When I visited PICHULIK’s new Cape Town studio in mid-April the ground around my house (I can no longer call it a garden) was bone-dry. I had an appointment with fashion designer Nadya von Stein to talk about the PICHULIKbyNadya FW18 collection called Talisman for Rain. I don’t believe in magic nor superstitions, but I have to mention that the day after the media launch of the collection it poured with rain, the first good rains Cape Town has had in a long while.
When I meet her, Nadya is wearing a soft-yellow hemp jumpsuit that she designed. Her large worktable, a clothing rail and shelves occupy a section of PICHULIK’s second-floor studio in Woodstock. On the rail are items from previous collections, and many from the new one. She talks me through her designs and shows me bags of fabric samples. One is satin-like hemp, another silk hemp, both differ dramatically in feel from what we normally think hemp is – a rough cotton-like fabric. Since PICHULIK first introduced a clothing line in 2015, the label has been committed “to using natural and organic pesticide-free fabrics”. Most of the garments are made from hemp, which are hand-dyed, and some have been made using linen created by Mungo, “a South African weaver of natural textiles”. The hemp plant thrives on less water than most crops, and so it is environmentally responsible to use.
Nadya says her new collection is “a forest of greens and textures, hand-woven knits and bead work… Amazon and fern-green hand-dyed hemp are our colours for the season”. The winter suit is a tailored hemp-melange knit high-waisted trouser with half moon cutout on the back waistband with a matching jersey top and jacket with a repeat of the half moon cutout on the back yoke. A favourite item amongst those of us who saw the collection first, is the hemp organic stretch T-shirt with Talisman for Rain gold-foiled prints, hand paintings and bead work.
PICHULIKbyNadya follows the same themes and narratives as the jewellery collection. This season PICHULIK’s creative director Katherine-Mary Pichulik began her design process by creating totems and talismans for rain. “I wanted these pieces to feel innately sacred, ancient – our gesture to adorn our community – to collectively call in the rain for our land,” she says.
Nadya’s vision for her designs is to make the brand accessible to all women, irrespective of her style, age or lifestyle. The marketing material explains her designs as “classic shapes and silhouettes [which] are truly timeless and unfettered by trends. Instead, they empower the women who wear them to remain true to themselves, tell their own stories and to live with grace, instilling pride in themselves.”
After seeing the collection and speaking to Nadya, I’m not surprised that the inspiration for her collection is that feeling when you “step outside after a storm and are hit by the sweet, fresh, powerfully evocative smell of fresh rain”. The collection is earthy and has a very organic, hand-crafted feel about it, and within the narrative of the brand’s new collection it shows a deep respect for nature.
- The FW18 collection will be on display at AKJP in Cape Town from 4 May, and it will be available to buy on online and at Pichulik retailers from 17th May. See pichulik.com for more information.
- Lookbook credits: Photography: Alix Rose Cowie; Styling: Katherine-Mary Pichulik; Make-up and Hair: Amori Birch; Models: Taira Naidoo at Fantastic Agency and Maye Srouje at My Friend Ned; Crochet Dress: crafted by Diana Zitha
