Feather design at GAFW

Over 40 designers from across the world have participated in the maiden edition of the Glitz Africa Fashion Week (GAFW).

Held in the Ghanaian Capital, Accra from August 17 to 19, the fashion week brought together, a central part of Africa’s best, and some unsigned, yet creative hands from Europe and the Americas.

Ten glittering fashion shows, make-up and celebrity parties, great music, and free seminars led by some of Africa’s high profile names in fashion and business, made up what was an excellent production.

Days after hitting town, the Glitz Africa Fashion Week is still the talk of town, as most patrons are yet to get over the thrilling experience they had, sitting through the numerous phases and units of the event.

The maiden edition was met with so much pessimism but in the end, it proved a workable case study for subsequent editions. Simply put, the Glitz Africa Fashion Week ‘rocked’ beyond the expectation of most fashion enthusiasts.

Awards for Designer of the Year, Model of the Year (male and female), Emerging Designer of the Year, the Lifetime Achievement Award and Best Male Designer were presented to deserving winners.

Over the three-day period, the Accra International Conference Centre venue, beamed and glowed with breathtaking, thought-provoking and avant-garde works, as the participating designers made use of their talents to the admiration of patrons.

The designers including Mai Atafo (Nigeria) who won the overall Best Designer award, Christie Brown (Ghana), PISTIS (Ghana), Mina Evans (Ghana) Sangare Habbib (Cote D’Ivoire), Dake Abaya(US),  Ali Adams (Ghana/South Africa) Aya Morrison (Ghana), Modela Couture (Nigeria) Ajepomaa Mensah (Ghana), Diva Delicious (Ghana), Msimps (Ghana), Sa4a (Ghana), Imane Ayissi (Paris) and Alima Bello (Ghana), virtually brought out their A-card.

Others including Alian Martial Tapolo (Paris) Gilles Roland Toure (Cote D’Ivoire), nineteen57 (Ghana), House Of Eccentric (Ghana), Black Pepper by Thokozani Mbatha (South Africa), Ophelia Crossland Designs (Ghana),  N’kya Designs (Ghana/U.K), House of Farrah (Nigeria), Castle Designs and Treasure Chest Jewelry by Dpipertwins (U.S), DEDO (Ghana),    Dio Ali ( Cameroon),  Ivana Elle Couture( Ghana),  Félicien Castermann (Benin), B’XOTIC (Ghana), Vonne Couture (Nigeria), Ani Siyah (Ghana), Peachy Purr (Ghana), Ohema Ohene (U.K ), Wana Sambo Clothing (Nigeria) and Vlisco (Ghana) also succeeded in getting the numbers to the venue.

In its first year, the Glitz Africa Fashion Week seeks to be the go-to destination for Africa’s fashion community. The organizers say it will be an annual event.

Claudia Lumor, Publisher of Glitz Africa Magazine, organizers of the GAFW believes: “One of the biggest and the fastest growing industries in the world is the fashion industry. This is because of the emergence of daring and dynamic young talents who are not shy to push the boundaries of creativity in the industry.

“The Fashion Industry needs various platforms like fashion weeks to sustain its rate of growth and for various brands to leverage and draw synergy from the glitz and glamour to promote themselves”.

“It has been a thrilling experience of self-belief, planning and pushing boundaries to see this come true”.

There is no doubt the Glitz Africa Fashion Week passed its first test. The organizers can only pat themselves on the back for a good job done considering the fact that this was their first try.