Africa Fashion Week Happening in Jozi

There's a big Africa Fashion Week taking place this weekend in Johannesburg, unfortunately wont be attending the show but i will make sure i post images on the blog for you to check out, find below information and also pics of two of my flavarit Models at the moment, Sessile Lopez and Wakeema Horis.

Ola....

The Africa Fashion Week, happening at the same time as the Confederations Cup, is going to be absolutely fabulous! This showcase of the continent’s leading fashion designers happens at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, from the 12 to 20 June 2009.
Africa Fashion Week,sponsored by the amazing London based Nigerian mag Arise, is an eight day celebration of the aesthetic and unique design signature of African fashion, brought together under one roof, overcoming ethnicity and cultural disparity to take African fashion to the world.

With 51 designers from 21 countries participating, Africa Fashion Week is creating history. This is the very first African fashion week and it is set to become an annual event, travelling around Africa each year following the 2010 showcase.

Africa has produced many notable fashion designers who have made their mark and are recognised on the world fashion stage, including the celebrated Xuly Bet from Mali, Azzedine Alaia from Tunisia, Oswald Boateng from Ghana and Marc Bouwer from South Africa, all of whom have dressed celebrities, politicians and models to great acclaim for some years.

Many of the designers participating in Arise Africa Fashion Week have dressed celebrities as well.

Nigerian born, Samantha Cole has shown her work in London and New York, winning best women’s wear designer in 2008. Having trained at London College of Fashion and honed her craft in the Burberry design room under the creative directorship of Christopher Bailey, Samantha now brings her own designs back to Africa.

Lalesso, a Kenyan/Cape Town design and manufacturing operation, with South African distribution, has seen their garments on Kate Moss, Sienna Miller, Rihanna and Estelle. They also have a concession in the TopShop flagship store in Oxford Street in London.

The Tiffany Amber label from Nigeria, has also received a favourable response from the critics in New York. Participating in the Arise Africa Fashion Collection at New York Fashion Week earlier this year.

The designs of bridal and evening wear designer, Gert van de Merwe will also be on show in South Africa for the first time in many years. Having established his studio in London in 2002, he has gone on to become one of the designers of choice for brides in London, having been invited to show his collection at Kensington Palace in 2006, under the patronage of Princess Michael of Kent.

Africa has long been a source of inspiration for the artists and designers throughout the world. Now it’s time for African designers to have a platform to showcase their works, instead of just providing the globe’s big name designers with inspiration and flavour “We looked for the very best designers that the nations of Africa have produced over the years when putting together this show schedule,” says Paul Jackson, CEO of African Fashion International who organise Africa Fashion Week, Jo'Burg, Cape Town and Durban Fashion Weeks.

Jackson continues, “We needed to make sure that an international event of this scale lives up to the expectations of all the buyers, media and industry players that will be attending for the first time. We think we have a fantastic line up and expect many return year after year to see what African has to offer.”

Dr. Precious Moloi-Motsepe, chairperson of African Fashion International, says, “At AFI, our mission is to take African fashion to the world. In fulfilling this mandate, I take enormous pleasure in launching the inaugural Arise Africa Fashion Week. This event affords the regions’ creative economy with a world-class opportunity to showcase to a global audience. This is the first step in ensuring that the region receives the benefit of its own creative intellectual property, history and culture.”

SHOW SCHEDULE

Friday 12 June

18h00 Ituen Basi/ Sika Designs Nigeria/Ghana

19h15 L'or d’Afrique by AuDITIONS SA/Ghana

20h30 Christie Brown / Nkwo Ghana/Nigeria

21h30 David Tlale SA

Saturday 13 June

16h00 Jewelbylisa Nigeria

18h00 Eyola/ Heni Nigeria/SA

19h15 Samantha Cole London/ Abigail Keats Nigeria/SA

20h30 Thula Sindi/Tiffany Amber SA/Nigeria

21h30 Sandra Muendane/Vesselina Mozambique/SA

Sunday 14 June
16h00 South Africa vs Iraq (Jhb) FIFA Confed Cup

18h00 Helen Asrat/ Pambili/Mustafa Hassanali Ethiopia/Namibia/Tanzania

19h15 Lanre da Silva/ Gloria Wavamunno Nigeria/Uganda

20h30 New Zealand vs Spain (Rustenburg) FIFA Confed Cup

21h30 Paul Herve Elisabeth/ Bebenoir Martinique/Guinea

Monday 15 June
16h00 Brazil vs Egypt (Bloemfontein) FIFA Confed Cup

18h00 Mekdi/Sylvia Owori Ethopia/ Uganda

20h30 USA vs Italy (Pretoria) FIFA Confed Cup

21h30 Odio Mimonet Nigeria

Tuesday 16 June
18h00 Eric Raisina/ Taibo Bacar/ Louise Njamen Madagascar/ Mozambique/ Cameroon

19h15 Lalesso/Thulare Monareng Kenya/SA

20h30 Adama Kai / Anna Ngann Yonn/Patrick Asso SierraLeone/ Cameroon/Ivory Coast

21h30 Ben Nonterrah/ Alphadi Ghana/Niger

Wednesday 17 June
16h00 Spain vs Iraq (Bloemfontein) FIFA Confed Cup

18h00 Ade Bakare/ Lisete Pote Nigeria/Angola

19h15 Tina Atiemo/ Zineb Joundy Ghana/Morrocco

20h30 South Africa vs New Zealand (Rustenburg) FIFA Confed Cup

21h30 Southern Sun Swimwear SA

Thursday 18 June
16h00 USA vs Brazil Pretoria) FIFA Confed Cup

18h00 Koketso Chiepe/Soucha Botswana/Egypt

19h15 House of Diva/ Craig Jacobs for Fundudzi - Presented by Nando's Peri Deli Swaziland/ SA

20h30 Egypt vs Italy (Johannesburg) FIFA Confed Cup

21h30 Klûk CGDT SA

Friday 19 June
18h00 Bongiwe Walaza/Imani Hse of Fashion: Liz Ogumbo SA/Kenya

19h15 Carducci L'uomo Collection & Csquared SA

20h30 Gert Van de Merwe SA

21h30 African Mosaique Pan African