Glamour’s Most Glamourous Meet the 10 winners of this year’s awards
Meet the 10 diverse women whose style, allure and uniqueness are finessing the fashion game. Their approach is a testament that clothes are more than just material objects; they are a means to express your mood, creativity and lived experiences, while providing the freedom to show off the many layers of who you are.
AMANDA DU- PONT BRIDGET PICKERING NHLANHLA NCIZA ROLAND A MARAIS DR NANDIPHA SEKELENI SARAH LANGA MACKAY MANTHE RIBANE YASMIN FURMIE RENEÉ DE WIT NABILAH KARIEM PECK
“I love fashion because I can express myself through certain looks. I also love the idea of constantly reinventing myself and growing – fashion helps me show that aesthetically. My shoe collection can tell you exactly who I am: a revolutionary woman who can’t be put into a box, category or style.”
AMANDA DU- PONT ACTRESS
“My mother was incredibly glamorous and I definitely inherited her sense of style and confidence. Unfortunately, I lost her to breast cancer, and when the dreaded time came for us to go through her wardrobe, what should have been a tear-filled occasion was actually hugely cathartic and joyous. Her incredible wardrobe stood testament to her colourful life, and the many amazing memories that showcased her fabulous style and love of fashion.”
BRIDGET PICKERING FASHION DESIGNER
“Fashion is the biggest form of self expression and the most valuable tool to reinvent yourself. The style icons who have been most influential to me are Brenda Fassie and Jackie Kennedy Onassis. They were always ahead of their time fashion wise, and didn’t follow but set trends.”
NHLANHLA NCIZA MUSICIAN, DESIGNER
“When it comes to style, it’s important to be yourself and not let anyone else dictate the way you choose to dress or behave. I bought a vintage embroidered belt in Istanbul, Turkey, during my honeymoon and I think it best represents who I am. It’s colourful, well-made and playful but also sophisticated and sentimental – that’s how I would like for someone to describe me, too.”
ROLANDA MARAI S ACTRESS
“For me, clothing is a form of art. I fell in love with fashion because it afforded me the ability to explore my creative side. With clothing, you’re able to reveal more about who you are. I enjoy using fashion to conceal and reveal layers of my personality.”
DR NANDIPHA SEKELENI MEDICAL DOCTOR
SARAH LANGA MACKAY FASHION BLOGGER
“As a young girl, I loved the feeling of creating looks and styling pieces. I always used to dress up for my family and make outfits out of left-over material to model for my mother and her guests. Clothes always made me happy and confident, even as a child. I always treated my body as a canvas and fashion pieces as my pastels to create art that was unique and expressed the best version of myself.”
MANTHE RIBANE MULTI DISCIPLINARY ARTIST
“I fell in love with fashion because of the way it made me feel, and to see how the people around me truly admired my style. Fashion paved new and amazing opportunities for my career. My granny loved to dress up, and I would look at her and how her sense of style would transform her mood. When you’re sad and life gets hectic, design and fashion can be healing.”
“Fashion is theatre. The creation of an image conveys the very persona that defines me. My style conveys the strong woman I am: the nonapologist, the boundary breaker, the radical, the person straddling the masculine/feminine spectrum as well as the young/mature spectrum. My style is often composed of layers that, on the surface, may seem to be contrasting and conflicting, but it portrays the nonconventional person I am. It defies age boundaries and tradition, and is meant to shake up the conservative ways we expect women of a particular age to dress. All in all, my style challenges expectations.”
YASMIN FURMIE BUSINESSWOMAN, STYLIST
RENEÉ DE WIT MAKEUP ARTIST
“I’ve never really had a signature style, as I’m always changing my look to suit my day. I’m either in mommy mode, makeup artist mode or dressed up for an event. My personality is very outgoing, but my dress sense doesn’t really reflect that at all, because I generally opt for neutral tones. I love clean lines and tailored clothing, think a slightly padded shoulder and high-waisted trousers. But I always start with what bag I’m going to wear, then I choose an outfit to match it.”
“Most of the time, I’m just expressing myself, but I guess the message I convey with my style is that modesty is not as restraining as people might think, and that you can still express yourself and look on point, while maintaining that modesty. I’ve always been in love with fashion, I think it’s inherent in me. I come from quite a fashionable family, even my great grandmother was known for her fashion sense.”
NABILAH KARIEM PE CK FASHION DESIGNER, STYLIST