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Rita Hraiz
Rita Hraiz Quick Facts
Main Areas: Empowering women to feel great about their inner and outer beautyBest Sellers: Colour Conscious Clothing
Career Focus: Sharing the joy of Source
Affiliation: Rita Hraiz in Mudra
In the early 90s, Rita Hraiz abandoned a highly successful career as a fashion designer, working for Top Shop, Saks Fifth Avenue, Hennes and Hyper Hyper Hyper to look more deeply into the meaning of life and the true purpose of clothes design. Her work had been featured on the pages of Vogue and she had ticked all the relevant design goals off her ‘to do’ list; however she felt there was something seriously lacking in the way the fashion approached women. In fact her disenchantment was so great that she burned her portfolio and gave all her clothes away.
After that she moved to Glastonbury with her 4 children and wore only white for 5 years, in that time she evolved the template for her all embracing and vivid designs for women, inspired by the principles of colour therapy and her own work as an astrologer. Her clothes bring the magic and healing aspect of colour to the fore, sensually expressed through her choice of materials which include ethically sourced Mongolian cashmere, silk and linen, made by a close nit team of workers chosen by Rita in Nepal. Profits from both companies go to support a monastery in Nepal, via the Siddharta Foundation a UK registered charity which Rita founded.
During London Fashion Week this September Rita Hraiz makes a welcome return to the industry and will be showing her gloriously feminine, Spring/Summer 2009 collections for her labels - ‘Mudra’ and ‘Rita Hraiz’ in suite at the Metropolitan Hotel.
Rita’s work centres on her belief in the beauty and power of all women regardless of shape and body size , she sees her approach as going against the tide of the mainstream culture which objectifies and enslaves women. In her quest to fully understand femininity she has trained in many alternative therapies including, astrology, colour therapy and at a more esoteric level training in shamanism and Tibetan Buddhism. And so Rita turned full circle and returned to her first love; designing and creating clothes and as a result of all her years training in different alternative therapies she has come up with a breathtaking and unique collection. Made with natural fabrics, such as high quality, Mongolian cashmere and 100% pure silk which are sourced and produced to high ethical standards, Rita has taken her understanding of right intention and infused her clothes with love. Every garment is designed to spiritually uplift the wearer through the use of colour.
Colour therapy works on the principle that each colour has a different vibrational frequency which affects both the mood and well being of the person wearing it, or seeing it. The right colour can positively enhance moods and has the ability to nourish and free the wearer from constraints.
The use of such bright and bold fabrics sets Rita apart and stirs a feeling of hot blooded passion. Women feel transformed when they step into these clothes and after one of Rita’s makeovers they are hooked, with many becoming regular customers. Rita, who has been developing her collection over the past two years, has been working at the ground level with women around the country, finding out their needs and wants, listening to their stories and weaving each one into the fabric of her designs.
“I see my clothes as an investment into the self. The gentle fibres and strong colours nourish the being, while soothing and comforting both the physical body and emotional self. I work in harmony with the feminine principle supporting the freedom for women to feel confident in their sensuality and encouraging them to love themselves”, says Rita.
Rita’s designs range from cute, girlie cashmere swing dresses to sexy clinging shapes that hug the body, giving smooth lines and curves in all the right places. They are chic and sophisticated with layer upon layer of cashmere, covered with flowing silk chiffon. The effect is a look is of pure unadulterated luxury and the feel is warm, soft and comforting, which opens the heart and celebrates the divine feminine aspect in every woman.
The spring, summer collection will be exhibited during London fashion week and is compiled of super fine pure cashmeres, linens and silks. Rita will also be showing a collection of her heavier winter cashmere, which includes a 4ply cashmere oversized cardigan, aptly named ‘The Big Hug’. She also has a more formal collection in silk dupion that is the height of indulgence.
These are clever clothes that can be mixed and matched to create stunning looks and maybe most importantly they are ethical clothes.
We are all aware of the environmental issues that are facing are planet at the minute and the fashion industry is no exception in having pioneering companies who are bringing about much needed change. With slave labour used to create most of the clothes we wear; intensive farming using heavy pesticides and gross amounts of water used to produce cotton; transportation from third world areas to the west, creating CO2 emissions; and manufacturing of non-biodegradable, chemically produced manmade fibres. Many people are now choosing to buy and wear clothes that have been made in fair trade conditions and using ethically sourced fabrics.
Mudra is one of these companies at the forefront of the change, using high quality cashmere from cashmere goats in Mongolia. The culture of Mongolia is tied to the land and nature. The people co-exist with the land, and rely on it for their livelihoods and well-being. They are a nomadic people, and cashmere production is the mainstay of their lives, and without it their life-style would be unsustainable. Despite industrialization, foreign influence, and urbanization, nearly half of the population still live in the traditional nomadic pastoral way. The wool is then shipped to Nepal and made into garments by a small team of skilled workers, who take great pride and pleasure in their work. Nepal, one of the world’s poorest countries in communities where fair pay is given and there is equal employment for men and women. Mudra is researching different ways to ‘put back into the community’ in Nepal, and are currently sponsoring a group of young, mostly orphan, monks, with a percentage of the company profits.
These really are clothes worth the investment and should be as essential to every woman’s wardrobe as the little black dress. They herald the beginning of a new age in fashion where buying clothes isn’t just about the garment, but also about where it was made, how it was made and the beneficial effects it has on the wearer. ‘Rita Hraiz’ and ‘Mudra’ are clothes that reflect our life’s journey towards wholeness.
