Arise Fashion Week : The Beacon of African Fashion

Reviews , Trends & Everything Else ….

`The Arise fashion week is always one to look forward to in the buzzing city of Lagos – Nigeria . The Thisday style fashion event , which has NO stable calendar timing , is yet  known for its huge support in the Nigerian fashion industry and Africa as a whole , as the Arise fashion week has single handedly been projecting African brands consistently for the past 20 years .

One person that has become synonymous to the event is international veteran model – Naomi Campbell who in turn has used her global position to further amplify the creative talents we have tucked away in  Africa .

This year , the Nduka Obiagbena ( the publisher of Thisday Newspaper & Arise Network ) did not disappoint as him and his team did give a good show which was alongside the Jazz Festival .

The 20th anniversary was no exception to the rule of a grand show . From the line up of fashion talents to the runway to invited guests , the venue of the Eko Hotel was charged with activities of fashion awesomeness as new history was made at the “Future Forward” themed event

Fashioning  Up North

– Abuja-based brands like – Hudayya ,  Ameer by Ameer, Mariya Sanusi and Syari Bespoke confirmed to all that fashion does not start and end in Lagos alone at the ARISE runway. For the first time in a long while , we appreciated the interpretations of the conservative tribe weaving their cultural inspirations  while serving  their own unique takes on Nigerian fashion, style and culture.

Brand Identity

There were a few brands that we were not too sure of what their theme was about or who they were ( Save for the brand name flashed on the background ) as bits and pieces of other fashion brands with a mix of present trends , had us a bit confused  .  Brands like Fruche and Pepper Row were on this table .

Trending Trends

As synonymous with fashion weeks , trends are made and some broken . This year the trends have actually been trending . Some of which are the

Kaftans with Attitude as seen by Tiffany Amber , Hudayya & Ziva Lagos

Up -ing the Raffia Game

Most interesting of all , as literally a huge fraction of the designers paraded this trend like it was a must have accessory . While some claimed that brands like Eki kere got their inspiration from 90s kids tv series – Worzel Gummidge – all in all it was interesting to see how this trend was interpreted in many ways .

The Bold Bag Theory

Bows & Ribbons

Loss & Emotional Collection by Kenneth Ize

Anyone who witnessed the Kenneth Ize collection will tell you this for free . From what we gathered, the collection was to celebrate the memory of his Late best friend who was his model and muse . We were happy to see that the designer had picked up his sketching pad once more . The collection which was devoid of its colorful threading pieces was introduced with the sad song of Yesterday by the Beatles . The pieces bore bold marks of sadness and Loss . The next few pieces were then escorted out with the popular Whitney Houston song – I will Always love you . It was indeed and emotional collection to bear . Things later picked up when his signature pieces started stepping out in full bloom

Tiffany Amber & Lisa Folawiyo Join the League of Menswear Designers

The fashion bar will be raised this season as 2 big names – Tiffany Amber and Lisa Folawiyo debuted their menswear collection . Is it safe to say – Watch out Vanskere , Yomi Casual , Seyi Vodi Atafo and others on this table ?