Carla Grima

Welcome to my space for creative thinking and storing inspiration.

This is where it all began.

In the spring of 2012 Carla was invited to Mumbai for a wedding and spent three weeks travelling across India. Blown away by the colours and patterns on the saris worn by women everywhere she turned, something in her mind’s eye shifted. True grace, flowing lines and natural feminine shapes.

On the last day of her trip she chanced upon a hidden gem. Tucked away in the Iranian part of Mumbai she was introduced to the Thieves’ Market, known as Chor Bazaar; an antique hunter’s paradise with everything from vintage Baccarat crystal to old Bollywood film posters.

Carla searched high and low. With the light of the day fading, she finally found what she had been looking for – a set of antique sari block prints. Inspired by the incredible textiles she had discovered on her Indian journey, she returned to Malta to re-imagine the patina and gentle drape of the sari in her own unique way.

Back in the studio, Carla bought cottons and spent the summer experimenting with a variety of hand dying techniques; shibori, tie die, dip die and more. She layered her cottons with metallic sari block prints, and then, in a fresh interpretation of the sari, transformed her new fabrics into Kaftans. This Kaftan would go on to launch her new label and become her defining garment.

With each new season, the experimentation continues. Carla has turned traditional block printing methods into digital techniques and her practice is grounded on developing printwork from around the world.