Six of the best Sri Lankan designersChosen by Mehala Ford Confession: we have a style crush on Mehala Ford. Born in Sri Lanka and raised in the UK, effortlessly cool Mehala champions new-gen Sri Lankan and Indian designers at Friday Sari Project, her beautiful concept store in south London. Before setting up FSP, Mehala earned her stripes in the fashion industry, working with top talent such as Alexander McQueen. It was Mehala who tipped us off about PR in Colombo – where our editor spent all her food money in one fell swoop. Here, she tells us about six Sri Lankan designers to watch; the good news for Londoners is that each one is stocked in her store. See you in Dulwich... Maus #1: MAUS “I think the Maus organic range, designed by Annika Fernando of the famed Colombo design dynasty Paradise Road, is my absolute favourite. I love its simplicity and the fact that it’s so minimal and pared back – to me, it says a lot about my experience of Sri Lanka. That mix of city life and beach life is all combined in one collection. It keeps growing, too; it’s just such a great essentials range.” Kur #2: KUR “The Kur Collection by Kasuni Rathnasuriya – a Sri Lankan based in New York – stars beautiful, hand-made lace pieces. Kur is one of our designers with the strongest connections to community: the pieces are hand-made by Beeralu lace weavers, who work in huts around Weligama, on the south coast. Visitors can go into the huts to see the women at work; the ladies sit with chairs between their legs and make everything with pins and bobbins. It takes around three months to make one lace shirt. That’s what great about these younger designers: their fusion of creativity and working with communities who just need a pivot. Traditionally, these lace workers would have produced tablecloths or cushion adornments. All of Kasuni’s gorgeous garments are proudly made in Sri Lanka.” Anuk #3: ANUK “Anuk designs modern, wearable, global fashion. Her range captures a sense of easy living, with pieces transitioning from day to evening. I love the idea of these modern basics in luxurious silks. Things from Sri Lanka don’t have to feature certain motifs to have Sri Lanka’s handwriting – although I’d like to find some people working with batik in interesting ways.” Amesh Wijesekera #4: AMESH WIJESEKERA “Amesh graduated from AOD: the Academy of Design in Colombo. Colombo Fashion Week hosted a show with Mercedes-Benz in Berlin and he showed with them. Amesh was also selected for the IFS – International Fashion Show – as part of London Fashion Week. Last September, we gave Amesh a window at Friday Sari Project and featured an installation by him; this September, we  will stock his autumn/winter collection. Amesh is the first Sri Lankan catwalk designer who I feel could break through into the UK. He’s based here and in Sri Lanka; his collection is very gender-neutral. I’ve never seen a collection like it, let alone from Sri Lanka. There’s handwriting of Sri Lanka to it, but it’s so modern and forward-thinking. It’s taking on sustainability without that being a thing, yet it’s very playful and fun. Amesh called his collection Vesak: the name for Sri Lanka’s New Year’s celebrations. There are so many elements that have the handwriting of Sri Lanka, but it has been taken forward with such a modern spin. He’s a very exciting designer; we are really looking forward to having him.” Friday Sari Project Shop #5: SOUR METAL “I discovered this designer through Amesh, as she has worked with him, producing beautiful ornamentation such as striking pocket details for one of his collections. Her visuals are really cool. She takes very traditional types of vintage Sri Lankan jewellery – the kind of necklaces my aunties might have worn, for example – and reworks them into modern pieces. It’s such a nice idea that you can wear these pieces of jewellery in a new way. She’s going to do a capsule collection of 10 pieces just for Friday Sari Project that we will sell in summer.” Barefoot #6: BAREFOOT “When it comes to fabrics, I can’t forget Barefoot by Barbara Sansoni. We only have an edited collection of clothing, but Barefoot is a wonderful store in Colombo with an amazing range of products. We wanted to put an emphasis on the clothing, which I’ve always thought is lovely. These clothes can be worn throughout the year with layering, which is super sustainable – trans-seasonal collections. With Barefoot, I always wanted to strip it down and provide highlight pieces. We have also exhibited photographs by Dominic Sansoni, Barbara’s very talented photographer son and director of the Barefoot legacy.” Friday Sari Project Shop In need of an additional nudge towards Friday Sari Project? Here are Mehala’s top three treats to pick up in-store… 1) Maus Organics harem pants, £75 2) Mira's Chai Mix Latte by Mira Manek, £8 3) Tea Pour tea canister, £25–£45 tags newsletter sign up the latest inside aboutSri Lanka on your inbox #SRILANKAEXPERIENCE