Drawing on passions for travel, art, and teaching, Minnesota native Kelly Moe-Rossetto launched Cardamom Collective, an ethical and fair-trade brand inspired by the colors and textures popular along the Silk Road.
The venture started in the form of a spice blog as a side hustle to her teaching job. “It was less about the culinary aspect and more about the interconnectedness of countries through the spice trade,” Moe-Rossetto says.
She later enrolled in a block printing workshop and shadowed a fifth-generation printmaker in India before venturing to Guatemala, where she was inspired to create her first product—an art teacher tote bag. Moe-Rossetto sold hundreds, and the idea for her product line was born.
Today, she creates small-batch goods designed from watercolors and later hand-loomed and dyed by artisans and producers around the globe. Named after the exotic spice that Moe-Rossetto believes to evoke feelings of nostalgia for many cultures, Cardamom Collective’s goods are all married by a succinct theme: “I keep it focused on what someone would carry in their travel bag.”
Moe-Rossetto’s also focused on reducing her environmental footprint and creating textiles that serve multiple purposes, similar to countries like Korea and Japan. Shop the collection at cardamomcollective.com.
Madeline Nachbar
As Mpls.St.Paul Magazine’s Trend & Style editor, Madeline Nachbar draws on her passion for travel, fashion and the arts to keep a close pulse on what the next big trends are, and excels at creating visually-compelling content that inspires.
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August 2, 2022
6:14 AM