By Christy Anyanwu
Nigerian designers are on top of their game. They consistently fashion out trendy and contemporary styles, and their designs encapsulate amazing creativity.
One of the brands that identifies excellence in womanhood is Apparel by Empress. The fashion house embodies sophistication, elegance and empowerment. It celebrates the modern woman’s strength and individuality with a touch of excellence.
With a focus on inclusivity, Apparel by Empress caters to the normal and plus size ladies by ensuring that every woman finds something that makes her feel comfortable, confident and beautiful.
At the Fashion Finest Africa Epic show held at Glitz Event Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos from May 31 to June 1, 2024, Apparel by Empress once again proved that it’s an iconoclastic creative house with stunning designs and angelic models strutting the runway.
During the event, the fashion house showcased a range of versatile apparels that can transition from day to night, and suitable for various occasions. The collection aimed to celebrate African culture and heritage while promoting sustainable and ethical fashion practices for the modern woman.
Speaking at the event, Founder and Creative Director of the brand, Ifedolapo Olanike Oladipo, said the Fashion Finest Africa Epic show offered her a unique opportunity to showcase her talent as a gifted designer.
For her, participating in the glamorous event with other designers and showcasing new designs is not only exhilarating, but also challenging with the pressure to perform well and standout. However, successfully displaying her designs and engaging with other fashionistas at the show brought her a sense of accomplishment and pride.
To start with, the choice of fabrics and accessories for the collection was on point. One could see ingenuity, versatility and creativity on display as the brand combines fabrics like velvet, mercury, lace, Ankara and mesh net to create the all-purpose outfits.
Talking about creative process, suave and sophistication are the apt words to describe the collection showcased at the Fashion Finest Africa Epic show. If one wishes, the designs could be worn for casual outings. Also, incorporating a piece of black jacket with some of the designs could make them fit in as office wears, most especially for the upwardly mobile ladies. Whether tall or petite, curvy or slim, every shape is a work of art, deserving of recognition and appreciation.
For evening outings, the mesh net looks classy and elegant on any fabric. Infusing the V-neck in the design brings out the glamorous skit of the outfit. It is not an understatement that the models look elegant and chic as they strut the runway in sleeveless round neck fitted dresses; sleeveless mini dresses with low neckline. The frills, alter-neck maxi and of course, some of the designs are embellished with flowers, laces and trimmings.
As for durability and adaptability, the fabrics used for the collection are eco-friendly, sustainable, durable and adaptable. The designer exhibited ingenuity and maturity in his choice of fabrics, colour and patterns. And this reflected in how the models stood out on the runway while showcasing the different garments.
Comparatively, going by the imaginative designs enmeshed in intricate patterns and flashy colours, the collection showcased at the Fashion Finest Africa Epic show had its own unique identity and could hardly be compared to others. This shows that the collection can compete favourably with other designs of its kind.
In conclusion, for the brand, the overwhelmingly positive response from the attendees at the event serves as a tonic for greater future accomplishments.