Not easy for some women to wear African prints in a corporate environment! A lot of us find it too bold, too loud, and way too ethnic for us not to get noticed or asked questions about our outfits and “where we come from”. We find it beautiful, we wear it during the week-ends but we’d also like to find a way to wear it to work without looking like we thought it was wear-your-traditional-outfit-to-work day! I’m here to teach you exactly how to do that with these 3 easy strategies:
Wear an African print top with your suit
The most common work outfit for women being suits, try playing around with the top that would complement your suit. Instead of a regular chiffon blouse, find a simple African print top like the one from Atelier Coloré that I’m wearing on the pictures. This top, worn with a nice pair of pants and the matching blazer could do the trick. Trade my leopard print shoes (I know, I’m addicted!) for a more conventional black pair of high heels and voilà!
Wear a mixed dress or skirt
The best mixed dresses and skirts that I’ve seen are from Kaela Kay. As you can see on the pictures below, Catherine Addai, the designer, is an expert at mixing prints and patterns. You can see me standing next to her, wearing one of her creations, at the Pop Up Beauty event that happened a few days ago here in Montreal. I had the pleasure of working alongside Catherine as a brand ambassador. She is extremely talented as well as being one of the nicest, most humble and hard-working women I have ever met. Her pieces are the most modern, easy to wear African inspired pieces that you can find on the market.
Wear jewelry
Jewelry is always a nice way to introduce your culture to the world. Whether it be rings, earrings or bangles, choose what speaks to you and what matches your personality. I personally go for the statement pieces; but we don’t all have to wear big colorful jewelry. You can choose one of those beautiful Ankara/pagne necklaces like the one below, or nice button earrings for a more discreet style. Knowing how real the struggle is when it comes to finding African fashion online, I created a guide with a list of 100 brands that are available online and that can ship to your location.
Source: Etsy
African inspired fashion doesn’t have to remind us of our grandma’s. It’s become much more modern than it used to be and can be worn in a multi-cultural corporate settings without having co-workers wonder whether you’re dressed professionally or not. Have fun with it and wear it with confidence.
Great idea the directory!
Thank you Muriel!
It’s a shame to think we need to “tone it down” but I suppose in some work environments it could be distracting. These are awesome ideas for ways to subtly incorporate African prints into our work attire.