Caribbean Designers Revealed Captivating Designs In London

At the recently held “Fashion Engage”, a series of events sponsored by the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export), in London a selection of handpicked Caribbean designers displayed their talent.

Following the success of the Caribbean Collections London Fashion Week, which debuted in February 2012, seven designers were selected to highlight the region’s flourishing fashion talent. Kirie Bain (T&T); Phelicia Dell (Haiti); Atelier Doré (Suriname); Arlene Martin (Jamaica); Meiling (T&T), and Sonia Noel (Guyana) presented their designs at the Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane in London, in front of celebrities, European buyers, fashion press, stylists  and others in the fashion industry.

Trinidadian designer, Meiling, opened the show with a stunning array from her collection 24Hrs. This was followed by Arlene Martin of Jamaica with her drennaLuna designs; these were accessorized by luxury jewellery pieces from Suriname--‐based Atelier Doré.

24Hrs - Meiling

drennaLuna- Arlene Martin

Doré-Atelier Doré

Celebrated Haitian designer Phelicia Dell showcased selections from her VeVe handbag line alongside the Ibis Ceramic jewellery collection from Kirie Bain, an upcoming designer from Trinidad and Tobago. The Showcase was closed out by the award--‐ winning Guyanese designer Sonia Noel, who captivated the audience with pieces from her Mariska Designs label.

VeVe -Phelicia Dell

Ibis Ceramic -  Kirie Bain

Mariska Designs - Sonia Noel

One of the designers David André from Haiti, who was to highlight his Sea, Sex, Sun line was unable to attend because he was not issued a visa.

“When speaking about the essence of the Caribbean, the first thing that comes to mind is the allure of our scenery and people. This is best translated within our Fashion sense and style”, commented Executive Director of Caribbean Export, Pamela Coke Hamilton. “Our Fashion Showcase demonstrated this vibrancy and the creative expression for which we are known. This demonstrates Caribbean Export’s long--‐term commitment to the development and export potential of the regional fashion sector and by extension the Creative Industries”, Coke Hamilton concluded.

The Caribbean’s finest designs were showcased by a number of top UK models including finalists from Britain and Ireland’s Next Top Model and Miss Black Britain.

The Essence Caribbean Fashion Showcase was supported under the European Union’s (EU) 10^th European Development Fund (EDF) Regional Private Sector Development Programme (RPSDP), in collaboration with the African Caribbean and Pacific States Business Climate Facility (ACP BizClim), the UK Department for International Development (DFID), and Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).