Samarkand style

Samarkand is rich not only in majestic architecture and locations but also in creative people. Gayana Shadieva introduces three Samarkand designers creating stunning Uzbek fashion in new and old ways.

SHADI – Dilbar and Sitora

Shadi by Dilbar and Sitora is the first Samarkand fashion brand with a national accent. First opened outside of Uzbekistan, the brand started its journey in the United Arab Emirates nine years ago. Since then, Shadi has participated in some of the most prestigious fashion events in Dubai, including two seasons at Fashion Forward. Shadi also was on the cover of the Art of Living lifestyle magazine, as well as in other fashion publications, such as Harpers Bazaar Arabia, Grazia Middle East and Time Out Dubai.

One of the brand’s main focuses is to create fashionable clothes with Uzbek styles, incorporating extraordinary fabrics with a strong history, like adras, bakhmal and suzani. Shadi works directly with manufacturers to help preserve the historical methods of producing Uzbek ikat fabrics. Head into their showroom to find everything from this season’s dresses, Uzbek chapans and bomber jackets to plush toy donkeys, shopper bags, home decor items and fashionable aprons.

Location: Nurafshon Mall, Amir Temur St., Samarkand

Phone: +998 915317057 

Instagram: @shadi_uzbekistan

HAPPY BIRD – Elena Ladik

Designer Elena Ladik skillfully combines the past and the present in Happy Bird, an art gallery and fashion line. The gallery has become not only an important place on the tourist map but also a place where unusual and creative people gather. Visitors who come to the Registan can pop in to watch her work.

Ladik works with vintage fabrics, creating her collection from unique materials that are 30 to 40 years old.

These are vintage fabrics which cannot be found today. She combines European patterns with national Uzbek satin fabrics in avant-garde ways, not only creating new outfits but also giving new life to secondhand items.

Location: 43A, Islam Karimov St., Samarkand

Phone: +998 937204215

Instagram: @lenaladikhappybird

FATIMA – Fatima Gulyamova

Situated along the Tashkent pedestrian shopping street near Registan Square, Fatima’s boutique looks like a Central Asian fairy tale: colourful chapans and ornamented ikat dresses, embroidered suzani and myriad handbags. The brand’s inspiring owner and namesake, Fatima Gulyamova, has been creating her collections since the 90s. She can talk for hours about how she recreated multi-coloured, decorative braids based on old photographs, created adras patchwork for bags and spent hours mulling over artisan fabrics from Margilan. Several dozen seamstresses work in the showroom to create these beautiful pieces.

Location: Tashkent St., Samarkand

Phone:  +998 909197199

Instagram: @fatima_samarkand