L.I.F.T goes up

The exhibition, fashion show and graduation of the Lanka Institute of Fashion Technology took place at the Ballroom of the Galadari Hotel. This institute which has gone from strength to strength in the last nine years showcased the work of its new batch of graduates who let their imagination run riot to produce many a creative outfit, with most of them not going beyond the ramp. There were some exceptional work by though especially from those who have established their own labels among them Bianca Wijayaratne who worked mostly with raw silk, with Ridma Samaranayake turning out clothes aimed at sports car riders, the Gok Kalawa inspired Minele Kate Lowe for her collection in tender leaf patterns, deep green and yellow.

Moving on to those who have still not established their own label was Erandika Dissanayake’s “Rythmic Moves” to Sachini Atugoda’s ‘Dancing through Cultures” to Marize Rodrigo’s clothes many of which used Scottish tartan. Then there was “Miracle of the two wheels” by Narmada Kandawela, which were styles for bikers and Bhagya Wickramage’s clothes inspired by the “devil dance.”
There are unquestionably hoards of talent but much of the fantasy element has to be subdued to turn the styles into fashionably wearable clothes, not restricted to the cat walk.
Spotted among the large crowd present were two saree wearers Rukmani Amerasinghe and Shyamali Wijesinghe. Niroshini Leanage who is the Director-studies of LIFT wore a feminine dress made of black and white printed scarves.