Sleek as a Greyhound

On a recent trip to Bangkok, I ventured into the "everyone knows where it is" shopping complex of Siam Center. This place is known to have trendy shops and boutiques that feature some of the most creative of Thai designers. At the mall’s entrance, I asked a stylish young Thai lady where I could find the Greyhound shop and I got a mouthful: "It’s at the third floor. It’s my favorite Thai brand with its really good quality and design, etc…" True enough, after combing through a couple dozen Thai boutiques in Siam Center, I definitely agreed with her – Greyhound was at the top of the trendy Thai heap. Four design-oriented friends founded Greyhound a quarter century ago. Its tremendous success in the Thai fashion scene has brought it to other Asian shores, including ours. Thank you, Ben Chan!

For its Spring/Summer 2005 collection, Greyhound Original takes inspiration from the ultra-glam period of the jazzy ‘20s. The romantic mood of the ‘20s is combined with the sophistication of early Hollywood culture. The main color theme is almost white. Many colors are faded to the point of being close to white. There is a lot of cotton with some interesting effects like coated cotton that is washed to increase the softness and comfort. There is also a generous amount of chiffon and silk in the women’s wear department. To keep up with Greyhound’s tradition of modernity and simplicity, a lot of washed and rough finishing is applied to the collection. The men’s line features a lot of painting, spraying and airbrushing on the clothes, as well as details like Velcro and snaps. The women’s collection flaunts techniques like layering and patchwork.

For Greyhound’s more playful line, Playhound Spring/Summer 2005 Collection is all about the concept of synthetic nature lover’s clothes, combining natural and cultural motifs of islands, like seashells, antique fabric designs, with urban and modern technology. All that was applied with digital art, lab fusion, airbrush and freehand graphics, and self-tailoring. Colors are bright and shocking – pink, green and yellow. Cotton and cotton voile were used to create a comfortable, yet stylish collection. Some interesting techniques are seen throughout the collection, such as inside-out flower-patterned shirts, sporty-looking fisherman pants and customized jeans with plastic patchwork. The women’s collection also features a series of draped fisherman pants and colourful sporty tank tops.

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Greyhound is located at the 2nd Floor of Greenbelt 4 Mall, Makati City but will soon be moving to Glorietta 3 in May.

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E-mail me at djmontano@pacific.net.ph.