When it comes to couture fashion, Falguni Shane Peacock’s synonymous label always comes to mind. Being on the forefront of avant-garde designs, the fashion house has not only been dressing the stars in India for years, but have also extended themselves to global waters. With a clientele of celebrities such as Lady Gaga, Beyonce, and Katy Perry, this husband-wife designer duo brings Indian wear with an international twist, making their ensembles far more versatile. Technology playing a significant role in their seamless and structured design process, prior to their India Couture Week 2019 showcase, we caught up with Falguni and Shane to find out more about their collection and how going digital has benefited them.
Watch Falguni and Shane’s new collection come to life
ELLE: What’s the inspiration behind your India Couture Week 2019 collection?
Shane Peacock: The India Couture Week collection actually started with Falguni photo documenting our trip to Jaipur. Our inspiration board was based on the palaces we visited when we were there.
Falguni Peacock: After our visit, we were discussing and contemplating the looks for India Couture Week. That’s when we realised, why look at any other inspiration? Our inspiration was in the pictures we took in Jaipur—that’s how the concept for this collection came about.
SP: Our entire colour scheme is taken from the pictures that Falguni has clicked. Most of the motifs that are there in our sketches is from here.
ELLE: What’s that one USP that Falguni Shane Peacock retains across their collections?
SP: Most of our Indian collections are always inspired by India. However, if you notice, our outfits also end up having a western twist.
FP: I think we consciously do that. We want to give it an international feel, as we also dress celebrities like Beyonce, Katy Perry and Lady Gaga. That is something that is unique to us.
ELLE: What role has technology played in your design process?
SP: We’ve been using a digital process for the last three or four years now. It’s a longer process, but it’s better. There has been a huge difference as everything goes through a computer and then goes out—they’re all computer designs. If you see our work, there won’t be a difference between the left side and the right side. If we have to remake something, we can create an identical replica.
ELLE: How beneficial is the iPad PRO when it comes to sketching out your designs?
FP: I think a lot of our life has changed with it. It’s much faster – you think of an idea and you can just pen it down. Plus it is really easy to work on it with the layers. If I were to paint a design like this (points to a sketch), it would have easily taken me two days to do so. I have been using it for more than two and a half years. You can use it when you’re travelling—the pencil is so amazing, it can give you any stroke you want.
SP: What I like about this is that I can contemplate colours for the designs. It is a lot easier to imagine changes. If you don’t like something you can just take it off.
The transition from paper to the iPad took some time because we’re so used to doing it that way for years. But, once you get a hang of it, it’s so easy to work on.
ELLE: What makes it so efficient?
SP: I used to work on Adobe Photoshop earlier, however when you are travelling most of the time it is very difficult to do so. Most of our ideas start off when we’re travelling in the car or on the flight, so the moment we get an idea we start drawing it out to see if it starts looking or not. It’s got everything on it, from the inspiration to the colours—it’s like we have our office in the palms of our hands.
FP: Even when I am working with clients, it’s very easy to refer back to things, change the sketch. It has made our life far more organised. You’re not looking around for paper sketches. And you actually don’t need to be an artist to use this. Most of the times when the clients come with a plan, it’s a disaster. This makes it easier to envision what they want versus what we’re suggesting.
SP: We met with Paula Abdul who wanted something to be made for her. When we were drawing it out, she suggested a few references and we incorporated it into our sketches immediately. It made it easier to understand and vision.
ELLE: How do you breathe life into your inspiration?
SP: When we do a sketch we decide where can a person wear this design. If it’s a reception outfit, we need to pick colours accordingly. Most of our outfits tend to look like a gown, but it is actually a lehenga. If it’s a reception outfit, we keep it more tone-on-tone.
ELLE: Lastly, if you were to define the Falguni Shane Peacock woman who would it be?
FP: She would be well travelled, knows her own thing, is very independent and is a decision maker.
SP: Someone who is edgy.
