THE POWER OF THREE

From dreamers to doers, the three women behind Dia Guild look to revolutionise consumerism and make slow fashion from Southeast Asia the new cool.

- COLIN GOMEZ

"Get your vulva out,” says our stylist to Aisha Hassan, the perkiest third of the Dia Guild Co-Founders. She doesn’t need a second invitation; she’s been waiting to break it out all afternoon. The vulva in question is not one of any anatomical origin, but instead refers to what’s arguably this cover shoot’s statement piece among an array of, well, statement pieces. It’s the pink clutch you see Alia Farouk cradling on our serendipitously shot cover photo, held close to the bosom of a coat that, for me at least, calls to mind Ziploc bags stitched together and filled with matcha powder. We’ve been calling it “the vulva bag” this entire time but Aisha says it is, much like a good piece of art, subject to the observer’s interpretation. “It can be a vulva, a pair of lips, anything you want it to be!”

It’s a lovely, temperate Wednesday and we’re at a studio to shoot the three enterprising women behind the Dia Guild. Founded by three Malaysian friends—Kylie Francis, Aisha Hassan, and Alia Farouk— Dia Guild is a platform centred around ethical fashion and supporting the craftsmen who keep Southeast Asia’s unique design heritage alive.

On the Dia Guild website, you’ll find something for just about everybody. Take a look around and you’ll see clothing, bags, accessories, fine jewellery, and stories. Stories? Yes. Dia Guild doesn’t believe in just stocking the creations of the artisans they work with; they want to tell their stories too. They want to let you in on the very same connection they feel with their lovingly curated collaborators. It’s what elevates, say, an earring into a conversation piece or a brooch into an heirloom, perhaps. By sharing these narratives, Dia Guild invites you to become a part of a larger narrative, where every purchase contributes to the preservation of cultural heritage and the empowerment of artisans.