“Sketchbooks filled with ideas, fabrics draped over mannequins, Pantone charts, threads everywhere. There’s laughter, music, and a calm energy when we’re deep in creation.” Here, tucked away in her bustling studio on the outskirts of Paris, Kidiwi’s co-founder and designer, Lanto Andrianasolo, creates her timeless range of childrenswear designs.
From Paris, With Love
Situated in the historic town of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, just northwest of Paris, the Kidiwi studio is a place where craft, care and the joy of childhood come to life. Light streams in through tall French windows, framing rails of beautiful girls’ dresses in velvet and soft cotton.
“Paris is a constant source of inspiration. Like Kidiwi’s aesthetic, it reminds me that tradition and innovation can live beautifully side by side.”
Inside the studio, the space is filled with creative moodboards, overflowing with pinned fabric swatches, sketches and coloured threads — “a creative mess, in the best way possible!” It is here that Kidiwi’s beautiful children’s clothes are imagined. “My favourite place is the central wooden table, where we draw, paint, and build our ideas.”
Like Mother, Like Daughter
The Kidiwi story began some 30 years ago in the family workshop of Lanto’s mother, Bodo, in Madagascar, where all the garments are manufactured to this day. “I grew up surrounded by fabrics, threads, and the gentle rhythm of the sewing machine,” Lanto tells us. “Hand embroidery was already at the heart of my mother’s business, and she worked alongside skilful embroiderers I called aunties who would teach me their craft.”
“My mother’s first workshop was really my first school, where I learned patience, discipline, and beauty through craftsmanship.”
Written in the Details
“Smocking is like handwriting, unique, expressive, emotional. It connects generations because it’s full of human touch,” shares Lanto. “At Kidiwi, we take time to create these pieces. In a world that moves so fast, this feels almost like an act of resistance, a way to honour craftsmanship.”
Collars, too, are a Kidiwi signature: “We have so many versions and it is one of the technical challenges I offer my mother every season to create. This winter, many of them are delicately hand-embroidered, some with small roses, leaves, or scalloped edges. Collars frame a child’s face beautifully.”
Season’s Greetings
“Our AW ’25 collection is called Réminiscences, A Winter Poetry,” explains Lanto, “and it is filled with rococo details, velvets, tartans, and delicate embroideries that feel both nostalgic and refined.” Christmas is always a highlight at Kidiwi: “We love creating clothes that become part of family celebrations, pieces that children will wear for years.”
And what’s next for Lanto, Bodo and Kidiwi? “We’ll keep doing what we love most, creating timeless pieces with soul. The heart of Kidiwi will always remain the same: craftsmanship, family, poetry and elegance.”
