I’M BACK! After a month long hiatus with a trip down south,
myself and the blog are back; with fresh new content to indulge in. Whilst I
was unexpectedly away on a trip to South Africa I had a lot of free time on my
hands – observing and watching the entertainment industry in South Africa. I
remember indulging in watching a lot of VUZU TV with V Entertainment and being
glued to their 5th birthday celebrations in Durban July. I remember
focusing soo much on what the presenters were wearing – their look, style and
fashion! They were always fashion forward and stylish, with my favourite
personality being Dineo Moeketsi. Every time the VUZU 5th birthday
ad came on, the only thing I concentrated on was her short pink long sleeved
jumpsuit with the gold belt to match - It was my fave!
Ok! Enough narrating and let’s get straight into it! The
FASHION TRENDS – I started drawing a comparison between SA fashion and Zim fashion.
SA fashion was somehow not any less different from American fashion – what you
see in the mag is what you got in real life – fashion conscious, always on
point and always on trend. There were different looks to suit different
personalities and different stores to cater to different individuals which
really ran down to your budget. My obvious shopping stint was Mr Price, The
Hub, and Ackermans. But whilst I was doing this, I continued to observe what
the trends where, what was dressed on the mannequins and what the current
clothing campaign ad was. My conclusion ran down to the following items that where
trending on the streets and stores in Joburg;
1. Crop top - short, cute, sexy, stylish, bold and printed!
Crop tops where a big trend that dominated the shelves in MRP (Mr. Price). Not
only embraced in the stores but with SA bloggers too; with looks from
superficialgirls.com zeefashionista.com and fabulously-pink.blogspot.com. Back
home the crop top trend quickly came in some stores and died, having spotted a few if not a
handful of stores that carried a few crop tops. Not sure if it was a lack of
popularity or the trend might officially come later on, only time will tell.
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| Chenai Muhwati from Fabulously Pink blog wearing a crop top with a matching skirt. |
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| Carlinn from the very popular SA blog Superficial Girls wearing a crop top and Midi skirt both from MRP. |
2.Cheeky shorts – denim cheeky shorts where in an upcoming ad
campaign with Jays Jays for their summer collection which was slowly starting to
take flight. Back home in Zim, I’ve spotted a handful of stores with cheeky
little bum shorts but none worn on the streets.
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| Cheeky summer shorts worn by Carlinn from Superficial Girls, accompanied by the Bowler bag. |
3,Circle/Midi skirts – just before I left, MRP’s summer ad campaign
had a feature on ladies circle skirts both printed and plain. When I googled it
the trend seemed to be going into its second season. Here in Zim however, full
length or short circle skirts are embraced by local designs such as Mucha
Couture, Blaque Excellence and Shashiko.com, as for the normal individual – I
can recall myself and blogger Sharron Mungazi of Deffinatly Shaz who have taken
on the trend publicly. But it’s safe to say, I’ve seen it picking up in parts
of the city. I remember getting a circle skirt made late last year and my
tailor of choice had a difficult time understanding why I chose a circle skirt
and why I wanted a flouncy silhouette. Needless to say I had to look for a new
tailor and new fabric!
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| A pic from Sharron Mungazi's blog - Deffinatly Shaz, wearing a deep blue Midi Skirt. |
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| Back in June I did a second post with my print Midi skirt |
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| Once again Chenai Muhwati also rocking the trend on her blog. |
4. The Bowler bag - The bowler bag is a
round little fellar that has three straps in total; two shorter straps on each side and one long shoulder length strap. The bowler is super cute and comes in a block colour that can be accompanied with lighter or darker hues such as the one below. Once
again, Sapatos had these bags in stock around June and Edgars has a colourful
string of bowlers as well. Greatermans also had a few ‘Dazzle’ bowlers before
it shut down, and street style wise I spotted a handful of ladies carrying
bowlers.
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Bowler bag
Sourced Online |
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5. Ankle Wedge boots – ankle boots where the winter boot of the
season, whilst the wedge cut was a popular trend. If I remember correctly MRP,
Legit, Ackermans and The Hub stocked on the wedge boot with both zip ups and
lace ups. Which automatically meant the young and fashionable where taking on
the trend strongly! Coming back home the trend was alive with my own ankle
wedge boot from Sapatos, and a few boutiques in the city stocking some. Trend wise
it wasn’t known, with a lot of individuals still opting for the good ol’ knee
length riding boot to keep warm. |
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| Ankle Wedge boots both from MRP during the winter season. |
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| Ankle Wedges from Sapatos back in June. |
6. Snoods – snoods were a big trend during July. Both men and
women, young and old were rocking a snood, either knitted snood or the fabric
type. The usual long wrap around scarves seemed to be a thing of the past. In
Harare however I have only ever spotted a snood once at Joina City’s Sapatos.
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Ladies Snood in Woolworths
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| Men's snood wrapped around a mannequin in Truworths Men. |
7. Pullover knits – pullover knits were the order of the day. Whether
lightweight or chunky and bold – they were stocked up in a lot of the stores
and on the individuals as well. When it comes to knits at home, it hasn’t been
fully embraced yet, especially the imprinted sweatshirt or one with graphics
and print. Some of the nice pullover knits can be found in Edgars or Truworths –
but it is usually streamlined to one look and not a variety. |
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| Ladies stylish pullover knits on the mannequins by studio.w in Woolworths stores. |
8. Wellingtons – I’m not sure what the fascination was but
wellingtons where a winter favourite. Wellingtons are rain boots that had been
given an updated and somewhat fashionable look. Wellingtons where just as
popular as ankle wedges than your ordinary knee length boot, with bright
colours, funky designs and characters for both the young and old. I haven’t
seen a Wellington in Harare, as of yet. I’m still to find out, although they
aren’t really my style.
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| Little kiddies Wellingtons in a variety of colours - also in Woolworths. |
With the trends covered above, here is the verdict:
Can we Question Moral values to Fashion?
Where are we on the trend scale? Are some of Harare’s
fashionistas too late or we put soo much reliance on tradition and patriotism
that soo much of our trends are muted or non-disclosed to the public? You only
see shorts, short minis and crop tops at suburban events or parties where the
gate is closed and no one knows what’s going on inside OR at a night club where
like-minded individuals hang out and understand each other. Taking a mid-bearing
crop top to the streets or cheeky bum shorts out on the town may seem sketchy
and not the brightest idea as society might shun you, look down upon you and more
or less label you. The scenario is even worse if your mode of transport is
combis and not your own personal car! Safe to say don’t go there..
Money or Fashion fad? Is it worth it to spend?
Not all cases of fashion trends are late in Zim. Some are on
time and on point, if you have extra cash to spare in some of Harare’s top
boutiques. Imported labels from Europe, America and South Africa are the norm,
and the price tag is too hefty for a normal wallet. In most cases you find
yourself calculating ‘the opportunity cost’ when it comes to buying a designer
blouse once off or use that money to buy three cute blouses in Powersales.
Options are limited as the designer blouse is one of a kind whilst your cute
blouse from Powersales is worn by three other different women you bump into in
the CBD. Creating an individual look is a challenge which really runs down to
your finances. If you are not hesitant, kumabhero is always an option to check
out.
What do we say about trends? Can we embrace them?
When we talk of trends we talk of the in-thing! What’s hot, what’s
happening at that moment! With the economic scrunch in Zim and the textile
industry still trying to revive, a lot of individuals just want to be clothed
and not look at trends because it is costly, unbeneficial and sometimes the
fabric makes you question twice on your investment. Whilst a country like South
Africa can invest in trends, the same cannot be said about Zimbabwe. Until we
rise above our economic scrunch, trends are the least concern on any ordinary
Zimbo’s mind. Putting food on the table and paying school fees is top priority!
So there you have it - What do you say about trends in
Zimbabwe? I have covered numerous articles on trends and I have tried a few
here and there on the blog. A lot of reliance with the trends I have covered
where either tailor-made or assistance from close friends who constantly cross
the border between Zim and SA. Now onto you, do you think #ZimFashion is late
on global trends? What are your thoughts?
DISCLAIMER: This article is in the views of the writer. From
travelling to South Africa and back home – I only observed, asked and noted
down notes through my own research. I’m not affiliated with any of the brands
mentioned in this post. I'm always on a quest to question Zim Fashion; by redefining it, bringing it to your attention and finding solutions through this blog.
*The #ZimFashion debate continues! Check out the first post that covered "What's In the Fashion Industry in Zimbabwe", and weigh in.*
Tendai Sophia.
