I'm continuing my voyage of discovering bohemian, folk style clothing and this week I'm featuring Apolina.
Caroline has worked in the fashion industry for the past decade, when she discovered she was having a baby girl, she was so excited about dressing her - having cherished memories of pieces from her childhood; dresses hand-embroidered by her grandmother and 1970s hand-me-downs from her older cousins.
Finding teeny versions of bohemian embroidered dresses proved much more difficult than she ever expected so, the idea for ‘Apolina’ was born.
The aim was to create a line of inspiring childrenswear reflecting Caroline's own personal style, for like-minded mamas and their beautiful free-spirited babies. - and boy, she certainly has.
With a focus on highlighting Indian craftsmanship, Apolina works with a small, family-run Indian manufacturer, who employs equal numbers of women and men (unusual for this industry; it’s usually men).
Ethical trading and production practices are strictly adhered to and workers are not only paid a fair wage, they are also treated as members of the extended family.
Each item is unique due to the hand finishing of the garment and the free-hand machine embroidery is carried out by artisan embroiderers. Garments are produced in limited numbers through 'small batch' production.
Their pieces are mindfully designed to fit for as long as possible. The 'Pattie' dress has a simple relaxed fit, so it should fit children for a couple of years. Each style is seasonless and has been designed to be layered up or dressed down depending on the weather.
They hope that each Apolina piece will be passed down to younger siblings and then kept by mothers as a reminder of cherished childhood memories and in the hope of being passed to grandchildren as a future heirloom.
I wish I'd have discovered Apolina when my girls were younger, I adore the bonnets and dresses.
Apolina also do women's dresses too. They can be found in selected boutiques or of course you can buy online.
