…Lights, camera, action!

By Rita Okoye
Welcome to the world of glamour and premium taste, a place where there are no dull moments. When it comes to fashion, we come with the best of the best just for you! If you say ‘fancy’, we go fancier, if you say ‘style’, we become stylish and if you say ‘slay’, we do so with a touch of ‘pepper them’.

Time and time again, we bring to your doorstep the full gist of the glitz and the glam of fashion.
In today’s fashion, the most intriguing and admirable aspect of the industry is that it has created room for simplicity. Gone are the days when you have to put on the latest George fabric or parade in extravagant Agbada attire. Now, you don’t have to do too much to look exceptional. Why is this? It is because even the simplest of designs are now created in such a unique way that they could pass off as a multimillion creation that could be worn to a series of high-class parties, like The Valentine Ozigbo Foundation gala, The Quilox Ultra lounges anniversary party or even the Genesis House charity gala.

This is not to downplay the heavy and extravagant dress that exists for such an occasion but to show that fashion is making room for options. This simply means that you no longer have an excuse as to why you don’t look good.

As a lady, one of the easiest ways to polish your reputation for achieving a signature look is by investing in fashion and styles. Be assured that whatever style it is you are looking for, there is something out there for you. This is thanks to the millions of fashion enthusiasts who devoted their technical skills and abilities to create something different and make available an endless supply of fashion wear.

Fashion lovers like Simeon Benjamin Akpan are one of the reasons that fashion will never die even in the millennium to come. He is the CEO of Simbena, a remarkable brand whose mission is to create wear that resonates with simplicity and elegance. The brand was first launched in 2018 and has made a significant impact in the fashion industry since then.

Simeon Benjamin established this Afrocentric label as a result of a long-nurtured love for fashion since his childhood when he watched his mother create custom-made garments for her clients.

His designs are particularly crafted to empower women who long for inclusivity, simplicity and elegance. His commitment is to keep the heart of fashion beating through creating masterpieces. Through his designs, he aims to inspire freedom and happiness, encouraging women to express themselves confidently and authentically without fear or discomfort. It is also dedicated to merging African rich heritage with contemporary design, promoting both individual uniqueness and the shared spirit of femininity.

From the inception of his brand, Simbena, several of his artistic collections have gained attention from prominent media outlets across West Africa and Africa continent generally. A few of his collections are the 2020 Afro collection and the 2023 Blazed collection.

The 2023 Blazed collection is one of the young designer’s most recent releases. It’s a full pack of an opposite-end duo consisting of two pairs of two-piece attires which balances out at opposite sides with one having a trouser and the other a skirt.

Genesis
The first piece we will be looking at in the 2023 Blazed collection is this lovely attire. It was created with an Ankara fabric which entails a wide range of mixed colours. However, the visible shades that can be seen are sky blue, royal blue and a hint of white.

The design embodies a blouse and trousers. The blouse can pass off as the highlight of the dress as it holds some unique components that would be pointed out.

The top has a squared sweetheart neckline, puffed sleeves, an elbow cuff and a back zipper.

Sweetheart neckline: This kind of neckline is usually used to accentuate femininity. The designer however did something different from the conventional sweetheart neckline by making the edges of the style to be squared, something that is not easily achieved in sewing.

Puffed sleeves: the puffiness of the sleeves in this attire is large or slightly exaggerated and this could draw a ‘double take’ reaction from the viewers. The significance of a puffy sleeve is that it adds a touch of posh charm to an outfit.

Elbow cuff/ back zipper: they are both finishing touches made on the dress to complete the overall appearance. The cuff of this blouse is located at the elbow area in this piece because the sleeves are short, while the zipper ensures firmness and seals the dress can be located at the back.

On the lower half of the piece, we have a wide-legged pant which is associated with the likes of culottes and bell bottoms. This part of the piece is simple only exuding features of two in-seam pockets that can be found at both sides of the trousers and a side zipper that allows for ease and firmness.

The entire piece is a prodigious one but with few modifications, it can be improved. The puffed sleeve makes the upper mien too lifted but this can be rectified by reducing the puffiness of the sleeve and increasing the length. Also, the pants though a great addition lack the spark of flare that a wide-legged pant should. The designer could reform this by expanding the trousers slightly.

Coda
The signing-off statement of the 2023 Blazed collection is in the image you see. It is the second two-piece apparel which contains a blouse and a skirt. This style was completed with the use of two fabrics which are an Ankara print and a white chiffon. The Ankara print is filled with complex patterns, splashed with colours like orange, yellow, white, blue, etc.

Unlike the introductory piece of the collection, this second attire’s spotlighting characteristics lie on both the upper and the lower piece. The top’s features include a crew neckline, double sleeves and a back zipper, while the lower part is a shapely straight skirt with three step layers at the base of the skirt.

Crew neckline: this neckline is the round collarless opening that snugly sits on the base of the neck. It is a stylish type of neckline that is usually linked to modesty because it doesn’t reveal cleavages.
Double sleeves: in fashion items, we are used to seeing dresses have single sleeves or even a mono-strapped sleeve but a double layer sleeve dress is a scarce design. However, designer Simeon was able to achieve that look on this dress. The double sleeves were created with a blend of Ankara fabric and Chiffon. The short Ankara sleeve is the inner one shielded by the puffed chiffon sleeve.

Three-step layers: women often find a plain straight skirt boring, so the addition of the three-step layers at the base of the dress was an intelligent design play on the side of the designer. That exceptional attribute of the skirt makes it stand out and this design was accomplished by cutting out three circular pieces of the Ankara material and merging them into one.

The overall piece is next to no other, the careful combination of fabrics is impactful but some aspects of the dress can be fine-tuned to make the set a perfect fashion statement. The skirt needs to be adjusted at the hip area as the cutting made there is not balanced and doesn’t allow the straight skirt to flow unswervingly. A belt-like illusion or band needs to be added to the waist to create that curvy look every woman wants. If this is not a detail that could be easily adjusted then wearers could substitute that part with an external belt of choice.

The 2023 Blazed collection is truly one full of distinctive styles, it is a set of clothing lines that was intentionally made. Simeon Benjamin Akpan’s craftsmanship captures the real essence of confidence and simplicity in fashion.

His ability to infuse vibrant colours with sinuous prints and patterns, celebrate cultural richness, and modernise them all at once in his creations is something to give credit to.

He has also successfully placed the African fashion landscape in the limelight through his detailed designs that are perfect for all fashion lovers who just want to look dashing in a simple way.