A consistency on all of South Africa’s runways is a celebration of young talent and South Africa Fashion Week is no different. The opportunities a platform that big offers emerging designers cannot be underestimated and the designers who show there have consistently proven their mettle; including young designer Tumi Seepe, the creative director of emerging label Etsa.
Etsa, an alumni of the prestigious LISOF academy (which counts among it’s alumni Rich Mnisi and Nao Serati) has shown a proclivity for designing pieces that are focused towards providing stylish alternatives for everyday women, and her debut SAFW collection takes this idea and builds on it, reworking classic work wear pieces and silhouettes for a new generation of professional. Etsa’s palette this season is far more muted than you would ordinarily see on an SAFW runway, she sticks primarily to black and greys, the uniform of the white collar woman. But that is the extent to which Seepe will toe the line.
The collection itself is quite adventurous design wise and Seepe plays with ideas we’ve seen on international runways, like the one sized belted blazer, jazzed up with reams of woolen fringe. This fringing is a big theme that runs through the collection, reappearing as detailing on necklines and armscyes and the end of an overlong stole. There are plays on volume, wide leg formal trousers, puffed hips on capri pants and a tubular skirt dress. This is the kind of demure formal wear we’d expect of fashion editors and industry insider, an embrace of fuss and frill that still remains wholly professional.
Photo Credits: safashionweek.co.za
