Our 7 Fave Designers from AFWNY!

The day that had been marked on every New York Afropolitan’s calendar finally arrived last week. The 2nd year of Africa Fashion Week NY was a success and brought a number of high profile guests including celebrity stylist Ugo Mozie, R&B singer Omarion, twin accessory designers Coco and Breezy, Isha Sesay of CNN African Voices and more. We were there for all three days and after seeing about 30 designers collections, we have picked our favorites. Check out who made the list.

 

Fikirte Addis
Handpicked to show at AFWNY, the Ethiopian designer stayed true to her heritage as most designers did by using traditional Ethiopian cloths such as netella (the light white cloth) and tibeb (pattern). Bolero jackets, hooded maxi dresses, and some short dresses made for an Ethiopian royal, Greek goddess style. With such creativity in her re-interpretation of what is usually traditional and conservative, the designer deserved the standing ovation she received as well as a spot on our list of favorites.

Washington Roberts
Nigerian designer Washington Roberts first wowed us with a few pieces that we previewed at the Showroom Adiree launch at Molton Brown last month. Since then, we have been infatuated with his collection which used turquoise as a color palette. Sleek lines, exquisite finishing as well as a modern and contemporary feel made it a favorite of ours.

BlackBird Designs
Kenyan label BlackBird Designs was one of the most positively reviewed collections of Day 1 at AFWNY. Men in mismatched Ankara blazers and harem pants paired with ski hats had us imagining what would be worn if cold winter snowy nights were the norm in Africa. We loved BlackBird in particular because they did something we have never seen before: they mix ankara with red and black checkered cloth in some of their pieces, including a chic trench coat, which steps away from the classic, but boring ones we usually see. We also saw quirky suits made from what is commonly known as Masai Plaid. Speaking of plaid, you may have spotted it in the Spring /Summer 2012 men’s collection for luxury house Louis Vuitton. In our opinion, Blackbird does it best.

Kozybyworld
Connecticut based Nigerian designer Kozby gave us variety and options with his line. We love the fact that some of the pieces can be worn as separates with pieces already in our wardrobes. Stepping away from using Ankara (only about 2 of his outfits were made using the fabric), Kozby designed for the modern working woman with grey pants, collared shirts and some gorgeous red gowns. We also spotted some Morocco meets Nigeria influences in a brown male and female embroidered matching shirt.

Korto Momolu
If there’s one thing that Korto Momolu knows how to do, its to bring the fashion drama. Having watched her creations via Project Runway, we have grown to expect collections that we know is “so Korto Momolu”, without being told. However, even though we did have the program in our hands as the show begun, we were a little surprised (in a good way) by the collection as it was different than anything we’ve seen from her yet. Anytime an established designer takes a different direction, risks are involved in terms of whether it will appeal to their current target market. Momolu struck gold with this one and we give her points for unpredictability. She did stick to her usual earth tones like oranges and deep browns but surprised us again when the last look was a wedding dress. A few seconds later, we were witness to a live wedding tapped for WE TV with the bride wearing a Korto creation.

Kachi Designs
If we could give an award for most wearable collection off the runway, it would go to Kachi Designs. We viewed some colorful and mostly short dresses that are perfect for the young and hip crowd who still want to pay homage to their heritage in Ankara.

KikoRomeo
Modern met traditional in KikoRomeo as Jerseys were paired with short Masai cloth skirts to form a preppy meets edgy look. We are sold on the long masai trench coat in particular.Perfect for winter days.

Photos: Dexter R. Jones; Kano Designs; Emma C. Photography