It was a beautiful day with warm, sunny weather, on Friday, August 25th as the Signed by Dahliah team arrived in the early morning at Dundas Square in the heart of Toronto. Many businesses were already setting up their booths and getting ready for the long day ahead. It was the first day of African Fashion week and the SBD (Signed by Dahliah) team arrived excited and prepared to be a vendor as well as showcase their first big fashion show later that day.
African Fashion Week Toronto (AFWT) is produced in partnership with “Afro Centre for the arts” and occurs once a year (August) showcasing culture-rich fashion collections. It spans across Toronto and brings exposure to various designers and brands including those from out of province and throughout the world.
After the vendors were set up and running, the fashion showcases began at about 5pm.
The Signed by Dahliah runway show started just after 7pm. It was an Afro-Caribbean contrast to it's summer mini collection release and exhibited an assortment of garments. From short cocktail looks, to flowing floor length dresses, and a black sleek number; the show contained many elements that were new and challenging for Signed by Dahliah. One skirt contained hand-sewn and hand-beaded flowers, and the finale floor length printed dress had long cape sleeves. However, the usual floral allusions were present from the the big whimsical earrings to the flounced and flared silhouettes. Moreover, the collection was full of bright oranges, blues and purples. Colours not often seen at SBD.
View all of the Signed by Dahliah AFWT23' looks below and see full video here.
(Photography by Kiros Images, Wayne Mcdonald Photography and Ashley Marie Photography.)
A big thanks to the African Fashion week team and our wonderful models who made our first big runway collection a success.
Pictured below is some of the behind the scenes work that went into the Signed by Dahliah Runway collection
Read the some of the press related to AFWT at the links below: