Fashion industry heavyweights descended on Doha this week to attend the fourth edition of the Fashion Trust Arabia Awards, organized under the royal patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser and her daughter and FTA Co-Chair Her Excellency Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani. The hefty cash prizes and extensive mentorship programs are designed to help upcoming designers from the MENA region. The competition emphasizes not only creative skill, but also sustainable practices and production methods that respect local traditions and support women’s artisanal communities.
Among the many worthy young talents, this edition’s winners in the ready-to-wear category were the Saudi sisters Siham and Sarah Albinali, whose collection of bold, structured silhouettes was tinged with a soft goth vibe. The Moroccan-born designer Artsi Ifrach of Maison ARTC scooped up the eveningwear prize for his poetic one-of-a-kind pieces, assembled with artistic flair from objects trouvés. The jewelry award went to the Egyptian-born artist Fatma Mostafa whose exceptional gold-plated pieces are hand-embroidered and embedded with delicate landscapes as if they were precious stones. The Sudanese designer Eilaf Osman received the accessory award for her collection of unique artisanal bags and baskets, made by a community of women coil-stitch weavers from the Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda and assembled by leather craftsmen in a small Andalusian village in Spain.
Source: Bella Hadid, Olivier Rousteing, and More Cheer on the Fashion Trust Arabia Award Winners in Doha