December 11, 2010 (Sampurn Wire):Matchboxes are hardly given any special importance in our daily lives even though they are the mostly used items in every household. You have probably never thought of these neglected matchboxes having any connection with the latest fashion trends. Renowned fashion designer Nida Mahmood has made very intelligent use of these matchboxes in her latest show.

Nida has noticed the art on these matchboxes from across India and took inspiration from them to present her latest collection. Even the set of her show was designed with different matchboxes. The models walked the ramp in multi-headed masks on a stage piled up with cartoons of matchboxes on one corner. It was Nidas tribute to these little matchboxes, which have the power to destroy everything in a moment.

The latest collection of the designer included fluid trousers to compliment with asymmetrical tops and tunics. These are targeted for this spring summer. She tried to offer an interesting mix and match style by combining chiffon sarees with jeans and corset. Her models were seen wearing the sarees over short dresses, narrow legged trousers, corsets and even jeans. Each piece of her collection had one of the matchbox motifs starting from a bicycle, a truck, a stereo tape or an auto-rickshaw. The designer explored a new side of creativity.

Nidas collection saw a western take in terms of silhouettes. There are breezy tunics with shorts, off shoulder dresses, combat shrug jackets, asymmetric tops and tunics. She focused mainly in the hip area this season.

She used mostly the rhombus shape, which is again inspired from the strike of a match box. The prints on her collection included radio, lotus, bicycle, owl, concentric hearts, and a bird. Some others had renowned Bollywood faces,electrical appliancesand transport objects.

--Sampurn Wire