The Social Studio: The Moon Of My Heart Afghan Embroidery Collection

An initial five women were selected through community partner South East Community Links to work with The Social Studio on a collection of embroidered pieces to be presented in the opening runway of Melbourne Fashion Week 2023. A bi-cultural worker/translator was present throughout the ideation process, during which women explored memories of summer in Afghanistan. Whereas the women would usually embroider a selection of traditional motifs for their own pieces, this project encouraged them to think about animals, items and feelings that they associated with their homeland. Slowly, themes began to emerge - culturally significant birds and flowers, memories of fruit drying in the summer sun, secret messages sewn into a newlywed’s trousseau, romantic poetry for their distant loved ones. As these designs took shape, The Social Studio’s in-house manufacturing team developed garments and accessories from deadstock and off-cut lengths of fabric that would suit embellishment. Together they tell a story of collaboration, love and longing: Linen shirt and trouser - Featuring canaries and the gul-e-sap, or apple blossom motif, typical of Hazara cross stitch embroidery.

Rib set - Featuring poetry embroidered in both Dari and English (inspired by a line of poetry remembered by one of our embroiderers) this includes both a winking eye, the lala flower of the Jaghori district in Hazaristan where many of our embroiderers hail from, and a bleeding heart longing for a distant love. Denim bucket hats - Featuring a design based on the fine silk gulab (rose) often sewn into handkerchiefs women would give their husbands.

Slip dress - Dried fruit such as cherries, apricots, apples, grapes and figs sustained many of the women through the cold Afghan winters. Dried fruit is also important during nowruz, Afghan New Year, when it is added to water to make the special dish hafta mewa.

’The Moon of My Heart’ unites several important principles of ”good” design: each piece is an innovative marriage of modern silhouette with traditional technique, the entire collection minimises environmental impact through the use of deadstock and donated materials, while the garments themselves are practical pieces for every day use.

The project sought to highlight the talents and abilities of Melbourne’s refugee communities, in particular a group of women who - until now - had little exposure to the city’s creative industries. Through strong community partnerships, trust and respect for a craft that is becoming increasingly rare in both Australia and its diaspora communities, it achieved an innovative solution to fostering social connection and cohesion while producing a range of clothing and accessories that had mass-market appeal. This is design with a social core; through fashion and collaboration, ’The Moon of My Heart’ experimented with storytelling as a design tool, honouring the histories and culture of a group of remarkable women in the process.

This project is an example of ways that fashion and textile can carry social significance and meaning, not only for the wearer but also for its makers. The embroiderers engaged by The Social Studio had never had paid work before and their embroidery skills had traditionally been confined to domestic spaces. Through this project they learned their skills were valued beyond the home, built confidence navigating a new environment and were encouraged to share positive memories from a homeland most recently tarnished by war and loss. Furthermore, the creation of these items contributed to ongoing work for The Social Studio’s team of refugee and migrant makers, while also supporting the Studio’s retail and training operations.

Environmentally, the collection aimed to create minimal textile waste through its use of deadstock and end-of-roll fabrics. The ribbed pieces were constructed from production samples donated by ABMT textile mill in Melbourne, while the striped linen set utilised a large roll of donated deadstock bed linen. Denim pieces were patchworked together from denim donated by Nobody Denim.