A symbol of bohemian and exoticism, over the years “kaftan”, has become the general term for any loose-fitting garment or tunic. It is used frequently to describe several different types of clothes of Middle Eastern and North African origination (the abaya, djellaba, and burnouse are just a few examples). A true kaftan can be described as a narrowly cut, long, robe with full sleeves, either with an open neck, or fully wide open down to the ground and sometimes buttoned. The huge, bulky garment with no sleeves commonly called”a kaftan” is actually more like the abaya.
Kaftan is a Persian word, while the clothing style is believed that it originated within Ancient Mesopotamia. The Ottoman sultans from the 14th through the 18th century were adorned with lavish kaftans; they were also given as rewards to important generals and dignitaries. It is made of nearly any fabric. The majority are made of silk, wool, or cotton. They are usually tied by a sash. Kaftans tend to be worn by both women and men throughout all over the Iranian plateau, across North Africa, and into West Africa. Primarily worn in hot climates, the kaftan’s loose silhouette ensures proper ventilation and consequently lowers body temperature (though Russians have a similar garment also called a kaftan composed of fur).
When I was in Europe and North America, authentic kaftans were worn only by a select few travelers and eccentrics, who brought them back from exotic expeditions as part of the fad in Orientalism and Turkish interiors in the late 19th century. It was not until the 1950s and early 1960s that this style of dress began appearing in high fashion when it was adapted by French couturiers–including Christian Dior and Balenciaga–as a new form of a loose-fitting evening gown or a robe over matching trousers. By the year 1966, Vogue described the kaftan as an essential garment for every member of the elite and also photographed “the beautiful people” in various imported traditional styles and western variations “Here is the fastest enduring fashions to be invented The comfort of seraglio abounds in them; the slumber and relaxation emanate from them. The classic robes from the Near East, they’re now being seen all over the modern world, inspired by incredible dressmakers and every woman’s realization of beauty …”
The kaftan style was well suited to the styles of the following decade, it was a simple design that could be beaded, heavily patterned, or sleekly minimal (as it was in the work the style of Halston during the 70s). Ladies who ate at home were wearing the “kaftan dress,” while at the same time more traditional silhouettes were brought into Europe and the United States and Europe by young people who had traveled through the emerging “Hippie trail” from North Africa to Afghanistan. The growing popularity within America of the kaftan from top-end to mass market and low-cost imports–was a result of its connection with exoticism and the wear-anywhere ease of these pieces. From the late 1970s to the last decade, the Kaftan was no longer seen on the majority of fashionable catwalks, instead being synonymous with clothes for resorts.
Shortened to micro-mini length, Tom Ford took the kaftan silhouette to the realm of the sexually edgy to be worn by Gucci in Spring 1996, as designers seeking to infuse their collections with an “oriental” touch and nostalgia for the 60s realized the versatility of this garment. Fashion designers like Temperley and Matthew Williamson have continually reanimated the Kaftan’s Bohemian appeal, while other designers such as Naeem Khan, and Elie Saab have taken the kaftan to the red carpet by incorporating intricately embossed and beaded versions. The striking and graphic style of the kaftan lets designers to create their own twist on it, while still maintaining the comfort and modesty that make it so popular with women around the world.