Akaaro is the first alphabet in Sanskrit and aptly resonates for a brand or design philosophy that is rooted and yet contemporary and directional. Akaaro was launched at the prestigious ORIGIN: The London Craft fair in 2007 and has been a regular since then. The designer behind the label is Gaurav Gupta who creates and weaves hand woven garments and accessories through Akaaro. He has his studio based in Delhi and showcases internationally and is known for his innovative textile with engineered and cutting edge designs. Gaurav is trained at Chelsea College of Art and Design London in Woven Textiles and National Institute of Fashion Technology Delhi in Fashion and Graphics. And it was here that the seeds of Akaaro first sprouted in him. When still in college he was regular at the London Craft Fair and had always dreamt of launching his label from that very platform. And thus his dream came true when in 2007 his application was selected.

Late last year Gaurav Gupta was selected for the prestigious “Shared Talent India” Project for promoting Indian sustainable textiles an initiative by Centre of Sustainable Fashion, London which was exhibited at London Fashion Week. With coverage in some very prestigious selected publications (SELVEDGE, U.K) Gaurav s studio has been identified as one of the most promising young studio out of India.   He was invited to co-curate and exhibit in a specially curated show called London Calling in Tokyo on the commemoration of 150 years of British and Japanese Friendship in October 2008, the same was inaugurated by Professor Jimmy Choo in Tokyo. Following this he was asked by Professor Jimmy Choo to design a fabric for a pair of sling back for RSA in India. He has recently been invited to exhibit at ALL TIED UP a special curation which showcases works of 14 most contemporary textile designers internationally. The work is on display at the moment at the Ruthin Crafts Centre in Wales till March which will be followed by another showcase in Bath where he has been invited to exhibit at Bath Festival in May.

Gaurav who would prefer calling his collections as design projects is man who is highly aware of his environment adopts inspiration from whatever he sees, hears, and feels thus no wonder that his creations have reached a level where the product is able to evoke feelings. Unraveling the different layers and dimensions of his work Gaurav codes his design perceptions as very visual thus he has interpreted his trip to Ladakh in garments, one of his inspirations was the movie Babel (which keeps shifting from city to city and sets the co-relation between something happening at one end of the world to the other end) and yet another time he translated everything fragile around him into clothes. He works on fabrics like silk, wool and cotton where the textile is also designed and created at his studio.

His association with the prestigious Central Saint Martins London as a trend forecaster from Delhi in 2006 for a British publication called Preview has a prolific expression on his design behavior. As he cultivates a fashion pattern that is progressive and holds the opinion that designers are one of the tangents on which fashion forecasts are based.

Akaaro products retails from selected galleries, stores and museums across England, Tokyo and New Delhi along with some British websites. And Gaurav Gupta is about to make his debut in India very soon at WIFW.

Fur-ever: Fur was a common theme at Thursday’s shows including Richard Chai, Vena Cava, Chado Ralph Rucci, Jen Kao and Cushnie et Ochs (who used silver fox fur thanks to the label’s sponsor Saga Fur) "I believe people will buy fur in the fall. It keeps you warm," said Bloomingdale’s fashion director Stephanie Solomon. "And for those who don’t like the idea of fur, there is great faux fur."

Lingerie Trend Continues at Preen: Talented duo Justin Thornton and Thea Bregazzi made an impact on Fashion Week delivering a sensational show for Preen’s F/W 2010 collection.

Opening the show with a floral bustier dress worn with a cropped turtleneck knit, that exposed a band of skin in front and a bra strap in back, one could only expect more exciting things to come.  And they did!  For the first part of the collection the pair drew inspiration from Peter Saville’s floral album-cover design of New Order’s Power, Corruption & Lies and later they “wanted to add masculine tailoring,” said Thornton.  Almost every look incorporated a strapless bra, which was visibly worked into the design of the dresses and shirts.  Looks like spring’s lingerie trend will stick around for fall at Preen.

Attention Model Down!: It was over at Naomi Campbell’s Fashion for Relief show on Friday Feb 12, 2010, which benefited Haiti, that supermodel Agyness Deyn, fell not once but twice.  Agyness took it like a trooper; she laughed, dusted herself off, removed the killer 7” Burberry shoes, and curtsied, then made her way down the rest of the runway.  She tweeted, "1st show of fashion week! Took a tumble! Got up! Fell again. Should have stayed down the 1st time. Twice! WTF! Ouch my knees!"

Fresh Faces: Barely there makeup was a trend for the F/W 2010 shows.  Rag & Bone, BCBG, Yigal Azrouël all favored the looks for their shows.

University Rocks: Spirits were high over at the Academy of Art University’s F/W 2010 show, where students had the chance to show off their designer skills for NY Fashion Week.  First up, Marina Solomatnikova’s Georgia O’Keefe inspired looks where she worked suede into flattering suits and dresses; then Bethany Meuleners who combined knits and wovens for a Duchamp-inspired lineup of navy dresses and bodysuits.  For Steven Oo’s collection of knitwear, the designer looked to architecture to translate very hip black sweater dresses and coats.  And, with her jeweled out felt coats, combining both craft and design, Sabah Mansoor Husain offered refined outerwear with light-catching color.

Model Radar: Jersey born supermodel Jacquelyn Jablonski may have a long week ahead.  The editorial superstar, who was hired in campaigns for D&G and Celine, opened for Charlotte Ronson and Yigal Azrouël.  Last season the model booked 58 shows…stay tuned for the end of season tally.

Jason Wu Splits the Vote: Jason Wu’s F/W 2010 certainly made an impact.  So much so that it split even the most notable of fashion critics. Times fashion critic Cathy Horyn: "Jason Wu’s homage to the photographs of Irving Penn just didn’t work. The draping of evening dresses — full-skirted deb numbers, trapezes and so forth — was clunky and labored, and one strapless silk dress had a huge swell of fabric on the model’s arm, as if a muff had crawled up her elbow.”  Most appreciated was the menswear inspired outerwear, The Wall Street Journal declared his paint-splatter coats “iconic for the season.”  But it was the eveningwear that left most divided. Though it praised a feathered tulle dress, Style.com concluded that “it didn’t work” and that some of the dresses lacked the "effervescent quality" of Wu’s best work. WWD agreed that the looks were split: some “charming in their girlish awkwardness and others, just awkward.”