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Published on August 21, 2007

To celebrate His Majesty the King's upcoming 80th birthday, eight famous names in fashion are producing limited-edition yellow garments to be sold exclusively in Thailand.

Distributor Club 21, which represents almost 30 brand names in Thailand, says the net proceeds will be donated to the Chai Pattana Foundation.

"When we started negotiating with eight top brands last year about our plan to pay tribute to His Majesty, they enthusiastically created the yellow collection and jumped the production queue especially for Thailand," says senior manager Wasu Manomai-phibul.

A/X Armani Exchange is offering casual yellow T-shirts for men and women with the phrase "Long Live the King" emblazoned across the chest and the Thai flag on the back.

Comme Des Garcons has come up with shirts with "80" printed on the pocket. CK Calvin Klein's contribution is a set of male and female jersey-knit tops with "Long Live the King" printed in gold foil on the back of the collar.

Diesel has created a yellow leather bracelet with gold metal tag embossed "Long Live the King". DKNY has plumped for a high-quality nylon bag with the same cheer on its ribbon. The message also adorns the bag designed by Marni, but this time it's embroidered on the label inside.

Each of the Bayswater bags in Mulberry's edition of just 50 has a number on the metal tag inside, also embossed with the message. Made of "Rio" leather, they come in ochre.

Finally, Paul Smith's team has designed a camera-themed T-shirt with "80" printed on the front and a gold-embroidered label that reads "80 cameras for the King".

Wasu says he is impressed with the design teams. "We only asked for yellow, but several of the brands have done some research. Paul Smith pays tribute to His Majesty's interests in photography, and its T-shirt is made of organic cotton."

The people at CK Calvin Klein and Comme des Garcons have witnessed Thailand's "yellow wave" of admiration since last year, he says, and are proud to be part of the celebration.

"Comme des Garcons is offering its best-selling classic shirt, made in France, and has renamed it 'KOT' for 'King of Thailand'."

Kupluthai Pungkanon

The Nation