Good evening ladies and gentlemen and welcome to another edition of the MET Fashion Photo Show. Tonight we are featuring three designers from the Azy Banks Fashion Show, Pearl Naidoo (Denkay)
, Precious Stone
(Swim by Juelle) and
Abalo Francis.
(Hewena Brand Original)
I had the pleasure of interviewing Pearl Naidoo first. I wanted to know a little bit about he company and how she got started. "My vision is basically trying to take each creation one at a time. This is a South African brand in NY. I started my own pieces which can be found on Facebook and Twitter. I started by working on individual jewelry pieces and worked my way up to designing garments."
"I first came into the fashion industry when I started working with Ky Brewster. I also worked with Rodrigo T doing jewelry. I was inspired immediately after that. Once you come into fashion you can never leave it." (Pearl's designs are available now on Facebook)
When asked what makes her products unique, she stated that "Once you see my products you will understand. It's not about the product as much as it is my story."
I then interviewed Precious Stone. When I asked her how she got started she told me that she was studying architecture design. After receiving her degree in architecture, she realized that she didn't want to be an architect at all. "I was studying architecture design and I went through school, performed all of the requirements for graduation and then I realized that this is not what I wanted to do in life. This was not an easy decision to make but I did it anyway. I used my architecture background to help me in the fashion world."
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I figured that this was the end of her story but it got more interesting as the interview went along. "I wanted to work with a friend in the fashion industry so we started a business together. Unfortunately the business didn't work out and I decided to venture out on my own. I haven't looked back since."
When I asked her about her designs and what makes them unique, she said "I specialize in "Monokinis" (One piece bathing suits) When I design my swimwear the structure of my line is what makes them unique. The comfort in my swimwear also exaggerates the right curves on a woman's body."
I wanted to know what it meant for her to appear in today's show, and what else she wanted the audience to know about her product line. "I want everyone to know that appearing in today's show means a lot to me because this isn't just a fashion show, but it is a show that is going to help a lot of people. I want the audience to also know that in my clothing line, there is a piece for every woman."
Precious Stone and her collection; "Swim by Juelle" can be found on Facebook and is available right now.
Finally I had the pleasure of interviewing Abalo Francis. Abalo's story and his participation in today's show has a deeper, more personal meaning for him. Abalo originally started his clothing line in 2007. He was on a quest to help the people of Africa overcome exploitation and being taken advantage of. "I started my company so that the people of Africa would no longer suffer the ill effects of dependency and consumption of people and things that exploit them, and take advantage of them. (The first thing that comes to mind is the under developed regions of the country that are in desperate need of facilities and things that are taken for granted such as schools, medical facilities and fresh, running water)
"I wanted to bring a brand line to the fashion world that has its origins based upon the Zulu language. My company (Hewena Brand Original) is not merely a brand name, or just another clothing line, it is a culture. My line is a conception of new life. Hewena means "Hey You", it is a call to order. It is like a mirror that you look into. It holds us accountable for everything that we do. It is a vision for the future."
I asked Abalo to use three words that would best describe his product line. "The three words that would best describe my product line are Pride (Which is where the color "black" comes from), Courage (Overcoming fear) and Wisdom (We need to accept the bad and work things out regardless)"
For more information about Abalo's clothing line you can visit www.hewenabrand.com.
Thank you for tuning in to today's "Artist Spotlight" featuring Pearl Naidoo, Precious Stone & Abalo Francis. Visit my fashion page on Facebook at MET Photography's Fashion Photography for more photos from the likes of Adrian Alicea and the other designers who presented at the show.
, Precious Stone 
(Swim by Juelle) and 
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