Samantha Giraud is the founder and creative director of the women’s ready-to-wear and couture brand, Samantha Giraud. She established her fashion designing career in 2003 and expanded her fashion artistry and knowledge while studying at the world-renowned school “Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne” in Paris.
Her fashion sense is influenced by her mother, bringing about her passion for creating chic, elegant, and high-quality apparel. From bright, vibrant colors, and exquisitely streamlined tailoring to ultra-feminine silhouettes and boldly unique yet wearable pieces, her signature style is exhibited with intricate hand beading, exceptional applique, fine embroidery, and rhinestones. Samantha is married, has two children, and splits her time between Hong Kong and Paris.
For her most recent collection HK1950, Samantha was inspired by the global women’s empowerment movement, the economic revival of the Hong Kong textile industry in the years following World War II, and the simplicity and classicality of her parents’ generation of the 1950s. She combines her eastern heritage with sophisticated western draping, sewing, and tailoring in the HK1950 Spring/Summer 2019 collection.
Unlike many other women’s ready-to-wear and haute couture collections available on the market today, the HK1950 collection combines divergent elements and is bold, ethereal, and feminine with a sporty and modern edge. With many warm-weather essentials, this collection includes pieces for every refined style, wild taste, and occasion from resort to office to sportswear to evening wear.
This season, Samantha wanted to shed light on women’s empowerment, self-care, and self-confidence. She essentially wanted to pay homage to some of history’s most influential and inspirational women by way of color and decorative accents: the rich shades of red of rubies with shimmery Swarovski crystals, the deep hues of purple with sexy and light knit mesh, as well as the subtle pinks of a carnation.
Samantha decided to go with an eye-popping and vibrant color palette that came across as refined and elegant with a rebel and wild flair. But the juxtaposition of style and color comes across as completely organic. The collection is also romantic and sophisticated yet wearable with flattering silhouettes. She created an array of gorgeous day-to-night dresses, flowing skirts to fit any shape and size, well-fit blazers for any event, casual yet chic athletic wear, knitted sports shorts and tops, slim fit trousers, and effortlessly cool, relaxed fit pants.
HK1950 Collection and Story Narrative Inspiration
With the famous Star Ferry Pier (Tsim Sha Tsui) in Hong Kong used as the backdrop and inspiration for the spring/summer 2019 photoshoot, the HK1950 collection embodies the rich culture and history of Hong Kong. Many of the HK1950 visual elements include the modernistic elegance of the pier, with a focus on the linear, geometric, and symmetrical ornamentation in the background, making each design in the collection an interesting contrast.
As today’s pier is shown throughout the visual narrative of the HK1950 Samantha Giraud brand, the construction of the original landing began in 1904, and then opened in 1906 but was later decimated by a typhoon1. The redesign and replacement of the original pier was made to accommodate two ferries in 19142.
Then, in the early 1950s, the construction of the two-pier terminal started on both sides of Victoria Harbour, which was completed in 1957, around the same time the completion of the once standing Edinburgh Place Ferry Pier3. Both constructions were the finest examples of the Streamline Moderne aesthetic in Hong Kong, a sleek and well-balanced style of Art Deco architecture and design beginning during the 1930s4. This pier is one of the most notable and highly trafficked transportation hubs in Hong Kong. Samantha decided to incorporate these specific design elements into the HK1950 collection and brand narrative as she is native to Hong Kong.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Ferry_Pier,_Tsim_Sha_Tsui
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Ferry_Pier,_Tsim_Sha_Tsui
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Ferry_Pier,_Tsim_Sha_Tsui
[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Ferry_Pier,_Tsim_Sha_Tsui
