I particularly love Ahed’s look in these photo when she visited the local art gallery in Beirut, Lebanon. There’s something that is so sweet about her, so delicate.
She wore a Double Zero dress paired with a BCBG MAX AZRIA belt and a Bebe shoes and an Uterque clutch for a little metallic touch.
I love the flow of the dress, its length and neckline detail and mostly, the color!
Not too long ago, Ahed attended the egagement party of her best friend Nemer Saade & Daniella at Buddha Bar – Beirut, Lebanon.
She wore what she wears best: an Herve Leger powder gray bandage dress with navy trim. In my opinion, Ahed is one of few women who can carry off an Herve Leger dress and make the designer himself ultimately proud!
Her shoes were from Casadei gracefully laced with satin platform pumps
She combined texture through the shiny bandage dress, the lace pumps and the fringe Henri Bendel clutch.
As for her jewelery, she wore her white gold Rolex watch & spikes bracelets from Forever21.
What a beautiful mix and match between high-end and affordable pieces!
Photo shoot (Victoria Casal, Manolo Blahnik, Aiisha Ramadan)
So among few other styles I got, specifically 1 crazy green ruffled Toubid pair, came home with me a pair of the most famous Hangisi blue jeweled Manolos that Mr. Big used to propose to Carrie in Sex and the City and I made sure that the legend himself signs on their sole.
Manolo Blahnik Hangisi
Manolo Blahnik autographing on Aiisha's Hangisi
A pair of Toubid MB to kill for!
Recently, I looked into my shoe closet and thought to myself “I’d really like to see some colorful pair where my eyes would almost hurt!”. So I hit Bloomingdales and found some elegant ones by different brands. Plain elegant wasn’t quite what I was looking for.
The moment I stepped into the Manolo Blahnik boutique in Dubai Mall, I was captivated by one specific pair from the latest season.. The photos won’t give it justice and no words can express the powerful combination of the Blue, Fuchsia and Orange on my tanned legs with a hot red pedicure.
Manolo Blahnik Petasap
Then my heart started pounding a little more as I walked by the Golden/Black pair that Victoria Casal and I wore during our photo shoot with Manolo Blahnik. They’re called Innamor and they had to be mine. The only way to describe this pair is “Mysterious”. They’re elegant, sexy and they seem to be in love.. constantly.
The girls in the Innamors
Manolo Blahnik Innamor
Its worth mentioning that at Manolo Blahnik Dubai Mall, you only get 1 piece of each size. I mean seriously! This is why I make sure that my feet sized 36/ 36.5 get their pairs picked even before they land in Dubai.
Some of the below collection will be showcased in the latest movie Sex and the City and will be launched in Manolo Blahnik Dubai Mall in July.
Manolo Blahnik Denzi
Manolo Blahnik Lezza
Manolo Blahnik Delaya
Manolo Blahnik Amacha
All will be launched and much more soon at the Manolo Blahnik boutique in Dubai Mall..
Manolo Blahnik Boutique Dubai Mall
From the Barbie Collection by Aiisha Ramadan
To give you a little insight on what I did with the Barbie collection, I chose to keep Barbie as I love it and as most of all love it too. Simple, cute, trendy and mostly pink! The fabrics were top quality Raw Silk, layers and layers of Italian Tulle to achieve the gradience I was looking for.
From the Barbie Collection by Aiisha Ramadan
However, to incorporate the cultural element, I hand-embroidered and CRYSTALLIZED™ – by Swarovski Elements Arabic calligraphy portraying words that speak to every kid. Simple words such as Youth, Beauty, Playing, Hope and so on, all in Arabic.
Remember what Queen Rania says.. “If you educate a girl, you educate a future”. This is one little way of contributing from my side and its just the beginning.
Thank you Zahrat Al Khaleej!
This by far is the longest post that this site has so far, and its there to thank every individual who has provided us with support and has been a part of this great success. So I list them at no particular order.
Production
Stefan Cebula, an amazing human being. You look at him and you realize that everything will be alright. Building the stage on ice, hanging himself from the rooftop, taking care of every (production) aspect was never an easy job. Stef has produced Valentino shows and The World Summit in Johannesburg among many others. He is the best!
Among many others, Vartan Kelechian was a true positive vibe for me. Everytime I felt the world crashing around me, he assured me it will all be fine and it was!
Jihad Mawed is the man behind my logo. I paid 5 companies for a proper logo and I ended up using none. Instead I used the one from my childhood friend. He’s a true artist and a very dear brother. Along with my husband, Jihad also designed the Love Affair backdrop, which I think was sensational
Lights
Liz Berry, What can you say about a (Super Lady) who has produced the lights for London Fashion Week and Robbie Williams concerts? She’s a Super Lady!!
Models
Carole B, Hana Nitsche, Alexandra, Zeljka, Cole, Ying, Maja and Sophia from Bareface, Kate and Nicole from LMM, Dima, Anastasia, Katryna, Katsyarina, Rene and Anna. Everybody spoke of their beauty and grace. They really made me proud and were gorgeous! Unlike other models, they were all lovely, patient and simply professional.
A powerful opera singer who’s full of passion and has previously opened at Twickenham for 80,000 people. He was sensational!
Natasha Alexandra Kemball
A graceful figure skater, who started the evening off with twirls and elegant moves, using the soaring voice of Opera Singer – Andrew Amdur for inspiration. It was so passionate and truly brought me tears.
Photographers
All the photographers stood side by side to document every breath we took, every move the models took and every shine of Victoria Casal pieces. Joseph Bassil was their leader and his photos speak for themselves.
Videographers
All 4 Media. These guys got me speechless everytime I saw them around me either filming or solving a problem or simply reassuring us that everything is gonna be alright. They were true soldiers. The filming was conducted in HD and transfered on the massive 20meter x 10meter screen at Dubai Mall. Thank you, Roland, Raymond and all the incredible staff.
Music
Thanks to my incredible husband, we truly brought Paris to Dubai for the night. The mix was sensational.. I listen to it almost everyday and never get enough of it – Because we truly worked on it from our hearts. Please visit the links to taste the music.
| No. | Song | Artist | |
| 01 | Ivyhouse | Saint Etienne | |
| 02 | Je Ne Sais Qui Fumer | Paris Combo | |
| 03 | Je M’amuse | Caravan Palace | |
| 04 | La Vie En Rose | Goldfinga | |
| 05 | Ain’t No Sunshine (Benny Blanco Remix) | Michael Jackson | |
| 06 | Poisson Rouge | Saint Privat | |
| 07 | Comme Un Hic | Jenifer | |
| 08 | Being Bad | Bitter:Sweet | |
| 09 | Drum Rhythm | Koop | |
| 10 | Sirènes de la Fête | Brazilian Girls | |
| 11 | Contact | Brigitte Bardot | |
| 12 | Hurt | Parov Stelar | |
| 13 | Decide Toi | Rouge Rouge | |
| 14 | Ou Est La Femme? | Louise Vertigo | |
| 15 | Fleur Blanche | Orsten | |
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FInale |
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What an pleasure to have met this legend. With his beautiful fuchsia shoes, both Victoria and myself were honored and so glad to have met Manolo. The 3 of us shared 2 photoshoots (exclusive for Harper’s Bazaar and Zahrat Al Khaleej magazines). It’s great as it makes the lady wearing Manolo’s feel like a princess, but also meeting the lovely legend behind it, is thrilling. Truly, to have Victoria and Manolo on my sides was a dream I never thought would come true!
Our stylist Noni, a passionate lady so eager to become a professional stylist, I tell her thank you for your dedication and your precision. I couldn’t have done it without you.
The models looked like they went out of the 60’s Vogue (I quote from the Khaleej Times). Steve from Pace e Luce Al Manzel – Burj Dubai Downtown – made me and Victoria look like 60’s divas for our clip. We simply looked sexy. Put the same look on the naturally perfect models and tell me what you think! The entire team of Pace e Luce blew us away by their work.. Thank you guys! If you know great hair professionals, Pace e Luce will always be on the top of your list!
When it comes to Max Factor (part of Procter & Gamble), I can’t help but think: Family. P&G and their PR company MS&L have supported me from my early beginnings and we remain loyal to each other. Not only are they professionals, but also friendly and easy going. When it comes to mastering Max Factor, Samira Olfat is my favorite makeup artist. She has worked with the best companies and designers from Galliano to Christian Lacroix to Aiisha and Victoria Casal! Max Factor had their iconic Lipfinity in its 6 shades worn to stay on the lips. I don’t know of any woman who has tried them and not felt grateful for this invention..
As you know, I’m the spokesperson for the HP Fashion Products, including the Vivienne Tam netbook. To continue what we have started, HP supported us with their latest pink edition, which simply happens to be divine!!
Another supporter from Procter & Gamble. Camay, the luxurious soap brand, has 5 exquisite variants for every woman: Dejour, Crème Delice, Passion, Parfum, and Pink. I have designed 5 dresses that reflect each of the Camay 5 scents. Each of them appeals to a mood / character that every woman may embrace. In each character, I see myself. We’ll cover that soon in a different post.
To complete the designer circle, Evian had their Jean-Paul Gaultier high end bottles at our Love Affair
My eternal partner.. Thank you for offering us the branding: made with CRYSTALLIZED™ - Swarovski Elements
For me Swarovski is like the stars that shine in the dark sky. Thank you
Did you know that Sweet Stuff made a special Aiisha and Love Affair Cup Cake editions for the fashion show? Not only that, but these cup cakes are being sold in their store on Jumeirah for a month after the show. I’m really flattered!
Graziella Kamel
Its a true honor to have had Graziella as our MC. Graziella and I have worked on Dubai TV for a fashion styling program. I was always fond of Graziella’s ocean of talent. She was a sense of fashion that this region needs to nourish from. She’s multi-lingual and its simply sexy.. And she’s smart. Did I forget to mention how beautiful she really is? Hard luck for the men out there, she’s taken by a wonderful Ralph!
Danielle Wilson. For very long months, Danielle has worked so hard day and night and has always had faith in me. For that and much much more, I’m grateful. I couldn’t have done it without you..
My partner and my lover! Every member of Victoria Casal Paris to the Dubai branch made all the difference with their support. Thank you for making this Love Affair happen. I lived my dream with you..
Press
Every writer, reporter, journalist, blogger be it positive or negative (and it was truly positive), THANK YOU!
Our friends, family and the working team behind “Aiisha”.. thank you for your continuous support. I love you!
Show’s Finale – My favorite photo:
Preview Video of “A Love Affair” collection in glorious HD
Credits:
Aiisha Ramadan – Fashion Designs
Victoria Casal – Jewelery Designs
Manolo Blahnik – Shoes
All 4 Media – Video Production
Parov Stellar – Hurt – Soundtrack
Date: Tuesday, November 3rd 2009
A day to remember in my calendar of events. We’ve been busy planning for this date for over 5 months (if not more), for few days prior to that date we hardly slept, we worked over night, but the more challenge we faced, the more we developed collective determination until we reached the deadline and from there it was smooth sailing.
Of course I’m talking about my collaboration with Victoria Casal.
A Love Affair Invite
A Love Affair is a collaboration 1 year in the making, kept under wraps until it was unveiled in a glamorous, unique, one of a kind show that was deemed the fashion show of the year and the golden ticket of the fashion events in Dubai.
The Design Team on the Catwalk
My coverage for this event will extend to few blog posts detailing all aspects of the show, the designs and everything related.
Await more
Colors at the Finale