African Fashion Design Royals Light Up Heineken Lagos Design And Fashion Week

Heineken Lagos Fashion and Design Week is one of Africa’s biggest fashion week because it manages to pull talented designers from all over Africa who flock into Lagos in Nigeria ready to show their collections among the best of African fashion designers like Mai Atafo, Rich Mnisi, Adama Paris, Laduma Ngxokolo , Orange Culture, Nkwo, Tokyo James among others.  The quality of designers who show at Lagos Fashion and Design Week is not surprising due to the fact that Lagos is one of Africa’s  fashion capitals and it is the best place for creativity to thrive. Fashion lovers get to experience and engage with the designers’ collections in the best way possible through shows that are well produced and well put together by the designers and stylists.  Lagos Fashion and Design Week not only provides a platform for fashion designers to showcase their work, but they bring together stylists, buyers, fashion editors, photographers and other fashion lovers in order to discuss ways of moving African fashion forward.

One of the designers who stood out for me was Mai Atafo, his entire collection had me saying yes and I love the choice of colours paired with the right accessories which make the looks absolutely unpredictable and visually pleasing. This show took layering to another level showing that evening dresses look great when paired with blazers and that the looks can look great on the red carpet as well as at a cocktail event. Nkwo’s blue and white collection stands out because of the ridiculously big head gear that were once carrier bags for groceries and the like; the dresses seem to be inspired by old school fashion and yet they fit right into the present fashion era.

Brands like XII, TTYA and NACK catered to the ready-to-wear market who enjoy sharing their street style shoots on social media. The kind of consumers that can be labeled as cool kids because they are edgy and not afraid to experiment with their looks. TTYA also had a colourful collection with colours that contrasted beautifully through a mixture of dresses and suits that can be worn at a high tea and other cool fashion events. Clan’s collection had me thinking about a day at the horses or a high tea event because the hats just inspire a day at an event with a well manicured lawn, bottles of champagne, great company and great photo moments.