HARTFORD – “I have the best of both worlds,” Kelly Christopher, owner of Gallant Apparel, said in a recent interview from her shop on Farrand Hill Road.
“With technology today, I am able to create in this exceptionally beautiful place,” she said as she gestured toward Bear Mountain and the pristine forests of Hartford, “and still reach an extensive audience for my work” via the World Wide Web.
Christopher’s excitement is tangible as she talks about creating handcrafted, one-of-a-kind garments and accessories, including scarves, neckties and satchels. Much of her apparel is made from silk. All of her merchandise is painted, printed and manipulated by hand.
“Essential Elements expresses a bond with all of the natural world,” she explained of the first of her two collections. “I hope my work serves as a reminder to notice and appreciate the extraordinary, living world that sustains us.”
Gallant Apparel’s mountainside studio in Hartford not only enhances her bond with nature, Christopher said, but also provides peace for inner reflection. “Beyond is a result of an inner quest,” she continued, naming her second collection. “I created it to celebrate and explore an inner beauty that is unique to the human spirit.”
Christopher, who earned a bachelor’s degree in fine art with a double major in textile design from the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, explained that while the location is important for creativity, she feels that silk, the dominant fabric at Gallant Apparel, is among the best possible mediums for her artwork.
“Silk provides an extraordinary depth of color,” she said. “And the human spirit is as stratified and varied as nature itself.”
Christopher said the wide range of images and patterns in her shop come from various dye techniques, including Shabori, Japanese paste resist, batik and direct dye application.
Through the use of the Internet, Gallant Apparel has been gaining distinction with collectors from all walks of life and varied geographical locations. “A businessman in Utah, an heiress in California, a housewife in Florida and an information technologist in Connecticut,” Christopher said in fondly describing a few of her eclectic collectors.
Christopher says she designed and built her Web site to serve collectors. “There is information on scarf tying, a glossary of terms and a lot of extra stuff that you can only appreciate by coming for a visit.”
She smiles mysteriously. “You might even win a little something.”
To find out more, people may visit her Web site at www.gallantapparel.com.
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