Under the mag: The Arise Fashion week

The Arise Fashion week is taking place in Lagos, Nigeria. This magazine is doing a great job exhibiting the work of various fashion designers on their runway. Reports are coming in on their page and the designs are really looking promising for African fashion as a whole. Viewing all the collections of the different designers collectively makes you realize: Africa fashion is booming and damn, we’re fabulous. Below are some takes from the last few days.

A Q&A with Eritrean Miss Excellence winner, Rebecca Habtab

Ambitious minds in the African Diaspora are doing a great job delivering projects and events which reflect on the beauty and heritage of Africa. An example is the Miss Excellence beauty contest organized by a Nigerian entrepreneur Anthony Obuezie, who is also the co-founder of Essence productions. On 17 December 2011 was the very first grand finale of the beauty contest, which took place in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The result of the finale was a well deserved winner named Rebecca Habtab. Rebecca Habtab(26) is an Eritrean young gorgeous woman who resides in Assen, The Netherlands. Her charisma en sweetened personality had the judges and the crowd struck. Rebecca won herself a contract with Positive Runway worth of 10.000 USD and of course a full year reign as Miss Excellence 2011. We wanted to know how this beauty queen is doing and which other inspiring activities she has in store for us.

Under the mag: MO SAЇQUE hits London Fashion week

It’s just today that we received the news that a MO SAЇQUE shoe debuts at the London Fashion week. Such exciting news! You might be wondering why we are rejoicing. Well, MO SAIQE luxury shoes is shoe brand which is does not only have an elegant, sophisticated, good-quality collection, but is founded by a young Ghanaian woman, Afua Dabanka. Arise Magazine’s editor in-chief even stated that MO SAIQUE shoes has a chance of becoming the next Christian Louboutin. Feelin’ proud already?

Under the Mag: Mina Evans

Fashion designer Mina Evans-Anfom at her fashion show launch in 2010

African fashion and African designers are rising. This refreshing movement, that critics call ‘just a trend’ is taking over the world, with its bright colors, African wax, animal prints and tribal accessories. Under the mag this time is Ghanaian fashion designer Mina Evans-Anfom. Mina Evans-Anfom, who is the brain behind luxury brand Mina Evans, recently launched her new summer/spring collection called Terra Ferma. Mina Evans fashion is just launched as a brand for 14 months and it’s such a success already. Having styled artists as TuFace en Becca and having a success after her first collection was launched in 2010, Mina Evans is at it and it’s definitely someone we should keep an eye on.

Congratulations: Uzuri Couture wins again!

Right when we thought that Uzuri Coutoure had won an amazing price by winning the Music and fashion battle (MAFB) ending of last year. We were wrong. She actually won herself a place in the finals. The MAFB finals, which took place in Amsterdam the Netherlands on the 22th of January la Femme chic, Deveney, Nawal and Uzuri Couture as their finalists. Guess who took the 1^st price home? Our dear Uzuri Couture by Audrey NM did!  

Under the mag: Marazetti

There is so much enjoyment to discovering more designers who are using African prints, fabrics, jewelry, colors and so much more into their fashion designs and collection. The designer who is under the mag this time is: Marazetti.  Marazetti is a fashion collection of clothing and accessories, such as slippers, sandals, pumps and bags made of Ankara (also known as African wax) and Kente for men and women. A lot of other designers have this type of collection; however their craft doesn’t look as professional as this one. You can see that this is great handwork. And the price ranges from $30 and up. Perfect!

Under the mag: African style market Soko Stingo

I ran into an interesting article about African style market Soko Stingo. Street markets used to be known as places where you can find life essentials, but these markets are globally changing into platforms that also sell clothing for designers, socialites and entrepreneurs. Such has the arrival of pop-style market Soko Stingo (which means style market in Swahili), which took place in Accra, Ghana on the 9^th of October. This style market attracted more than 300 visitors. Wanna know more?

Sozanni and Cavalli visit West-Africa! A part of booming Africa

A statement that has been said many times: “Africa is a booming nation and all Africans should be a part of it. “ I remember that this was said by Anne Merit van Hoeve who is an executive director Human resource at Vlisco Group (African textiles). I think she is true in many ways. The nation that is so much associated with poverty, man slaughter en hunger has a rising music industry and a booming fashion industry. This leads me to iconic fashion designer Roberto Cavalli and Vogue Italia Editor-in-chief who are visiting Ghana and Nigeria for fashion activities. This fashion duo first visited Nigeria and then went to Togo and to Ghana. Interested to know what they went to do?

Under the Mag: Burberry Prorsum

We know that Burberry is not a new brand. But Abina is totally in love with the Burberry Prorsum spring 2012 collection. The reason why, is because, it is all African inspired and it look absolutely chique. The collection displays Ankara prints, deep brown and all that is African inspired. Africa is going global, baby! And Abina's the first to tell.

Critics say that the African print outside Africa is just a trend. This might be so, but Abina absolutely loves the now trend: colourful and African. It might be a trend outside Africa, but we Africans will keep rocking African prints.

The Burberry Prorsum 2012 spring collection is a combination of chunky necklaces, dresses, and pencil skirts finished with an edgy top and colourful coat. Fabulous all the way! Pictures displayed below.he African print outside Africa is just a trend. This might be so,

Under the Mag: Somalian designer Omar Munie

In 2008 he was appointed as the best entrepreneur in the Netherlands. He is responsible for designing key hangers and bags for Samsung, of which over 18,000 were sold. None other than 25-year old Somalian clothing designer Omar Munie enjoys a success that every entrepreneur dreams of. This designer is full of energy and motivation. It is time for a talk with Omar Munie.

"I always wanted to create beautiful things”

Under the mag: Born to Excel

We are all familiar with pageants: the pretty young women with the ultra white and bright smile, the perfect features and the excessive perfect world-peace-ambitions. Not this one. The Miss Excel beauty pageant is actually a beauty pageant built to empower colored women in the Netherlands. No excessiveness, but actual positivity for the woman of color. The Grand finale takes place on the 17th of December in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, whereby 12 young women of color will compete to win the coveted crown of Miss Excel. This is something to look out for.

Under the Mag: Flybird

Abina Mag is all about highlighting Africa and Fashion, this includes African designers. I was warmly welcomed by Flybird’s young, Ghanaian and talented designer, Franky Boateng at his working place in Bink 36 in The Hague, the Netherlands. The designer, Franky Boateng and his team have poured their passion for bags into his own accessories line called FlyBird.

Why bags?

“I love making bags, there is where my passion lies, and therefore I choose to make bags. Flybird did not come overnight,

Under the Mag: Uzuri by Audrey N.M

A fresh, new and young designer happened to appear under Abina’s radar. Her name is: Audrey N.M and her clothing line is called: Uzuri. This young and talented designer exposed her chique and creative work at the celebration of Cameroon’s Independence Day in The Hague, the Netherlands. The audience was marvelled by her creations and so were we. She showed the kind of goods that convinced the young and the older generation of great sense of style combined with African fabrique. Her chique and colourful style, as she describes it herself, we believe has a great future. We are one of the first to have an exclusive interview with her show you picture of her first fashion show.

Under the mag: Christie Brown

Being so much into fashion, allows U to run into collections of various designers every day, but not all stand out. I mean, In terms of creativity and style. But this brand caught my attention. Christie Brown has a definite chique, elegant an edgy style that I know will have you convinced. Christie Brown is a young brand, which was founded in 2008, and she has enough goods to be under our mag.

Christie Brown is a Ghanaian based brand, which works with African wax combined with silks, chiffons, denims and more.

Under the mag: Swahili fashion Week

Swahili Fashion Week makes me wonder what is behind that name. This event caught my attention and I didn’t hesitate to let you know. The Swahili fashion week, this year on the 4^th -6^th November, is regarded as the platform for designers from Swahili speaking countries. This fashion week is a combination of expressing creativity in fashion and accessories, Swahili cuisine, arts & crafts, music performance, entertainment and more. This year, many designers from East Africa gathered to make this event a successful one in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.

Many designers showed their fined creativity at the event. Chichia London, Koroo and Asia Idarous are a few of the designers that participated in the Swahili Fashion Week. Abina is familiar with Chichia London, her style and designs.

I love the distinctive style of East Africa. Compared to the Central and West African style, they use more dark colors in their designs.