Caribana colours, as we have seen, are rich and sumptuous. Equally clever is the design and craft of the costumes and floats which make up the Parade. Having been behind the scenes while work was done on some of the Rose Bowl floats in Pasadena California I was expecting to see some of the same technigues, crafts and design ideas. There are a few similarities – wood+wire frames, netting, laminates, and such; but the required use of real floral elements defines and constrains a lot of Rose Bowl designs. In contrast, the Caribana floats are smaller and more modest in funding – yet also very clever in the materials and methods used in their design and crafting. The following images show some of the details:
