Darza studio is a slow fashion studio founded in 2019 by Waad and Ahd Hammad, All the designs at Darza are done by the sisters, starting from sketching and making the patterns to cutting and sewing.
All of Darza designs are hand embroidered with traditional cross stitch Palestinian embroidery.
In the project, the sisters focus on slow and sustainable fashion, discussing personal identity issues and archiving Palestinian traditional dress. They are inspired primarily by women in their neighborhood and celebrate their differences and diversity using local techniques that distinguish the Arab women in general and Palestinian women in particular.
In Darza we record, preserve and redesign our heritage with women from the refugee camps in Qalandia and Alaroub. Every design is hand embroidered with a great deal of craftsmanship to tell our and their story.
One of our greatest targets is to preserve our heritage through buying old thobe (traditional embroidered dresses) and redesign them into new designs. Every time we buy a dress we start to wonder about its history, who wore it? How come it’s neglected now and in a second hand shop? Who embroidered it? And how much time did it take to be ready and how many years did she wear it?
These questions always make us want to make designs that will live forever and live to the next generation.
Our Palestinian identity is an integral part of us, and we clarify this by repositioning embroidery with modern and contemporary designs.
When you buy from Darza, you are investing in the memory and identity of an entire homeland
Our designs are simply timeless, you can wear them anywhere, anytime and we guaranty that every time will feel like it’s your first time wearing it. We consider our designs as a unique art to wear, every piece can be inherited for generations.It is the link between people outside the borders of Palestine and the homeland they miss and feel nostalgic for. When you wear Darza, you will feel that you carry your homeland wherever you go.
Who’s behind Darza?
Waad Hammad (born. 1993) is a fashion designer based in Jerusalem, Palestine. graduated with a bachelor degree in fashion and jewelry Design from Bezalel academy of art an design in 2015.
Waad's work is inspired by the influence of the Palestinian Arab cultural heritage, in all its forms, including cultural and societal ones, as well as the history of traditional Palestinian dress. Waad established her own project "Darza Studio", where she focuses on slow and sustainable fashion and discusses issues of personal identity and archiving traditional Palestinian dress.
She is responsible for every thing from choosing the fabric to cutting and sewing it. She and her sister Ahd together build each of Darza collections and are behind every step to get it to the viewer.
Ahd Hammad (born 1994), graduated with a Degree in Accounting and Economy. She handles all the logistics in Darza, from our social media platforms to packaging and marketing.
Ahd is responsible of conducting various embroidery workshops in Darzah, including the beginners’ workshops as well as the more advanced ones.