Soweto Fashion Week 2015 has come and gone and what an epic week it was. From Thursday 19 November 2015 until Saturday 21 November, Soweto’s finest designers showcased their latest stellar designs at the stylish Soweto Theatre.
It being Soweto Fashion week rest assured the week was jam packed with more than just fine clothing. The Soweto Theatre was alive with dancers, singers, steel-drum bands, DJ’s, a photo booth and live performances that set the runway on fire.
I had the privilege of attending the finale show on Saturday evening and I was blown away by the incredible display of talent. Darling Hair Care products were on site to prep and style the models hair in intricate exciting styles. The show kicked off with a display of Darling’s talents including precious hairstyles for little ladies.
The standout designer of the night was Floyd Avenue. Floyd Avenue’s mens collection was fusion of urban androgyny, street style, trucker-inspired style with Nguni tones. The collection featured hard denim, trucker caps and overalls.
The designer successfully fused very feminine elements such as high-waisted denim, wrap dresses and on-trend gladiator sandals giving them a completely masculine edge. His collection was very well put together and each look was cohesive with the next.
Floyd Avenue’s collection made use of neutral tones such as grey, white and black. The collection was an authentic reflection of who the designer is, a job well done to him indeed.
Another stand out designer was Uju Designs; her collection was fun, funky and eclectic. Uju Designs made brilliant use of bold colour, mixed prints and an array of fabrics. Her work catered to both men and women. Her collection was so fun that even the models could not help themselves and broke out into dance.
There were a few disappointing elements to her collection such as the poor construction of the empire-waist pieces which ended up being too high and did not look comfortable to wear as well as poor stitching which appeared to be coming undone on some of the looks.
Unfortunately the collection itself was not cohesive, the mens looks were worlds apart from the womens. The men’s line far outshined the women’s collection.
Freshwear Kiddies Apparel put out an adorable children’s line that was fun and modern. The stand out pieces definitely had to be the looks created for young boys which included fresh printed suits, fitted trousers, overalls and even sportswear inspired tracksuits. The girls’ line was bright, colourful and practical. The models looked like they were having plenty of fun and thoroughly enjoyed being part of the show.
Overall Soweto Fashion Week was a huge success, well done to the organisers and sponsors which included City of Joburg, Vodacom, Vitamin Water and of course Darling Hair Care products. The sky is the limit for 2016 and as the stakes get higher the level of talent will only continue to soar.
Belinda Kintu
Pictures from the event..
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