Egyptian fashion designer Farida Temraz is already well known in the world of Hollywood celebrities and on the red carpet at Oscars, Emmys, Grammys, and Cannes.

But this time it was the costumes at the breathtaking long-awaited Egypt’s historic Pharaohs' Golden Parade in Cairo that put her under spotlight.

“It was such an honorable feeling to have participated in something as big and spectacular as this event. It is part of showing our Egyptian history to the world, the origin of civilization,” Temraz told Ahram Online.

Temraz designed dresses for the three main voice chronicles in the grand event: Egyptian singers Nesma Mahgoub, soporno Amira Selim and Riham Abdel-Hakim. She also made designs for facemasks for all orchestra members.

She managed successfully to blend the Egyptian culture and heritage and at the same time reflect each singer's own personality and style.

“Dresses were definitely a big challenge for me. For each singer, I wanted to make sure her dress perfectly matches the song she was singing. Also, that dress color was in harmony with her skin tone, body shape, eye and hair color,” she explained. 

Temraz specialized in fashion psychology. She succeeded in utilizing her expertise to grab the attention of the world. 

Selim was iconic in her choice of song as she picked a song in the ancient Egyptian language. The lyrics were extracted from Isis Reverence Hymns found in Shelwit Temple in Luxor.

Egypt’s soparano and opera singer Amira Selim (Photos: Farida Temraz and Amira Selim official Facebook page)

“Isis represented the Egyptian woman and so Selim’s dress was black color, with the cap, scarab beetle, apparent spread of sunbeams that came out from the dress and every single detail inspired by the Pharaonic civilization,” Temraz explained.

Egytian singer Riham Abdel-Hakim (Photo: Abdel-Hakim’s Facebook page)

Mahgoub’s dress was petrol-blue color. “It’s the  color that symbolized Egypt's blue sky and bright green fields. The dress was decorated with gold pieces adorning one shoulder and the waist, all representing  rays of sunlight,” she commented.

Singer Nesma Mahgoub (Photo: Mahgoub’s Facebook page)

Abdel-Hakim’s dress was gold in color. “It was the traditional color of ancient Pharaonic culture. I depicted the pharaoh’s eye and snake in the dress,” she added.

Embroidery work in Selim’s black dress (Photo courtesy from Farida Temraz)

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs had appointed Temraz as the Egyptian Fashion Ambassador for three years now. Her mission as ambassador is to promote fashion in Egypt in all aspects.

“I participate in many initiatives on regular basis to boost fashion, share knowledge and educate people about fashion,” she adds.

In addition, Temraz is the North African director of the International Fashion Designers Council , which aims at encouraging other designers from the African region.

She is the founder and creative director of Temraza haute couture. Temraza is a full brand with fashion categories: casual line, beachwear, evening gowns, bridal dresses, body accessories and heels.

“Fashion has been my passion since I was seven. I have been in the fashion profession since 2012. I created the company in 2015,” she said.

Her first collection was at the first edition of Cairo Fashion Festival city. “It was an amazing experience,” she remembers. 

Her first international fashion show was in London fashion week in 2014. “It was the first time to see Egyptian brand in London fashion week. I loved the face-reactions when they saw dresses on stage. My collection was the talk of the town,” she recalled. 

She graduated from the American University in Cairo with a bachelor’s degree in integrated marketing communications and a double minor in business and psychology. She prepared her master's degree in fashion communication before  studying fashion courses abroad as in Harvard, John Hopkins and Los Angeles.

Family plays a role in achieving her dream in the world of fashion. “My parents implemented in me the concept of being professional, persistent , and passionate about pursuing my dream,” she says.

“The secret behind my success is a lot of work every single day. I always develop new ideas and strategies,” she adds.

Temraz who is married and a mother of a little daughter called Lana, believes that family life is an essential element to keep creative people going and give real force to continue. “I always recommend that we don’t sacrifice family time for work,” she comments.

Her designs are distinctive with the feminine touch. “Temraza’s designs complement the body, we create designs accordingly to Egyptian women body shapes and what fits them,” she says.

“My team studies any new collection for three years before actually presenting it in order to make sure that we are trendsetters not followers,” she adds.

Temraz hopes to bring Egypt back to global fashion map. “We are proud that Temraza was able to change perception of Egypt fashion in many platforms as a form of soft power reflecting Egyptian talents nowadays,” she comments.

Temraz received plenty of prestigious awards. She achieved first place award among 15 international designers in Paris Fashion week in 2015. She also won best female Couture Designer title in New York Fashion Week 2017 and best fashion designer in Egypt 2018. She won leading awards by the United States Department of State and Dutch of Foreign Affairs.