Ndani, The Nigerian Fashion Project At Selfridges!

The best of Lagos Fashion and Design Week comes to London!

In keeping with its status as one of the most exciting fashion destinations in the world, Selfridges launches Ndani, the Nigerian Fashion Project, from 1 December. Coinciding with the arrival of the international cruise collections in Selfridges, Ndani presents the very best Spring-Summer 2013 pieces hand-picked from the runway shows of the most outstanding designers on the Lagos Fashion and Design Week schedule – one of Africa’s foremost fashion showcases.

Created in collaboration with Style House Files – the organisers of Lagos Fashion and  Design Week, and  backed by Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank), a Nigerian  bank  with branches across and  London,  Ndani  is a demonstration of the unquestionable vitality and  originality of the fashion heralding from Lagos, one of the ten most economically promising  and  fastest-developing cities in the world. Ndani offers an edit from the collections of five key designers, already well- established in Nigeria and showcases pieces from the first runway collection by new Nigerian designers presented within the Young Talents showcase at Lagos Fashion and Design Week held earlier in October. The five main designers are Lisa Folawiyo with her label Jewel By Lisa, Lanre Da Silva Ajayi, Eki Orleans, Odio Mimonet and Tiffany Amber. The young designers are Agu Anumudu with his label Agu and House of Silk, the label set up by Jennifer Adighije. All these designers have in common a passion for prints and patterns, fuelled by their omnipresence in African culture and lifestyle and from the use of Ankara (boldly printed local West African fabric) in everyday clothes. What they all do is elevate prints, patterns and the tradition of Ankara within the realm of design wear and exacting craftsmanship. The designers within the Ndani collection at Selfridges have, however, strongly differing styles and their approach to embellishments – a strong feature in the Nigerian couture code, is unique. Eki Orleans embraces fluidity and  empire-line dresses made of silk with blown up prints which

create colour  shades rather than easily identifiable imagery whereas  Jewel by Lisa is all about the bejeweling of traditional African fabrics with painstaking hand-beading and  discreet cut detailing which  contrasts  with the boldness of the finishes. Her Spring-Summer 2013 collection is steeped in the celebration of the Fulani women, famous for their legendary beauty and unique use of accessories and body jewelry. She is not the only one arching back to her African roots for direct inspiration.  All designers within the Ndani collection at Selfridges draw from their cultural background and the traditions of Africa with powerful authority. Ndani will also showcase some accessories which go beyond fashion – as beautiful and original as the fashion selection. Prices range from £25 for an African doll by Ituen Basi to £3,180 for a gown by Lanre Da Silva Ajayi. Ndani, the Nigerian Fashion Project at Selfridges runs from 1 December through to January in the London store’s Women’s Designer Galleries on 2.

  CONTACT DETAILS For further information and images, please contact: Bruno Barba Brand PR Manager T +44 (0) 20 7318 3204 E  bruno.barba@selfridges.co.uk   Lucy Willis Fashion PR Manager T +44 (0) 20 7 318 3397 E  lucy.willis@selfridges.co.uk   Lotti Eagles Brand Press Assistant T +44 (0) 20 73183987 E  lotti.eagles@selfridges.co.uk