À Capucha! is a creative studio for communication design projects and is interested in the dialogue between design and manufacturing, which it particularly explores through its collection of traditional Portuguese capes.
Inspired by a centuries-old tradition, we bring the capuchas of small Portuguese villages to the world.
We are two graphic designers – Maria and Raquel — who, in tradition, found the most perfect design process: the capucha — the age-old refinement of a technique and a form for a specific function. We decided then that we had to tell the world about it!
The capucha is a traditional Portuguese cape made from traditional woollen felt called burel, used by shepherds and farmers, and which simply rests on the head. This design allows for complete freedom of movement for rural work, while sheltering its wearer from the cold and protecting them from the rain.
To create our capuchas we work closely with local artisans in a constant exchange between design and production. We explore the technique of handwork in burel, trying to understand its potential and limits. This artisanal process gives us the freedom to test and iterate in a immediate way, which allows us to create unique pieces, or small runs, which are the result of a continuing tradition, combined with new formal proposals and concepts.
video: acaixanegra
music: the sight below, already there
CREATIVE direction: À capucha
In developing these partnerships we strive to bring a new drive to traditional handicrafts without relegating them to obsoletion or subjecting them to impossible standards of production.
At À Capucha! we don't work by seasons, but we always have a new outlook on the capucha based on small details, including colour, cut and finish. The novelties we introduce are intended to make a sustainable, functional and beautiful item, that proudly takes its place in contemporary life.
“à capucha. loc. adv. 2. Discreetly, modestly, quietly.”