Summer 2011 brought with it an absolute craze for designer lawn exhibitions. Though mostly huge in Karachi due to the longer summers, lawn exhibitions were the place to be seen throughout the entire country. Whether it was the sheer number of people who attended these events or lack of planning on the organizers part, the exhibitions were a pairing of chic design and relative chaos.

The Exhibitions

The launch of the season began with Junaid Jamshed and it must be said that they were probably the best organized this entire summer. The range of fabrics and prices was fantastic and it wasn’t a war zone like so many other exhibitions eventually turned out to be. Sana Safinaz, one of the most anticipated events left much to be desired by way of arrangements. Their outfits were as always spectacular however it was absolutely shocking how quickly they ran out of stock. One could argue that their 3 piece collections were simply that popular, but balancing advertising and stock should be a lesson learned. Mausummery Lawn is probably known as the best paring between style, quality and price. They managed to be successful again this year but could have improved the quality of lighting in the exhibition. Once again the lines were extremely long but this is not the fault of the organizers.

The Stores

Other than the onset of exhibitions, the launch of Al-Karam’s Studio in collaboration with Umar Sayeed was and will continue to be an absolute hit amongst the lawn hopping ladies. With a variety of unstitched and readymade outfits in very reasonable prices, the studio is a must visit. Gul Ahmed’s Ideas, Al-Karam’s direct competitor, better watch out! With the quality that Al-Karam is maintaining and the prices that they’re selling at, Idea’s may very soon lose its popularity amongst lawn fanatics. Other than these leading names there are a significant number of smaller vendors in popular markets who are being supplied with designer lawn. This way, if someone missed out on an exhibition they have an opportunity to see some of the remaining suits.

The Lawn Ladies

The lawn exhibitions brought out the best and worst of Pakistani women this summer. With no other option there were countless women who battled the heat and crowds with their little ones in tow. As the lines became too long to brave, seeing them sitting together in a group with their children sharing snacks became a common sight at nearly all the exhibitions. Sadly, the worst of women was seen a lot more. Cutting lines, shoving, swearing and even outright fighting occurred in almost all the exhibitions. One could say that all this happened because of exhaustion after standing in line for hours on end, but was it really justified?

Midsummer Lawn, Volume 2

Midsummer is now here and many retailers such as Nishat have already launched the ‘Second Volume’ of their summer lawn 2011 collection. What can be taken back from all the excitement this year?

  • Organizers REALLY need to improve the exhibitions. Factors they should consider are stock management, the process for purchasing and overall environment.
  • Ladies need to realize that getting the outfit they want is not more important than remembering what it means to be a good person.

With complete understanding of the concept of exclusivity, lawn designers should consider providing their outfits at selected retailers throughout the city to prevent lawn madness from taking over.