“Innovation only works in combination with craftsmanship and real know-how, and we have been able to demonstrate both for 60 years.” – Mirko Ghignone
Originally founded in 1994, Avant Toi is led by Fiorella and Mirko Ghignone, the latter serving as the brand’s perpetually curious creative director.
The sibling team has been around cashmere and design their entire lives because of the influence of their mother and her business, Liapull Cashmere.
This history has given the duo decades of experience as well as a desire to creatively push the limits of cashmere.
Seeing clothing and fashion as an art form more than as a craft or tool, Mirko states, “Avant Toi wouldn’t exist without art.”
Because of this philosophy, the brand ignores the typical restraints afforded to delicate hand-made garments with the inspiration to paint, stretch, cut and burn their clothing the way abstract expressionists treat their canvas.
Dyeing their garments with air-brush coloring and distressing the materials by singeing the edges are just a few examples of their ability to think outside of the conventions of clothing production.
Utilizing a proprietary technique and building upon their ability to create novel designs, the brand’s silk-bonded cashmere scarves are the pinnacles their innovation.
Placing a vintage silk scarf in the center of a distressed cashmere scarf, a high-pressure needle is used to bond the edges of the silk to the cashmere.
Playing off the historic relationships of silk and cashmere, particularly in the production of scarves, Avant Toi turns their experimental spin on a classic garment, into a new and luxurious creation.
