Now in its thirteenth year, the Mahogany Bridal Fashion and Beauty Show stands-alone in being the premier event to showcase products and services geared towards people of colour.

CEO of Mahogany Models, Sola Oyebade commented after the show: “The ‘Wedding and Tourism Industry’ has suffered under the economic down-turn and we certainly have had to weather the storm. The fact that we are now in our thirteenth year is proof that there is a big demand for shows such as this.

This years show was bigger and better than before, despite the down-turn marriages are still taking place in vast numbers. 

We have received some really positive feedback from exhibitors and the public alike. The range of clothing exhibited were far more diverse than in previous years. Our themes included; African traditional, English/African, the bridesmaids and custom-made, this reflected the demography of our visitors.

FLYER Tipped for the Top

Matthew from FLYER said: “The range of designs showcased to day was spot-on. There was a touching moment when Tarell McIntosh, 15, student winner of Fashion Diversity received a standing ovation for his unique and personal collection introduced as ‘A Dress for the Cultural Bride’.

By aged eleven Tarell had already been commissioned to embroider, crochet and knit for other designers, Tarell made his London Fashion Week Debut last year at aged only fifteen.

Tarell said; “Today was about the Mahogany bride, I’m not here to showcase western-fashion, the whole point is to accentuate the Mahogany Bride in its full entirety. It’s also my intention to bring African design and ideology to the forefront of my collection. My collection today was drawn from several previous collections which included African – patchwork and ready to wear.”

 Below is a snippet of some of the collections showcased.

Diva Luscious ready-to-wear collection combined African-fabrics with a modern twist. The models glided down the runway with effortless ease.

Latibeau combined beautifully crafted silk dresses which oozed quality. The simplicity of her designs was reminiscent of classic Greek goddesses which stood out from the crowd.

B-Divine: Traditional bridal wear with a modern twist. B-Divine’s collection was about pure elegance.  The collection was amongst the most diverse showcased and an ideal choice if you’re looking for a theme to your wedding.

Tarell McIntosh.  It’s very hard and probably unjust to categorize this young talent. His ready-to-wear collection had movement, elegance class and sophistication. His combination of patch-work using African fabric inspired by Vivienne Westwood was simply breadth-taking.

Samantha  Roach; Classic designs combined with exquisite finishing are the hallmark of this collection.

 Samantha Roach’s vision is plain to see; this statement collection is very transferable and combined with a simple personal touch-such as jewellery makes this collection very unique.  

Make-up was for the fashion show was supplied by Bella Queen. “We went for the Gothic & Glitter look because this was neutral and transferable for all collections.