There was a welcome surprise in the fashion world with the return of prominent artisan Sally Koeswanto.

After a full-year break, Sally recently released her SAYA collection, which came with exquisite sartorial innovation. As part of her comeback, she exhibited 23 haute couture designs using glamorous fabrics and materials '€” a signature style.

If there was a change in her creations, it was the bold, distinctive cuts that showed both the sexiness and the strength of women.

'€œThere is a change in my creative process [after the break]. I'€™m emphasizing my feminine side without losing my signature sexy cut. I'€™m using soft colors and silhouettes in the collection to show off the personality of women,'€ she said.

SAYA, the Indonesian word for '€œI'€, reflects Sally'€™s personal struggles, which led her to leave the fashion world where she had lived for 20 years.

During her hiatus, she focused on her family and charitable works that brought her as far away as Papua to provide education for children.

As soon as she found peace in her mind and soul, Sally got back to her desk, sketching.

'€œI realized that God wanted me to use my talents to give back to others,'€ she said during a gala dinner preceding the fashion show at the Raffles Hotel Ballroom in South Jakarta on March 22.

The SAYA collection was based on three color palettes that each represented a chapter of her life
journey.

White, according to Sally, is a symbol of achievement and multidimensional love, while nude gold represented self-esteem. Black, she said, told her life story, which was full of struggle and challenges.

'€œI'€™m being honest about myself. My designs are original and they are me,'€ said Sally, who was wearing a piece of her own design '€” a long sleeved mini-dress with low V-neck on white embossed jacquard fabric.

Under Sally'€™s touch, white has never been as daring and full of zest.

The comeback show began with eight models wearing her white collection dominated by high-cut gowns or slit skirts either with sexy A-lines or gorgeous mermaid cuts.

The application of Japanese pearls, Swarovski crystals, beads and handmade rose-petal sequins around the neck and sleeves created another dimension to the gowns.

Sally also applied strings of pearls as a harness that hugged the bodice, a style which has been recognized as another of her signatures.

The gold collection had a tinge of masculinity, with double-breasted jackets and front-zip leather jackets '€” both paired with shorts '€” taking the front line.

The use of leather straps to make up for the bodice and a gold-ring prong for studs accentuated the whole style, which was softened by the application of rose petals or beads on the shoulders, sleeves or over the drapes of the Grecian dresses.

Eight black nuanced dresses brought a mysterious, but graceful atmosphere to the show.

With this collection, Sally played with various fabrics and styles, combining see-through materials with leather straps and asymmetrical cuts with drapes.

Sally experimented with layers of woven thread in a stretch of color gradation and the Japanese rope style to replace bodice or corset, using woven leather ropes.

For the collection, she used only the best material to ensure perfect fits, such as silk gazar fabric, French lace, embossed jacquard fabric, silk stretch crepe, satin lurex, chiffon lurex and silk chiffon.

She also used smooth lamb skin as well as the exotic python and crocodile skin to complement the style.

The whole collection was seen as a celebration of women, with sexy silhouettes and eye-catching applications fit for gala parties without overdoing it.

'€œA masterpiece is not all about the silhouette or application but a creation that has its own soul and identity. There is love in each stitch and detail,'€ said Sally.

'€” Photos courtesy of Fame 74

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