BASF, the largest chemical producer in the world and headquartered in Ludwigshafen, Germany, unveils its trend inspirations for spring/summer 2016.
BASF presents the latest trends in colours and textures for premium leather: Imperia Edition Spring/Summer 2016, which is full of natural, smooth leathers with cut-outs alongside more modern, vibrant leathers with metallic touches. The Imperia Edition covers three of the new season’s macro trends, which are more vibrant and topical than ever: adrenaline, tectonic and candy.
Adrenaline
Adrenaline takes you to a world of constant innovation and gives you the feeling of racing across land and sky, diving deep into uncharted seas; a world of sport, of striking graphics with flashes of light and a touch of futuristic aesthetic. Vivid colours are abound – red against black, intense shades of green, deep blue evocative of ocean depths and bioluminescent orange. The inspirations for leather are light, natural treated textures, geometric cut-outs and mesh designs. Voluminous nappa leathers with gently gleaming finishes and a few soft patent leathers take the spotlight in this trend.
Tectonic
Tectonic explores these trends’ more geologic and natural side. It blends ancient with modern landscapes and explores the archaeology in the architecture as if in pursuit of the very origin of each material, without ever losing sight of the present – leathers with a certain fall, yet a touch of stiffness. Geometric forms made up of faded stripes and micro-pleat textures, metallic filigree and asymmetric cut-outs. The nappa leathers are smooth, with tones ranging from faded white to buttery yellow, to neutral palettes of mauves, greens and greys. In this trend, metallic touches matter. Faded tones of silver, gold and bronze, all tinged with red, take centre stage as do soft leathers with natural finishes.
Candy
Completing this set of three macro trends in leather, Candy takes you to the most romantic part of spring/summer 2016. New forms of romanticism and femininity aspire to a global perspective and a retro feel with ethnic accents. Smooth nappa leathers and softened geometric forms are the focus of this trend. There are sensual, soft tones – among them are watery pink and green, denim in a range of pastel colours and combinations of rosy beige, pink and sky blue. Soft nappa leathers with a touch of fantasy and finishes with irregular pleats that add a degree of volume are also proposed.
New agent
BASF recommends the new range of Basyntan retanning agents, especially Basyntan AR, together with the Relugan range – solutions that combine sustainability with high performance to achieve the desired effects. In its new generation of Densodrin waterproof agents, Densodrin HP can reach the highest standards in water-repelling. Its innovative finishing polyurethanes, like Astacin Finish PT, Astacin Finish PTM and Astacin Finish PS with zero add-on of n-methylpyrrolidone and n-ethylpyrrolidone together with the brand new water-based polyurethane top coats Astacin Top LG, Astacin Matting AR, Astacin Novomatt DD and Astacin Top US can reach the highest standard of fastness properties. Finally, the new upgrading products Lepton Enhancer CG and Lepton Enhancer FG have also contributed to the success of this collection.