Swarovski Arabian Creation Award concludes 2007 Sheila and Abaya Fashion show

Crowds converged at the Observatory on the first floor of BurJuman well before the start of the event to witness the finale.

The highlight of the event was the Swarovski Arabian Creation Award that honoured winners in three categories - 'Best Casual Designer', 'Best Formal Designer', and 'Most Creative Designer'.

The judges for the event were Suhaila Gobaash, DSS Sponsorship Manager; Hussein Jain, fashion photographer; Ghania Azzam, Deputy Editor of Hala - Emarat Al Youm;
Walid Attalah, renowned fashion designer; and Bansri Gagwani, Senior CSC Designer, Swarovski. Awards to the winners were handed out by Suhaila Gobash, DSS Sponsorship Manager, and Mohammed Ali, Middle East Marketing Manager for Swarovski.

After much deliberation, the panel of judges awarded the 'Best Casual Designer' title to Huda Sanad, who displayed her collection under the label Saraya Al Abayat. Established in 2002, Saraya Al Abayat manufactures unique abayas that are characterised by the use of crystals and 18 karat gold. With about 25 staff in employment, the label has a select clientele in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain.

The 'Best Formal Designer' title was awarded to Hanadi Ahmad. A young Emirati designer with a diploma in graphics and design, the ambitious designer uses the aid of technology to create exquisite sheilas and abayas. Hanadi is a full-time media producer with the Police Public Directorate. Her expertise with designing programmes has enabled her to create unique designs with the help of the latest technology.

The award for the 'Most Creative Designer' went to Madiha, representing her label M&A Abaya Art. A regular in fashion shows, the label employs a wide variety of high quality fabrics such pure silk, French dantelle, natural leather, natural animals fur, and natural materials like feather, seashells, coconut shells, real stones, and pearls.

Suhaila Gobash, DSS Sponsorship Manager said, 'We are very pleased by the overwhelming response and the success of the event. Once again, we have proved that traditional UAE and GCC attire are capable of going along with the latest trends and fashion lines the world over.'

'We would like to thank all our partners for their efforts towards the success of this event, and similarly thank all the designers and fashion houses that participated with their unique collections. The DSS Office will definitely strive to develop and enhance this event to make it one among the main attractions of DSS in the coming years,' she added.

Eisa Adam Ibrahim, General Manager of BurJuman said, 'The DSS and DSF are important events in the Dubai calendar. Given that BurJuman is one of the premier luxury shopping centres in Dubai, it is therefore fitting that we continue to hold events that go along with the development and progress of Dubai, and by hosting the Sheila and Abaya Fashion show, we have demonstrated our commitment to contributing to Dubai's status as the fashion hub in the region.'

On the last day of the show on August 27th, the labels 'Scarf', by Baharaini designer Maryam Wadiee, and 'Saraya Al Abayat', by Huda Yousif Sanad, also from Bahrain, were displayed on the ramp. The 2007 Sheila and Abaya Fashion was organised by DSS in collaboration with BurJuman, M.A.C., and CRYSTALLIZEDTM - Swarovski Elements.