[gallery size="medium" td_select_gallery_slide="slide" td_gallery_title_input="Dar Al-Hekma senior hopes to enrich Saudi fashion scene" ids="141485,141486,141487,141488,141489"]
A senior fashion design student at Dar Al-Hekma University hopes she could make positive contributions to the Saudi fashion scene.
Sadaf Khan, who won the first place in the Flyadeal airline competition recently, said she wanted to pursue higher education in the field because she envisioned herself as a successful haute couture designer in Saudi Arabia.
Flyadeal announced the winner at their headquarters in Jeddah on April 13. Khan won out of 140 designers who took part in the competition with a total of 700 submissions.
Khan chose to study fashion because she felt it was an extension of her personality. In her opinion, fashion is a universal art form that people around the world indulge in, knowingly and unknowingly.
“It always fascinated me how people can express themselves and convey their identity through fashion. I chose fashion design in Dar Al-Hekma University because as a designer, it gave me the creative freedom to construct something that would help someone else express themselves and stand out from the crowd by making a fashion statement,” said Khan.
“Dar Al-Hekma University created programs that focus on stimulating and developing creativity; our students and graduates are the real evidence that our approach is successful. The university is proud of Sadaf’s achievements; women like her are the leaders and entrepreneurs of our community who are ready to serve the country, take the responsibilities and preserve our values,” said Dr. Suhair Hassan Al-Qurashi, president of Dar Al-Hekma.
“I noticed that Sadaf is a very active, hard-working and ambitious person since she joined the fashion design program in Dar Al-Hekma. I remember that once she participated in a competition and did not win, and she was very disappointed. I told her not to worry, because God made her lose now because there was something much better for her in the future. I believed in her from the first day and I know that she will go places in the future,” said Dina Kattan, the chair of the Fashion Design Department in Dar Al-Hekma.
Khan found out about this competition announcement on social media by the end of January 2017. The competition was open to designers based in Saudi Arabia.
Flyadeal asked the participants to create casual and comfortable designs, yet smart and modern with a fresh take that would suit the occupational needs of the airline crew.
Participants were required to use a specific color palette. The submission was required to include the design of at least one trouser, shirt, jacket and an apron for male and female crew, in addition to a headpiece for the female crew.
Khan said she spent a week to research about the history of cabin crew uniforms, the different styles that are used by airlines and the international standards, guidelines and criteria in aviation uniform construction.
While researching the brand identity of Flyadeal, Khan was impressed by the youthful character of the airline.
Khan said she was inspired by the airline’s vision to set itself apart as a one-class carrier. “This inspired me to make designs that set their crew apart from others in terms of silhouettes, colors and character,” said Khan.
A further week was spent in developing the designs in accordance with the criteria of the competition and Khan submitted her work in February.
The winner was selected based on a two-stage process. The first stage involved the selection of three finalists by a jury that comprised anonymous members nominated from among the staff of Flyadeal. The jury scrutinized all submissions and announced the three finalists in early March. Khan was one of the finalists.
The next stage was public voting on social media wherein the finalist with the highest number of votes was to be announced the winner after a review by the jury. The people on social media gave Khan the highest number of votes and after her designs were reviewed by the jury based on the feedback, she was announced the winner.
“Flyadeal is created with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 in mind for a contemporary, social and connected world, where people exchange ideas and show their creativity. That’s why we have decided to invite young designers in the Kingdom to give us their ideas for the style of our crew. We are impressed by the great ideas posted on social media during this contest and would like to say a big thank you to all the participants. Special thank you goes of course to Sadaf Khan, who has shown outstanding, fresh creativity and a professional and mature approach during the feedback rounds,” said Pete Lysak, the head of Marketing and Digital in Flyadeal.
“I am very grateful for this opportunity and I want to thank my family, my friends and Dar Al-Hekma University for supporting me throughout the process,” Khan said. — SG
