Elle New Talent Awards... a well deserved victory

So often at South African Awards shows I walk away asking the question "who did _______ have to sleep with to get that award?" I'm not just being a big sour meanie but sincerely, many of the awards that are dished out, especially style or fashion related ones, leave me screaming, "Why GOD!! HOW??" at the television, PC or publication I'm reading which's why it was so refreshing to applaud & celebrate a winner who was truly deserving of his prize at this year's Elle New Talent Awards. The man in question is the extremely gifted designer Cleo Droomer. His meticulous attention to detail & ability to perceive the collection in its entirety are far above the current industry standards let alone those of 'young' designers. It was a pleasure to be a part of the beginning of what will no doubt be a long & successful career for this budding star.

Rather than just telling you what I thought this collection represented I thought it would be best for you to hear it in the designer's words.

Every collection has a showstopper and this jacket is an absolute masterpiece of construction.

Pay attention to the fully lined interior.

This fabric was designed by Cleo Droomer from manipulated South African flags and then printed onto the fabric. Unbelievable.

Look at this dress.

Pwetty little clutch bag.

And this is the man. So if you bump into him in the street give him a hug & congratulate him. He's very sweet too, he'll probably hug back.

Just in case you were wondering... there were actually other designers. My personal favourite was a brand called "Lisp" designed by a super cute, funky young lady called Oriel Barnard. She says the collection is an ode to the rock star, groupie culture & her clothes are designed for "the ultimate groupie". I must admit when she initially said this I rolled my eyes & prepared for the worst but was ever so pleasantly surprised at how cool & wearable but still conceptually strong the collection was.