The designer
Samna Ashraf
Founder and Head Designer, SAMNA. Lahore, Pakistan.
An alumna of the Lahore School of Fashion Design, designing for the woman who would rather say it quietly.
SAMNA grew out of a straightforward frustration: designer womenswear in Pakistan was either priced for a showroom or cut without much thought, and rarely both beautiful and wearable on an ordinary Tuesday. The label is the answer to that, built one small run at a time.
Every print, panel and placement is developed in-house. Nothing is bought in wholesale and relabelled, which is why the collections stay small and why each design carries a point of view rather than a trend.
She also models every collection herself. The woman in the photographs is the one who drafted the pattern, so every fit is worn and judged on a real body before it reaches a customer.
How the work is made
Fabric is sourced and garments are produced locally, which keeps the work with Pakistani artisans and the textile industry that raised this craft. Weaves are chosen for Pakistani summers: breathable lawn, cotton and light blends, cut loose enough to hold their shape through a working day and a long evening.
Fit is graded properly across sizes rather than scaled up from a single sample, and seams are finished so the inside of a garment looks as considered as the outside. It is the kind of detail that does not photograph, and that you notice every time you wear it.
Each design is produced once. Selling direct rather than through a showroom is what puts a complete 3-piece designer suit at a price that reflects the cloth and the work, not the rent.