Mission
Encouraging distinctive ancestral craftsmanship, KASHANI innovates as a particular unseasonal fashion brand. In each of the timeless pieces the history and story of a community is told, is worn and is revered. Always true to the origins, from the most meticulous embroidery, crochet process or overlaying of fabrics, the artistic techniques of workmanship are celebrated and kept alive in the most personalized way.
About
From mostly remote villages in Iran, Leyla Kashani seeks to save the forgotten artistry by repurposing antique fabrics into innovative, luxurious, eclectic and sustainable one-a-of-kind wearable creations. The result, a highly desirable Art to wear!
Designing with the highest quality silk or wool blends, and incorporating vintage techniques of Iranian rugs and salvaged crafts, the final hand-woven creations carry the ultimate goal: to reveal authentic beauty and give value to the world’s ancestral and endangered artisanal heritage.
KASHANI is a Toronto based, ethical and forward high fashion brand that revives the purest essence of cultural lineage and history. Led by the designer and founder, Leyla Kashani, this conscious luxury house, practices safe trade principals and holds the artisanal techniques and heritage as main motto.
journey
The
Through my many years of travel and life experiences, I started watching old techniques and priceless old-world crafts slowly disappear into the mass production trends; until one day I decided to roll up my sleeves and be part of the change.
Born in Iran, with exposure and background in fashion studies in France and Canada, I started building on my passion for repurposing antique clothing in private capsule collections and showing in art galleries in Tehran, as well as fashion installations in Toronto.
My dedication is to go beyond just revering the craft as a memento, but to keep it alive through time and each wear.
With this objective in mind, the company also works as a connection for other fashion houses to repurpose fabrics. My drive for spreading forgotten heritage has led me to share my finds and source fabrics to other designers who want to create timeless pieces... Thus, becoming a tangible bridge between the past, the present and the future.
When you wear Kashani, you are wearing something original with history and design, and now tinting it with your own soul to pass it on, hopefully to the next generation.
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In 2016, I opened my atelier in Tehran, a place that has become my middle ground between my time in Toronto and throughout my treasure hunts. Along with a group of anthropologists, I travel to remote villages throughout Iran, and recently other places, searching for unique vintage materials and handwork embellishment techniques. I adopt these processes and pair them up with high quality imported fabrics in order to up-cycle and transform vintage pieces into sophisticated high-end wearable art clothing.
Love
stories
Hear the stories of those who make your clothes. How their techniques are passed down through generations, their day to day beliefs… Get to know the true essence of what you, literally, put on your back.
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By carefully finding, curating and altering distinctive textile elements, Leyla empowers not only the traditional artisanal methods from these diverse cultures, but also honours the human virtue and lineage. By respecting the cultural heritage of these remote areas, and by creating personal connections with the locals, KASHANI, becomes the ambassador of a circular economy.
The locals, who are commissioned to be part of the brand, are artisans who celebrate their traditional methods, and their skills are celebrated in the making of each garment.
Being sustainable and giving back has become the real luxury, and under this premise we make sure that both men and women work alongside one another to create our conscious collections, all under fair and stable employment conditions.