What is Lisa Folawiyo?
Lisa Folawiyo makes the joyful clothes of our dreams! The Nigeria-based brand is known for bright colors and intricate details. Each piece is an homage to the country from which it was birthed.
Folawiyo makes modern, luxury apparel that is feminine, stylish and thrilling. She makes women’s clothes that are in a word – exciting. Ironic, since she started the brand out of boredom!
Folawiyo decided to start her eponymous brand in 2005. Up until that point, she had been a lawyer, but that career path no longer appealed to her. She craved a new challenge. And she found it with her apparel line.
Folawiyo’s label debuted by remixing the pervasive Ankara fabric with hand-placed embellishments. Her signature attention to detail resulted in a beautiful tribute to the classic African print.
From her first design she established herself as “a luxury label in a clean and modern palette for the modern woman”.
What Kind of Clothes Does Lisa Folawiyo Make?
“Modern” is an apt descriptor in more ways than one for Lisa Folawiyo designs. Each collection’s color palette irrespective of year released, is fresh and starts the trend that will soon be replicated by the rest of the fashion world.
Folawiyo consistently has her pulse on which colors are hot; take mint greens and Kelly green. She used these colors in her collections years before they were mainstream – In fact, I now see these colors pervasively only this year.
Folawiyo’s eye for color is matched with her eye for patterning. The prints that differentiate her brand are symmetrical, feminine and groovy. They’re tantalizing and completely original.
We expect nothing less since the entire fashion house was birthed from Ankara print. But Folawiyo’s homeland is prevalent even more than just from that first rendition on Ankara.
In fact, she credits her homeland, Nigeria, for the majority of her inspiration. With each of her collections, Folawiyo prioritizes the African woman who wears her designs and makes sure they see themselves in Lisa Folawiyo attire.
Folawiyo makes clothing for African women like her; women who are modern, imaginative and confident. Just as much as she designs as a tribute to her country, her talents are also well spent on the African women she designs for.
Lisa Folawiyo’s apparel is the stuff of fashion dreams. Her eye for color is on point and her modern silhouettes are perfection. Even when she’s using classic materials like the vintage lace with the piece above, she still executes a contemporary (and dreamy) minidress.
Folawiyo has an unwavering understanding of her brand’s identity and we reap the benefits of her vision with every collection.
Her most recent collections evoke the newness of spring combined with modern colorings. This Geo Maxi Dress in particular has a drool-worthy color palette and perfect symmetry. Like all of the dresses before it, and surely with every one that follows, it’s a work of art.
The Akira Set is from an earlier collection, but you wouldn’t be able to tell. It has the beautiful patterning emblematic of the Folawiyo brand paired with the exact right colors. She updates the classic 2-piece set with cut-outs in the mini skirt and a high-low hemmed collared shirt.
Despite this set being designed years ago, I have yet to see anything quite like it in 2022. As expected, another forward-thinking design from Lisa Folawiyo.
Lisa Folawiyo is a fashion house to watch. Their high-quality garments, singular patterns and trend-starting colors make for truly divine women’s apparel. I regret not finding them sooner!
Well, the brand will be 17 years old in 2022 and I’m sure they will be around for much longer. I can’t wait to see what the next decades bring!
