Kaché Knowles, through her brand "iisabahamianbey" (standard English translation - I am a Bahamian, boy) is unapologetically Bahamian, so she could not help but drop an independence collection as The Bahamas celebrates its 50th year.
Knowles' different and unique independence line features, among shirts, a rash guard and tees, bucket hats and tumblers with designs that are not the traditional.
Her first "I is a Bahamian bey" independence collection showcases a postage stamp rash guard, "Symbolism" tee, "242 to the World" tee, and "I is a Bahamian bey" and "242 to the World" bucket hats and metal tumblers.
The "Symbolism" tee, which she describes as a fun piece, showcases symbols that represent Bahamian culture. Featured in the design are regatta, conch, sun; the words in her brand - iisabahamianbey, flamingo, rake 'n' scrape, Junkanoo; Bahamian words - mawnin, mawnin, mawnin, Mudda sic, bey. bui. bei.' guinep; the national flower - the Yellow Elder; and a straw hat.
She said any number of symbols could have been factored into the design.
"I always try to figure out which symbol represents Bahamian and it's hard to come up with just one, so this pattern was done to incorporate different aspects of Bahamian culture into one design."
Her "242 to the World" line is a cool concept that is literally the map of the world comprised of Bahamian words. She said the idea for the design was literally because Bahamians take their culture to the world and are proud of it. She said the design also represents the fact that there are Bahamians worldwide.
"I actually wrote something where I honored people who were not born in The Bahamas, but their grandparents were and they are connected to The Bahamas through the very few stories that the grandparents have told."
A Bahamian 50 cent postage stamp with signage of a destination, cave, beach, or blue hole from every island in The Bahamas, is the showstopper of her "Bahamas Stamp Rash Guard", which has her brand "iisabahamianbey" simply on the front.
"The stamp makes it unique because stamps were very big back in the day, so it's a sort of vintage play on Bahamian independence, Bahamian culture and Bahamian history."
The number 50 is incorporated subtly into the design, representing the cost of the postage stamp because while Bahamians are celebrating The Bahamas' half-century anniversary, Knowles said she wants people to be able to wear her independence collection offerings year-round going forward.
"You got it for the 50th - but you could wear it for the 51st, you could wear it for the 52nd - it's a keepsake that just keeps on getting better with age," said Knowles. "And then, I also figured everyone was going to be doing 50, so I wanted to incorporate something different, something unique ... a different option for people, other than just the 50th."
"It's very intentional," she said off her independence collection.
She also went beyond the flag colors of black, aquamarine, and gold. According to the shirt chosen, it can be had in black, daisy, tropical blue, maroon, dark chocolate, stone blue, sand or charcoal.
"I love the flag colors, and I have the traditional Bahamian colors, but sometimes you want different options for people who don't like blues and yellows," said Knowles. "You want to be able to wear the dark chocolate in the fall and know that it's a Bahamian shirt. You can travel in it. You can dress it up, you can dress it down."
And for the first time since iisabahamanbey debuted in 2019, Knowles has dropped a children's line starting from as little as 2T through youth tees in the "Symbolism" and "242 to the World" lines.
"People have asked for years for children's items and I always put it off, and this year I was like this is the 50th I'm going to include everyone," she said.
The collection also showcases bucket hats and two unique tumblers in the traditional "I is a Bahamian bey. bui. bei." and "242 to the World".
For her tumblers, depending on how the sunlight hits the canister, they appear either purple and blue or green and blue.
Knowles is many things - creator, storyteller, and an island gal from Eleuthera with big dreams. Then, there's the fact that she is proud to be Bahamian, and embraces all of the nuances that make a Bahamian ... well - uniquely Bahamian - and does what she can to empower Bahamian culture.
Through her brand, Knowles' aim is to empower Bahamian culture by preserving the past, educating the present, and building the future - as she says it. "iisabahamianbey" aims to celebrate Bahamian people - their tongue, their spirit, their accents and their dialect.
The "iisabahamianbey" brand is not new to the market. Knowles launched in 2019 after a three-month backpacking trek through southeast Asia where she immersed herself in what she said was a rich but simplistic expression of culture.
"I remember being at a small dance performance in Bali [and] thinking to myself, why don't we have these small, intimate expressions of culture back home."
Knowles did not get around to answering her own question, but, three months later, "iisabahamianbey" was created.
Knowles started out with tee shirts, but, over the years, she has also dropped hoodies, sweatshirts, crewnecks, hats, tumblers, bags, and books, and now her first independence collection.
Since she began the brand, Knowles had at one point stepped back from the brand, but it would not leave her, and she stepped back up to it.
"I am very happy that I did take the time off to figure out why I'm doing it," she said. "I think that's what I lost when I stopped doing it, but happy to be back with a clear path as to what I'm doing, why I'm doing it, where I'm going and what's next."
"I is a Bahamian bey" merchandise can be purchased on iisabahamianbey.com.
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