Ibulliance: When Beauty Strikes

In a corner of this 17th century madrasa, swirling with noisy visitors and cameras trying to capture the whole spectacular sky-scape of it, I stand still. The gold-tinged plaster, tiled walls, robe-like dome, even the floors cry with amazement. In the still corner, I hear a song of creation echoing through centuries, through countless hands who shaped this space into something like praise, like an anthem of love. I look to my traveling companion next to me, her eyes filling with tears. It's just too much beauty, she tries to explain. I don't know how to take it in.

It wasn't the only time beauty slayed us—the twenty-two Ibu adventurers tracing the Silk Road in Uzbekistan last week. The abundance of textiles—both old and new—storied with hand stitches; the turquoise tiles that glisten in the dream of Samarkand, the ripe pomegranates dripping in tucked-away gardens, the bazaars blanketed in color—all grabbed me by the ankle, stopped me in wonder.

The astonishment of Uzbekistan grows from the hands of its creatives. The craft of beauty here is not only a livelihood, but a lifestyle. After Soviet control lifted in 1991, the artisans of Uzbekistan went to work rebuilding their workshops and re-invigorating their ancient craft traditions. There was joy in being invited close in to see silk drawn from cocoons, try a hand at forming a ceramic vase, learn hook embroidery, watch platters being painted, plov stewed, bread stamped with phone numbers, yarn dyed with nature's gifts, garments constructed, fabric woven… all by skilled and graceful hands, (these pictured in order, below). Learning the process that builds each piece of beauty is part of the astonishment. Who knew there are 37 steps to making ikat cloth??

Two weeks from today, Ibu debuts Outrageously Uzbek, a collection for the holidays that brings this extraordinary beauty to you: the ripe luscious red of the pomegranate, the azure blue of the domes, the soulfulness of wearing garments colored by nature, woven by hand. It's exciting to share this with you, just after returning from the makers. Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing more from our journey—stories of our artisan partners and travelers that bring depth and life to the clothes themselves. I'm thrilled to bring the stories home, not only in pictures but in beauty you can wear.

As I pull myself away from an old Bukhara home amply flowing with hand-stitched textiles, my heart still racing, another fellow traveler leans in. Remembering the French writer, Stendahl, who upon visiting Florence was so overwhelmed with the beauty of the art that he began to experience heart palpitations, rapid breathing, hallucinations—a condition that came to be known as Stendhal's Syndrome—she suggests that the magnificence of what we are witnessing might be called Ibu Syndrome, that rare condition of being thunderstruck by beauty, soulfully crafted by the human hand.

This is the joy of Ibu's Fringe Road Adventures—to travel together beyond our national and cultural borders into the wild thrill of beauty, where hearts not only palpitate, but open in astonishment to this luminous world. Maybe one day—with intrepid feet or simply your brave, curious heart— you'll be a part of this adventure, too?

All the best,
SHW
Creative Director + Founder

P.S. Some of the travelers went on to Turkmenistan for an adventure of a lifetime. Look for a report as they return to tell!