The accessories designer Aseef Vaza talks about his fashion influences, working in couture houses and the art of the handkerchief hem.
At first, I didn't want to be a designer; I wanted to become a biologist. I really liked learning about human anatomy and how it functions. I grew up around pharmacists in my family, and that initially had some influence. But all of a sudden something switched in me, and I wanted to be a designer. My dad, Essa, was an entrepreneur who was busy managing and growing his halal poultry business, and my mum used to make her own clothes from time to time. Luckily, due to my parents' commercial and creative backgrounds, they were very supportive of me wanting to study and eventually start my own fashion business.
When I was younger, I remember coming across Bruce Oldfield's sketches, which made me want to read all about him. Oldfield was a famous British couturier who dressed the late Princess Diana during the early years of her marriage. I discovered Oldfield when I read an interview with him in one of the Sunday papers. He grew up at an orphanage and built an amazing business dressing European nobility and royalty and glamorous Hollywood actresses - it was truly inspiring.
Oldfield's sketches were so striking, and from what I can recall, they were very glamorous even on paper. His croquis (model sketches) were kitted out in hats, gloves, shoes and jewellery. He was renowned for doing fabulous occasion wear, particularly evening gowns. His column dresses were effortlessly executed. I guess from the early days of my work I have always been drawn to a refined, sophisticated couture look. This has never changed I guess, and coming across those sketches perhaps helped me develop a style of my own which is part of that old school world.
I studied at Ravensbourne and Central Saint Martins, both in London. I learnt discipline from the former and creative freedom from the latter. Ravensbourne is run like a business - you clock in and out. Central Saint Martins is much more relaxed, and I enjoyed the research and development components to the projects we had to complete, especially when we had to realise our designs in 3D. Learning the technique of moulage (sculpting cloth on the mannequin) at Hans Muller, where I had interned for a year before art school, helped a lot, as I was not a big fan of flat pattern-making. This process requires concentration, accuracy and precise mathematics. Working in 3D can bring your design alive much quicker and it also allows you to explore innovative cutting methods.
Art deco, Paul Poiret, Madeleine Vionnet, Erté, origami, geometric shapes and architecture inspire my work. I like the decorative elements of art deco, and there are no heavy political movements attached to it unlike other artistic periods. Meanwhile, Vionnet, Erté and Poiret were big-time purveyors of the handkerchief hem, which is a square piece of geometry with fluidity depending on how you conceive it.
I started my label roughly two years ago. I wanted to return home to London from Paris, where I was working at Carven Couture, France's oldest couture house, which was an incredible experience. I had a great time working there and got on well with the chief designer, Pascal Millet, whose sketches reminded me a little of the ones Oldfield did early in his career. Millet was trained under Hubert Givenchy and he had certain finesse to his work. I also produced some good pieces there; one of them became the bestseller of the 2005 couture collection: a black silk faille cocktail dress. Pascal was so pleased with my pieces that he asked me to accessorise them. So then I made two clutch bags - one in black silk faille and the other in a black cashmere material with lizard trim.
The bags were well received and so when I returned to London I decided to go down the accessories path. I quickly set about designing four colourful lizard clutch bags, which were picked up by the American socialite Catherine Prevost, who had a cocktail jewellery store behind Harrods. The bags hit a nerve and then the press got on to them. My biggest challenge back when I was starting out was finding a good bag maker, which in London was impossible. Eventually I found a lecturer from the Royal College of Art's accessories programme who made small runs for me.
Then my breakthrough moment came when my clutch bag was on the cover of Vogue Italia's October 2006 issue. It was amazing. I was in London and I knew the bags had been called out for the shoot but had no confirmation on whether they were used or not. Then, a friend of mine rang me and said the bag was on the cover with Nicole Ritchie. She scanned the copy for me and I saw it on e-mail first. But, eventually I found a copy of the magazine for myself. I was thrilled. I rang all my friends and family - that was my celebration. Then I sent a thank-you note to (the stylist) Edward Enninful's office.
* Robert Cordero
SPECS
Engine: Two-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 235hp
Torque: 350Nm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Price: From Dh167,500 ($45,000)
On sale: Now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
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Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
What is a black hole?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
GROUPS
Group Gustavo Kuerten
Novak Djokovic (x1)
Alexander Zverev (x3)
Marin Cilic (x5)
John Isner (x8)
Group Lleyton Hewitt
Roger Federer (x2)
Kevin Anderson (x4)
Dominic Thiem (x6)
Kei Nishikori (x7)
%E2%80%98White%20Elephant%E2%80%99
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How to volunteer
The UAE volunteers campaign can be reached at www.volunteers.ae , or by calling 800-VOLAE (80086523), or emailing info@volunteers.ae.
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Points tally
1. Australia 52; 2. New Zealand 44; 3. South Africa 36; 4. Sri Lanka 35; 5. UAE 27; 6. India 27; 7. England 26; 8. Singapore 8; 9. Malaysia 3
The biog
Born: Kuwait in 1986
Family: She is the youngest of seven siblings
Time in the UAE: 10 years
Hobbies: audiobooks and fitness: she works out every day, enjoying kickboxing and basketball
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
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Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Match info
Newcastle United 1
Joselu (11')
Tottenham Hotspur 2
Vertonghen (8'), Alli (18')
The biog
Favourite Emirati dish: Fish machboos
Favourite spice: Cumin
Family: mother, three sisters, three brothers and a two-year-old daughter
Q&A with Dash Berlin
Welcome back. What was it like to return to RAK and to play for fans out here again?
It’s an amazing feeling to be back in the passionate UAE again. Seeing the fans having a great time that is what it’s all about.
You're currently touring the globe as part of your Legends of the Feels Tour. How important is it to you to include the Middle East in the schedule?
The tour is doing really well and is extensive and intensive at the same time travelling all over the globe. My Middle Eastern fans are very dear to me, it’s good to be back.
You mix tracks that people know and love, but you also have a visually impressive set too (graphics etc). Is that the secret recipe to Dash Berlin's live gigs?
People enjoying the combination of the music and visuals are the key factor in the success of the Legends Of The Feel tour 2018.
Have you had some time to explore Ras al Khaimah too? If so, what have you been up to?
Coming fresh out of Las Vegas where I continue my 7th annual year DJ residency at Marquee, I decided it was a perfect moment to catch some sun rays and enjoy the warm hospitality of Bab Al Bahr.
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
ICC Awards for 2021
MEN
Cricketer of the Year – Shaheen Afridi (Pakistan)
T20 Cricketer of the Year – Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan)
ODI Cricketer of the Year – Babar Azam (Pakistan)
Test Cricketer of the Year – Joe Root (England)
WOMEN
Cricketer of the Year – Smriti Mandhana (India)
ODI Cricketer of the Year – Lizelle Lee (South Africa)
T20 Cricketer of the Year – Tammy Beaumont (England)
