Koza Young Fashion Designers Contest

After arriving in sunny Istanbul yesterday afternoon following an extremely early morning Hayleigh and Emily were whisked away to the heart of Istanbul for a city tour. Having met buyers and press from all over the world including womenswear representative of Drapers on our tour, the first stop was to explore the Aya Sophia Mosque being the largest mosque in the city. The intricate detailed ceilings and mosaics stunned the tour group transpiring in the evident inspiration seen throughout some of the students work taking part in the contest seen later that evening.

Our next visit entailed a tour of the famous blue mosque followed by lunch in the second oldest restaurant in the city located in the heart of the spices market. We were then taken to the Grand Bazaar featuring over 4000 shops selling a range of traditional Turkish dress to the inevitable knock off hand bags.

Later that evening we were invited to the Koza Young Fashion Designers Contest taking front row seats in prime viewing position being enlightened by the talented young Turkish designers of today. The production of the hour long show was incredible with work from each designer's portfolios and inspirations splashed behind the catwalk onto the vast cinematic screen. The highly vibrant performance concluded with the awards ceremony dividing the competition into 2 categories; ready to wear and the introduction of a new category in leather.

With 24 designers competing to obtain then title of Young Designer of the Year in their participating category, the competition was fierce on a scale with the likes of Gareth Pugh however winners had to be crowned.

Gonca Hatipoglu took the catwalk by storm with her creation named, "Hundreds of Play – Hundreds of Attack" in the leather category having used lasers to carve a doily like detail into the stunning white mini dress. As we see the return of the shoulder pads come back into play this coming season, Hatipoglu sculptured a two tier futuristic sleeve on the cuff and just beneath the shoulders in combination with the traditional lace like feature showcasing the essence of future stardom from such a young age.

Pelin Isildak stole the crown with her ready to wear outfit; "Perpetual Motion" featuring excessive pleats via the collar and trims. The lightweight drape effect truly encompassed the "ready to wear" category hence her winning position. Again the shoulder detail worked in favour of this seasons judging process with a futuristic metallic twist against the transparent cream palette. The tailored turn up crop trousers added the ultimate versatility of business/casual to launch Isildak into new realms of fame via the fastest upcoming international event in one of the most glorious cities in Europe.

Watch this space for further reports on the up and coming designer talent in Turkey this week!