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Fashion Week Asia: Leave It to Malaysia’s PLAZÄ to Adorn a Treasure Like You

Anisah Farid can be likened to a fairy godmother who has 25 lovely ways to make you feel like the most precious person in the room.

By Anya Oxyn 47 seconds ago

As a child, Anisah Farid watched seamstresses in Pontian, Johor, work their needles through fabric, fascinated by how their hands could transform a length of cloth into a baju kurung. Years later, the London College of Fashion alumna would establish PLAZÄ, bringing her appreciation for dressmaking into a wardrobe that knows its way around a special occasion.

For her 25-piece collection at Fashion Week Asia, Farid traveled through Malaysia, sourcing fabrics and getting to know the people she encountered. “I wanted to collect fabrics, and I collected stories from people. From there, I was really inspired by all their personalities,” she shares. Her lineup comes with the same enthusiasm for beautiful things, right down to the fastenings.

Golden flowers decorate dark fabric like pieces borrowed from a jewelry box, while another gilded ornament rests against a richly embroidered textile. There’s turquoise fabric covered in floral needlework, with beads and sequins sitting among colorful threads. Farid’s earlier explorations of Nyonya embroidery and Kelantanese songket help explain her interest in decorative possibilities.

“PLAZÄ is inspired by the beauty of our differences.”
—ANISAH FARID

In Farid’s meticulous hands, the decorative artistry of Malaysian fashion becomes a lovely way to celebrate the most precious thing of all: you.

Photos courtesy of FASHION WEEK ASIA. Photographed by EXCEL PANLAQUE of KLIQ INC.

Anya Oxyn

Senior Fashion Writer

Formerly a stylist who immersed herself intimately within the Philippine fashion circuit for over three years, Anya has refined her transformative, hands-on experience into an insightful voice for MEGA Asia as a Senior Fashion Writer.

Her editorial pursuit possesses three facets: her time as an essayist during her education at Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila, her extensive experience in digital media and strategic storytelling, and her belief that fashion has a beating heart deeply intertwined with art, culture, society, and humanity itself that is worth uncovering.

Anya’s versatile pen spans a dynamic range of subjects, including emerging local designers, global luxury houses, beauty trends, film and television fashion analysis, cultural op-eds, major events, and beyond.

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