Diagnosed with Scleroderma at 15, @ayajallad transforms personal restriction into sculptural form, creating pieces that sit somewhere between garment and artwork through her brand @oddbyaj . Her ‘Damaged Beauty’ collection, with the cover photo captured through the lens of @myriamboulos , resists the scroll, insisting instead on touch, weight and presence.
In a culture increasingly mediated by artificial gloss, Odd by AJ argues for something harder, slower and defiantly human.
Words: @zeinkaram
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✨ Being named a finalist for the Prix de la Mode du Monde Arabe at @institutdumondearabe feels like a reminder that all the hard work, late nights, doubts, and endless hours of creating were worth it after all.
To see Odd by AJ—and especially my Damaged Beauty Corset series—recognized on this stage as a talent innovator is more than an honor. It’s a moment that makes me feel that the path I’ve chosen, with all its imperfections, truly matters.
Grateful, humbled, and motivated to keep pushing boundaries and giving new life to what was once discarded. 🌍🤍. With so much gratitude 🤍 Odd by AJ thanks the incredible members of the selection committee for this honor:
✨ Yaffa Assouline @assoulineyaffa
✨ Youness Bouchida @younwess
✨ Leyla Neri @leyla_neri
✨ Lotfi Aoulad @lotfi_aoulad
✨ Samira Ibrahim @samiraibrahim.official
✨ Iro Iwata @iroiwata
✨ Majida Khattari @majidakhattari
✨ Philippe Castro @philou2709
Real flowers. Vintage corsets. Resin-sealed rebellion. Aya Jallad redefines what it means to be beautiful with the Damaged Beauty Corset—a sculptural series where imperfection isn’t just accepted, it’s celebrated. Sourced from rare vintage pieces and reimagined through experimental techniques, each corset is layered with real blooms and visible cracks that speak of resilience. This isn’t about flawless fashion—it’s about strength in the delicate, elegance in decay.
Designer @oddbyaj
Look 07: “Creature” created from 30 discarded pieces on the brink of waste, gathered, deconstructed, and transformed to form this being. Model: @romyandromeoo Photo editor: @ginakazzi
Look 05: “Flora” Focusing on the “broken down” look of the floral arrangement against the silhouette of a discarded dress. It’s about the movement, the texture, and the new life given to old materials. Model: @romyandromeoo Photo editor: @ginakazzi
Look 03: “Creature of the Sea” dress. ✨
Captured in a state of flux. This piece explores texture as a second skin—crinkled, shimmering, and ethereal. It is a visual representation of beauty that thrives in the depths, where fragility becomes its own form of armor. Model: @romyandromeoo Photo editor: @ginakazzi
Look 02: “Creature of the Night”
A nocturnal metamorphosis. 🌑
Sculpted from upcycled organza, this look explores the skeletal beauty of discarded materials. The skirt flows like dark black smoke, anchoring the organic, vein-like structures of the bodice. A second skin, born from the shadows.
Odd By AJ. Model: @romyandromeoo Photo Edit: @ginakazzi
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#OddByAJ #CreatureCollection #UpcycledFashion #DarkAesthetic #avantgarde
Look 01: “Creature of the Forest”
A fusion of discarded coral pink organza and the wild silhouettes of forest flora. The Mythical Creature collection begins now.
Ten weeks. Ten pieces. Ten creatures. Model: @romyandromeoo Photo Editor: @ginakazzi #OddByAJ #MythicalCreature #UpcycledFashion #natureinspired
The most luxury component of @OddByAJ isn’t the fabric—it’s the hands. We live in a world of “fast” and “automated,” where the true artisan is often the most underappreciated part of the process. People see the finished silhouette, but they miss the hours of labor etched into the fabric. 🧵
For my Upcycle Couture collection, the seamsters and seamstresses didn’t just join pieces of cloth. They navigated the tension of discarded fabrics, managing the soul of materials that have been manipulated by heat, distressed by hand, and reborn through their expertise.
A machine cannot understand the fragility of a heat-treated textile. Only a human hand can feel where a distressed fabric needs strength and where it needs grace. These photos are a tribute to that invisible mastery. It’s time we value the hands behind the art. 🕊️. . #OddByAJ #UpcycleCouture #FabricManipulation #ArtisanMade #HandStitched We are so used to perfection being synonymous with machines. But I find the most beauty in the work of human hands.
