Caftan

This caftan was made by Kerrie Hughes for her second boutique in Wellington called 'Siren' (1985-86), and was part of her Byzantine-inspired range. Hughes was known for her labour-intensive construction methods, as evidenced by the hand-dying and hand-stamping of this garment.

Her first boutique 'Svelt' was in Cuba Street, Wellington, 1980 (in partnership with Di Jennings), after graduating from Wellington Polytechnic. They moved to Queen Street, Auckland from 1982-85. Their designs were humorous, adventurous, flamboyant and theatrical, and were successful with more daring clients.

Hughes returned to Wellington alone and opened 'Siren' in Ghuznee St (1985-86). In 1989, she launched 'Idol' in London with Penny Meachin. She returned to New Zealand in 2000 after a successful northern hemisphere career.

Her work has featured in Vogue magazine and one of her outfits was collected by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London in 1997.