VietNamNet Bridge - Cong Tri, a well-known fashion designer in Vietnam, launched his haute couture collection called “Paddy” at the Tokyo Fashion Week on March 15.

Tri’s latest haute couture designs are made of Vietnamese traditional My A silk.

Tri said he was inspired by images of Vietnamese women in ao ba ba (a typical casual wear of southern women) working in paddy fields.

All designs in the collection, including trousers and dresses, are inspired by the ao ba ba.

Tri used My A silk for the haute couture collection. The traditional fabric from Tan Chau district in the southern province of An Giang, is dyed with a rare natural material from a local fruit called mac nua.

It takes three months to dye 1,000m of silk with two tons of the mac nua fruit. In the past, upper-class people liked My A silk because it's shiny and long-wearing.

Tri bought My A silk on order from weaving shops in An Giang to add a Vietnamese character to his creations.

Tri said he did not organize any publicity in 2015, because he needed a break for creativity.

Tri spent most of his time in 2015 in Las Vegas to learn from similar shows. He was also a judge of the TV fashion show, entitled Project Runway, on Vietnam Television.

He is a pioneer who brought international haute couture standards to Vietnamese concepts about made-to-measure fashion.

He has offered state-of-the-art, Paris-like designs, tailor-made for the Vietnamese people with top-quality and trendy fabrics produced with advanced techniques and stunning craftsmanship.

Tri has his own way of telling a story with each collection, paying homage to the traditional values he grew up with.

Tokyo Fashion Week takes place from March 14 to 19 in Tokyo. This event is held twice a year, in March and October, with the aim of introducing the designs for the Spring Summer and the Fall Winter, promoting the fashion industry, and supporting talented designers.

T. Van