Monday 21 November 2016

HELLO NIGERIA-LISA FOLAWIYO



While the fashion world celebrates the Autumn/Winter Season, I sit with a glass of fine wine watching the Nigerian industry blossom into a damsel of international envy. Salute then to the Nigerian celebrities who have tuned to the MAIN stream (Made in Nigeria). Do we have a long way to go? Yes. Have we gone a long way? Yes. Nigerian Designers are becoming more than fabric loving people, we are also breeders of fabric evolution. Andrea Iyamah, Style Temple, April by Kumbi, Kathy Anthony to name a few, literally.
 


Lisa Folawiyo a Nigerian fashion designer has proven herself effortlessly as among the brightest fashion designers. Her Autumn / Winter collection 2015 marries a spectacularly cool palette of colors, prints and textures. In the autumnal spirit, hems are decorated with oak leaves and maple while pieces of paper shaped cut fabrics adorn some parts in the creation of her look book, the dead leaves scattered on the ground that strengthen the autumnal atmosphere.

Here Is what I love about her. While this is but a glimpse of the dynamism she displays, she makes fabric feel like rubber, flexible and impossibly submissive. I must say she strikes me as a pace setter and permit me to say, a whisperer. While the silhouette of each piece is fluent and uncomplicatedly spelt out, the material is a spectacle featuring prints shaped in oak and maple tree which are reflected, withered and dying, on the setting of the collection while translating the theme and idea of the collection- “Transition and journey”. 
 

Folawiyo explains that “movement, transition, and growth” are key driving forces in this collection as seen in the arrow prints on patterns, embroidery and straps of some of the pieces. Those arrows therefore perfectly embody the essence and purpose of the collection.
 

 Lisa Folawiyo perfected the art of wearing Ankara (local West African cloth) through the use of ornate embellishment. By incorporating texture with this culturally established traditional textile, Lisa Folawiyo transformed the textile and created a globally coveted print. This conceptual and global design hybrid has been the key to Lisa Folawiyo’s success.
Fused with its very own African-inspired custom luxury prints, the Lisa Folawiyo collection skillfully delivers contemporary garments. With a strong eye for tailoring and fit, Folawiyo creates feminine and modern silhouettes with nods to traditional African aesthetics. http://www.lisafolawiyo.com/
 


 


 


 


 

Soft, simple, easy-The unimprisoned woman. 
 


 

SOURCES:www.theglowingcolours.com
                    decanteddesign.com
                    www.bellanaija.com
                    https://sugarweddings.com
                    http://www.fashionafrica.tv/
                    http://www.theglowingcolours.com/
                    http://www.lisafolawiyo.com/

Friday 30 September 2016

REDEFINITION -RALPH AND RUSSO



Locus amoenus is a literary term which generally refers to an idealized place of safety or comfort. A locus amoenus is usually a beautiful, shady lawn or open woodland, or a group of idyllic islands, sometimes with connotations of Eden or Elysium and comprising typically of trees, grass and water. It is no wonder that Ralph and Russo Autumn Winter 20I5/2016 footwear collection breeds this in every piece. Finished in satin, suede and patent materials with ornamental filigree leaves spiralling naturally up the heel, the Eden Heel pump harks back to the beauty and perfection of a lost paradise. As if from an enchanted fairy-tale, entangled in the dense foliage of the forest and claimed by a wandering damsel, the Eden Heel pump is celestial, refined and romantic. The Eden Heel pump is easily transformed from day to night. The Eden pump is the locus amoenus of the shoe world. 
 

R&R Autumn Winter 2016/107 footwear collection raises the bar on the dynamism the pair unleashes in the redefinition of what pumps and footwear in general represents. I am mostly intrigued by the rebranded image of the pump heel, easily thought as the piece for simplicity and corporate elegance. But then, with this collection, Ralph and Russo create timeless elegance with the detailing of the heels, marrying them to the image of Greece and all things ethereal. The flowers and well placed leaves incorporated on the heels gives each piece  flexibility  and diversity on occasion and event. Love the shoes, I can literally sleep in them-never take them off.


Dismissing the elegance of each creation is beyond impossible (I have tagged them the vision for my bridal story….the vision lol). Ralph and Russo are likened to the Lebanese who I   categorized Indubitably Masters of Detailing
 

“Sometimes comfort doesn't matter. When a shoe is freakin' fabulous, it may be worth a subsequent day of misery. Soak in Epsom salts and take comfort in the fact that you're better than everyone else.”  Clinton Kelly
 

“It doesn't matter how great your shoes are if you don't accomplish anything in them.”  Martina Boone, Compulsion
 


“The stiletto is a feminine weapon that men just don't have.”  Christian Louboutin
 

“There are women who only look at another woman's shoes and never at her face.
And others who always look women in the face and only occasionally at their shoes.” 
― Nina GeorgeThe Little Paris Bookshop

 

The fan pump according to the designers official website is, “Inspired by the spatial elegies of Massimo Listri, the Fan pump is a masterful composition of symmetry and elegance. The curve of the fan, flattering and flawless, revisits the alabaster arches and the sculptured ceilings of ancient castello’s captured by Listri’s artistic perspectives. Available in a variety of satin finishes and exotic skins, from deep burgundy to gold tipped pink python skin, the beautifully structured Fan pump encapsulates the dramatic yet delicate equilibrium of Ralph & Russo’s designs.These shoe are not overly embellished but radiates elegance and would be undeniably, faithful lovers to the feet of any lady of class.
 

Can't go wrong in these...



In the spirit of the ethereal theme that glows around the designers’ collections, the Alina clutch-The swan feather featuring an ornate metallic feather handle is an undebatable personification of elegance and sophistication. Inspired by the same regal swan that roused the melodies of Tchaikovsky, the fluid jeté of Swan Lake’s Princess and the elegiac prose of W.B Yeats, an intricately carved feather sits majestically atop the clutch, perfectly arched to adorn one’s hand.
It is without doubt that the pair have created a dynasty distinct for the reinvention things thought simple and stereotypic.
 


 

“Adornment, what a science! Beauty, what a weapon! Modesty, what elegance!” 
 
Coco Chanel




Live in the light of elegance. Simplicity is more..


                    https://ralphandrusso.com/
                    https://www.goodreads.com/

Monday 5 September 2016

THE AISLE AND THE RED CARPET



Something new, something borrowed, something blue, and a silver sixpence in her shoe- in this case, let’s say something extra spicy- The Second Dress. The famous saying dates back to Victorian times as many brides try to arrange their wedding attire accordingly. Something old represents the link with the bride's family and the past. Many brides choose to wear a piece of antique family jewelry or a mother's or grandmother’s wedding gown. Something new represents good fortune and success in the bride's new life. The wedding gown is often chosen as the new item. Something borrowed is to remind the bride that friends and family will be there for her when help is needed. The borrowed object might be something such as a lace handkerchief. Something blue is the symbol of faithfulness and loyalty. Often the blue item is the garter. A silver sixpence in her shoe is to wish the bride wealth. And now, something extra spicy represents the audacious diva in the bride.
Traditionally, white weddings have the bride glammed up in her Cinderella dress to meet her prince charming by the altar with friends and family as love struck spectators. It is famously said, 'it is all about the bride' and Nigerian wedding these days are making it 200% about the bride than was originally thought. From the extra effort put into pre-wedding shots, the outfit for the day, brides maids, shoes, make up, nails, even the food (Party rice and the tradition swallow just got a face lift as wedding now incorporate intercontinental dishes and desserts from cakes to ice cream to small chops and sometimes breakfast for an early engagement-talk about re-branding) .
With the wave of wedding renaissance, the concept of a reception dress stands out as a striking fascination. I for one attend weddings to feast on the bride’s wedding dress as well as her bride’s maids. With the incorporation of the second dress, you can be assured of two times the thrill and two times the wow, depending on what the bride presents. In line with the booming trend, how best can one achieve two looks and why?



The second dress is a cheat platform for a bride to indulge her sassy side and walk in her spot light. Reception dresses vary from  length to silhouette- virtually anything in any colour and silhouette that strikes the bride’s fancy. In the field of presenting two statement looks, I would advise to have two different silhouette for the big day( what better way to indulge your inner glam gal…lol) I recently crashed a wedding and the bride while taking her vows, walked away with a globe award for her smashing taste in sexy conservative fashion.

Though she slayed on all grounds, putting out the same mermaid silhouette for both the ceremony and the reception may not have been the smartest idea. A wise woman once told me, “make sure to wear a ball room dress for your wedding, you only have one day to look like Cinderella and not be criticized for it.”






I am of the school of thought that the second dress is a blank check for the bride to explore more than one silhouette on her big day, thus, eliminating the stress of what should and what shouldn’t be. Two in on wedding dresses are also easy cards to explore more than one look for your big day, who says a skirt on a gown cannot make a difference?

Whether it is a whole new dress in a rootless affair with colours, lenght and texture or even a jumpsuit, make it worth the glam; engage in an affair with more than one silhouette on your big day after all, it is your spot light.

SOURCE: http://www.brideandgroom.com/
                   https://www.paulagearanconnected.com
                   https://www.delii.dvrlists.com
                   https://www.nigerianweddingsguide.com
                   https://www.nigerianwedding.tumblr.com
                   https://www.bellanaija.com