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Caravana

Lucy from The Design Files...is showing us the incredible work by Australian Caravana...

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{Caravana designers - Cathy Braid and Kirsten Ainsworth, photo from Vogue}
Caravana is an inspiring Australian fashion label.  Young designers Cathy Braid and Kirsten Ainsworth started Caravana in 2003 with a unique shared vision.   They established their company not only with the aim of creating stunning garments inspired by age-old traditional techniques, but also as a means to empower culturally marginalised women in remote areas of central asia.
The pair recognised early on that they could not achieve their goals from a distance, so in 2003 they saved up some money, got on a plane to north-western Pakistan, and took up residence in a remote community in the Himalayan mountains.

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{Some close-ups of Caravana's unique fabrics}
The result has been amazingly successful. After facing some significant opposition initially, Cathy and Kirsten teamed up with a locally run NGO, and were able to establish work centres managed by local craftspeople.  In the last few years Caravana’s beautiful designs have steadily gained popularity and international interest, and the pair now employ over 500 women across India and Pakistan, in the arts of weaving, embroidering, dying and piecing together the most beautiful, detailed garments for the Western market.  The women Caravana employs are proud of their work, and are able to provide for their families in a way their culture deems acceptable. These women’s work has come to be highly valued by their families and community.

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{Some close-ups of Caravana's unique fabrics}

On average, a Caravana garment takes up to 27 days to complete, and passes through the hands of 10 talented women before completion.  This approach to manufacturing means that each garment is truly unique – there are subtle differences even between pieces of the same design, and each design tells something of the traditions of the artisans who created it.
Without question, the most popular and recognisable feature of Caravana’s work are their custom-designed fabrics.  The painstaking embroidery and incredible colour combinations are truly breathtaking.
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{Caravana-springsummer06-07}
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{Caravana-Spring/Summer 06/07, photo from Vogue}
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{Caravana-Some of Caravana’s early designs}

Thank You Lucy for introducing Caravana to us!