Women Are Weapons: The Premiere of FYI's New Collection

Hooksexup premieres Dani Read's newest luxury lingerie collection, Isis.

by Kelly Bourdet

Women are weapons, according to lingerie designer Dani Read. After designing for luxury brand Kiki de Montparnasse, Dani moved on to create her own collection, FYI, now in its fifth season. She's created an elegant lingerie line with a dark twist. Her current collection, Isis, premiered at New York Lingerie week last month. Now Hooksexup premieres the collection's campaign.

Hooksexup: I know you pick a different theme for each collection. Why Isis?
Dani Read: Well, I was inspired by the Pharaoh Cleopatra, particularly her representation of herself as the goddess Isis. Some thought she was the embodiment of the divinity of Isis here on earth. So there's a lot of elegance and beauty to those figures, but also strength and power. That's what I wanted to express, that combination.

Yeah, the whole collection and shoot. It's a very decadent approach to lingerie.
I think so. I mean, lingerie is often erotic, of course, so I wanted the eroticism but also the associated decadence to come through in the shoot. This collection is about balancing soft and hard to create something really unique. All of our fabrics, and even the colors--black, dark sienna brown, and warm desert gold--are soft, but are balanced by some fantastic, harder edges. Gold hardware on the pieces or genuine python skin touches. These things add dimension.

The color scheme, both on the garments and in the shoot, really evokes ancient Egyptian dress.
Yeah, and also there's a lot of triangle motifs in the collection. Sort of inspired by the art and architecture of the empire.

I know you've mentioned the local aspect of your collection before, is that still something you're focused on?
Exactly, it's so important. We've continued to source and produce entirely in New York. I see local production as not only contributing to the luxury quality of our pieces, but also as an important ethical standard.

Right. We need to keep the garment district here vital. And you just unveiled this collection here in New York, right?
Yes, it's my Fall/Winter 2013 collection, so it's just been shown for the first time at the opening of New York Lingerie week, which directly following Fashion Week. The campaign pictures haven't even been shown yet. Right now, my Spring/Summer 2013 collection, The Replicant, is available on my site for purchase.