African fashion comes home

Dutch wax print fabrics may be a staple of African dress, but top designers are busting the stereotype, writes REA KHOABANE. Also gone are the days when African designers routinely imported cloth from Europe and Asia. The fabrics used by designers at the

With her Afrocentric style, Yomekpe is one of the most celebrated designers in Ghana.

Her “African Gatsby” collection imagines a 1920s Gatsby party in all its glamour and splendour — with a modern African twist.

“I wondered how an African woman would look in sparkle and mixing it with the African print fabric,” says Yomekpe.

“We had to make each fabric from scratch, which took months to create.” Basi’s designs celebrate individuality and feminism.

She says style is all about telling a story: “It’s more than a piece of clothing, it’s the narrative woven into the garment that interests and excites me, such as wearing a heritage piece passed down from my grandmother.”

Her technicolour coat pays extravagant homage to the prints widely used across West Africa. Influenced by his ethnic background and traditional Mozambican customs, Bacar presented a collection that is a celebration of his home country.

The ingenious use of woven baskets as umbrellas was among the highlights.