Shantall Lacayo presents her first ready-to-wear collection, ‘Rebirth’, after winning Project Runway at the beginning of the year. The collection was inspired by her unexpected journey, full of twists and turns, loops and falls, happy accidents, and leaps of faith.

To emphasize the curves of the female body, the designer used ribbed cotton, ruched drawstring effects, and serpentine-like cut-outs that sometimes cross the body diagonally or from top to bottom. Wooden embellishments can be traced a few seasons back, when Lacayo began experimenting with Mesoamerican inspired shapes, lions, tigers, and crocodiles. The last crocodile mutated into an egg-shaped piece, sculpted by artisans from her home country, Nicaragua, to symbolize metamorphosis, a new chapter in her life and career.