silver sandals.
Zakhidova then walked in a white dress with an asymmetrical bra top.
The model has just returned to work after giving birth to her first son with Dung late last year. She had previously walked for the collections of domestic designers like Adrian Anh Tuan, Chung Thanh Phong, Phuong Linh and Le Thanh Hoa.
As the star of the show, 2017 Miss Universe Vietnam H’Hen Nie wore a 5 kg outfit with a top made of 24K gold plated copper.
The details on the copper top included tree branches, palm leaves, betel leaves, hibiscus flowers, porcelain flowers or metal butterflies, all of which lived up to the collection’s name – Golden Tropical. The details were made by a variety of artisans, then assembled and welded onto the copper top.
Model Minh Trieu, who has worked with Katy Nguyen since her early days in the fashion scene, opened the show with a white cut-out swimsuit and fringed macrame cape.
The Golden Tropical collection contained 83 holiday outfits and was considered a challenge for Katy.
“I felt the pressure to outdo myself and do something new with this collection, but I still had to carry the identity of my signature resort designs,” she said.
Katy’s liberal style and her familiar color palette such as yellow, orange, pink, neon and green were still embraced in this collection. The holiday looks focused on baggy maxi dresses, cut-out dresses, asymmetrical dresses, one-piece swimsuits, bikinis, bodysuits, and high-thigh skirts.
Peppered throughout the collection were gold decorative details such as chains, palm leaves, betel leaves, bracelets and earrings, all of which expressed the tropical inspiration of the collection’s name.
On top of her familiar styles, Katy applied new techniques that she had never used before, including macrame, the art of freestyle hand-knitting that came to popularity in the 1960s and 1970s. According to Vogue, macrame is now renowned as a high-fashion trait. This technique was exploited by Lanvin’s Spring Summer 2023 collection and Simone Rocha’s Fall Winter 2023 dresses.
In addition to macrame, Nguyen also applied smocking to create a fresh look on wrap skirts, camisole tops and maxi dresses.
Aside from the printing method, some designs employed 3D patterns of hibiscus flowers, embroidery and beading. These were all new experiments for the designer.
In addition to familiar materials, the collection experimented with knit fabric for the first time, employing cut-out and see-through designs in line with the sexy vibe the designer has pursued over the past 10 years.
Three fits in the show were made from silk scarves – a style that favored by many Vietnamese stars in recent years.
The ombre technique was not only revealed through dyeing and plaiting, but also in the way the texture was handled to create a diffuse effect.
