Switched on to shweshwe
Da Gama boasts new range
SHWESHWE went young, metro and outrageous this weekend. A dazzling new range of colourful Bhanya Bhanya shweshwe-inspired designs was launched by Da Gama Textiles at a Walter Sisulu University (WSU) fashion show on Friday.
The range, presented by creative trendsetters at WSU, drew gasps of appreciation and applause from about 100 fashionistas.
Da Gama director Kelvin Everts said they wanted to get young people switched on to shweshwe.
“Shweshwe is very traditional and since young people no longer live in villages, this is our way of bringing a product that is commercial and fashionable forward. The fabric designs come from the original shweshwe,” he said.
“These fabrics are funky. They have bigger prints with more colour. The cloth feels softer than the shweshwe of old and is generally more cosmopolitan,” Everts said.
Everts said while it had been a pleasure to sponsor the fabrics for the student designers, they were not doing away with the popular earthy brown and crisp indigo shweshwe designs.
“We produce a product that is proudly South African, so for us to bring the Bhanya Bhanya fabric to our consumers through the students, is great,” he said.
WSU fashion technician Sibusisiwe Nodada said the fashion show exceeded their expectations.
“It was so well received. WSU partnered with Da Gama to expose our students to the different elements of the industry. This is also an opportunity for the students to build their portfolios,” Nodada said.
The fashion show was held at Umnenga Lodge in Chintsa.
Designer Zikhona Zee Kolisi said her outfits were inspired by radio connections and the many wires used to create music.
“Exaggerated sleeves represent airwaves and circles the discs. The designs are simple but they are made elegant by the fabrics,” she said.
The overall winner of the evening, was third-year student Lelethu Tyete.
She said she was inspired by British monarchs, saying the title for her designs was Unaffected Elegance.
“If you look at the etiquette of the British, you will see that though times have changed, their elegance remains. I was not expecting to be the overall winner, so I am so excited,” she said. “I grew up dressing my dolls – fashion chose me, not the other way around.”
Tyete said she looked up to her lecturer, Archie Monyepau, as well as to nationally acclaimed designers Thula Sindi and Gert Johan Coetzee. —