Photo: FION
For a stylish bag with a story, this is it. The latest handbag collaboration between leatherwear brand FION and the film franchise Avatar has taken fashion accessories to new heights – by transforming movie magic into high fashion.
Based on director James Cameron’s latest masterpiece, Avatar: The Way of Water, which was released in December 2022, the exquisite leather handbags from the FION Avatar series not only reflect the colours and themes of the film, but also the time-tested traditions of horsetail embroidery.
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From silver screen to sizzling style
Translating the movie into real life, FION’s designers worked closely with the Avatar team to develop their new line. Featuring fluid artwork befitting the film’s water themes, the striking designs adorning each bewitching bag showcase marine organisms cruising in the ocean, resulting in a magical waterscape.
According to Cameron, who also wrote Avatar: An Activist Survival Guide, animals and plants on Pandora are huge and glow in the dark because they have developed gigantism and luminescence due to air pollution. The FION Avatar series not only features artistic scenes of exotic marine life swimming in the sea, but it also serves another purpose – to evoke profound thinking on environmental sustainability.
Bag an adventure with fashion
This is not the first big-name collaboration for FION, which was founded in 1979 in Hong Kong. Having worked with Universal Pictures, Nintendo and Disney (United States), FION already has several first-class IP (Intellectual Property) collaborations under its belt, including Minions, Jurassic World, Donald Duck – and now, Avatar as well.
Specialising in stylish, eye-catching handbags which are made of high-quality leather, FION’s artistic designs not only reflect modern trends, but also add chic diversity to your wardrobe. The brand believes in complementing fashion with “advanced fun” and helping women to become more confident by incorporating art into their daily lives, while inspiring their fashion sensibilities at the same time.
Originally established 40 years ago by the first generation of cobblers in Hong Kong, FION Art Studio – the independent leather factory of FION – has inherited the craftsmanship of that first generation as well as a group of exceptional craftsmen from China with 20 years of experience and superior craftsmanship. Utilising traditional artistry, FION is committed to delivering premium leatherware goods to fashion connoisseurs around the world.
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Showcasing an ethnic art form
What makes the FION Avatar handbags so extraordinary is that they are constructed using horsetail embroidery, a special craft that has been honed for thousands of years. Passed down through the generations of the women of the Shui ethnic group in China, the process of this intricate art form is complex and complicated, involving multiple stages of work. A skilled embroiderer with 20 years of experience still requires 10 hours to finish a piece as small as a child’s palm.
Before the real work can commence, individual silk threads have to be intertwined with three or four stands of horsetail hair. In addition to the complex embroidery, colourful silk threads and cross-stitching are also required to complete the tapestry. Thanks to the toughness of the horsetail hairs, their robust strength and durability help to keep the embroidered patterns in place while maintaining the shape of each design. Horsetail hairs also contain oil constituents, ensuring the surrounding silk threads retain their vibrancy.
Making each bag also requires patience and dexterity. Painstakingly threaded and stitched together by skilled craftsmen, each piece takes at least 24 hours to complete. Considered a “living fossil”, horsetail embroidery was classified as a national intangible cultural heritage in 2006 by the Ministry of Culture in China, in an ode to ethnic minorities’ traditions.
Fashionably sustainable
Marrying nature, fashion and sustainability, the FION Avatar range of handbags builds on the Sustainable Project –- JIN series introduced by FION in 2021. Armed with a mission to conserve nature, their bags are made with eco-friendly leathers and yarn as well as non-water washed denim and eco-friendly jacquard denim. Concurrently, FION ensures their suppliers share the same sustainable goals to minimise any impact on the environment while reducing waste-water emissions.
As is evidenced through both the FION Avatar series and FION Sustainable Project – JIN series, the brand is committed to conserving the environment while exploring creative avenues for sustainable fashion.
Take the movie magic with you
Endowed with cinematic significance and cultural heritage, these stunning handbags from FION’s Avatar range not only let you own a piece of movie magic but also allow you to take home a unique product of craftsmanship in the form of horsetail embroidery. Take your pick from these three styles.