Waste Not, Wear More: African Designers and Artists Upcycle the Future

Waste Not, Wear More: African Designers and Artists Upcycle the Future From Dakar

As the global fashion industry reckons with its massive environmental impact, Africa is quietly leading a creative revolution — one where waste is not discarded but reborn. On this World Environment Day, we turn the spotlight to a growing community of African designers and artists transforming textile scraps, plastic, and secondhand clothing into vibrant works […]

In Dubai, African Designers Set the Tone for a Global Conversation on Luxury

In Dubai, African Designers Set the Tone for a Global Conversation on Luxury 10 Sarayaa photographed by Sameera Yahampath Photography

Last month, the opulent halls of the Mandarin Oriental Jumeirah in Dubai pulsed with creativity as the AFRA World Fashion Confluence 2025 brought together designers from across the globe under the evocative theme Echoes of the Oasis. At the heart of it all was a landmark partnership between AFRA World and the Lulubell Group, led […]

At the United Nations: Fashion, Culture, and the Urgency of Collective Action

At the United Nations: Fashion, Culture, and the Urgency of Collective Action 25 0519 DN 0168

This week, the UN Fashion & Lifestyle Network convened its annual meeting at United Nations Headquarters in New York. Hosted by the United Nations Office for Partnerships and the Fashion Impact Fund —a program of PVBLIC Foundation in collaboration with the UN Sustainable Fashion Alliance and supported by Lenzing, this edition of the UN Fashion […]

Meet Akunna Nwala-Akano: The Jewelry Designer Crafting Legacy with Akano Diamonds

Meet Akunna Nwala-Akano: The Jewelry Designer Crafting Legacy with Akano Diamonds AKUNNA NWALA AKANO FOUNDER OF AKANO 1

There’s a creative optimism that fuels Akunna Nwala-Akano, one deeply rooted in the ceremonial elegance of her Igbo heritage. She carries the quiet confidence of someone raised around heirloom gold bangles, passed from one generation to the next, and grandmothers who marked life’s milestones with handcrafted adornments. Born the youngest of three daughters to a […]

Inside the Textile Language Installation by Art Comes First at 1-54 Art Fair

Inside the Textile Language Installation by Art Comes First at 1-54 Art Fair IMG 6596

The 2025 Met Gala may have come to a close, but the conversation it sparked around Tailoring Black Style is far from over. In fact, it feels less like an ending and more like a new beginning—an extension of a dialogue that continues to reshape how we perceive style, identity, and heritage. As history has […]

Thuku-Benzinge’s Umutoni: The Jewelry Brand Crafting Its Own Luxury

Thuku-Benzinge’s Umutoni: The Jewelry Brand Crafting Its Own Luxury IMG 3061

Umutoni Thuku-Benzinge is curating her own definition of luxury. One deeply rooted in her Kenyan and Rwandan heritage, and grounded in her passion for jewelry, social impact, and craftsmanship. As a fashion entrepreneur, she is the founder of the eponymous jewelry brand Umutoni, known for its East African storytelling and minimalist design language. Born and […]

What We Saw at the Best African Runway 2025 in Dakar

Selly Raby Kane Photo: Khaled Fhemy

Dakar, perched at the western edge of Africa, is no stranger to spectacle. But on the eve of May 2nd, 2025 beneath the resolute gaze of the Monument to the African Renaissance, it played host to something more than a fashion show. It became a stage for a movement. The second edition of the Best […]

Threads of Influence VII: The Archive Walked

Threads of Influence VII: The Archive Walked Article Image Thumbnail Homepage Image 1 1NEW e1757701390282

We’ve spent the last four weeks digging into the roots of regalia, resistance, and everything stitched in between. Threads of Influence wasn’t about nostalgia. It was about showing how Black style has always been a strategy. And how tailoring, in particular, has carried history on its back. So when the 2025 Met Gala chose Superfine: […]