Meet the Nigerian woman who is Michelle Obama’s first & only Africa-based designer

Nigerian Amaka Osakwe is the first and only Africa-based designer whose attire is worn by the First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama. Star fashion spoke with Amaka about her Maki Oh brand and the things that make her tick.
Tell us about where you grew up. How did your childhood influence your style?
My mother is both an artist and a designer. She made my siblings and I design all clothes we wore as kids. So I started young. She would collect our sketches and on the weekend, we would go to the markets to pick out fabrics. She’d have garments tailored by the start of the following week. Mother is too cool. Plus, Lagos city without doubt is one of the world’s liveliest cities. Lagosians are very fashionable and flamboyant people across all sectors of society, whether rich or poor. We are born this way.
How does Nigeria play a role in your current designs?
My cultural heritage influences my work the most. I’m always inspired by Nigeria and Africa in general. I live in Lagos because it is home, and because I’m right in the hub of my main source of inspiration. I hear, see, feel, breathe and taste Nigeria every day hence learning something new about my culture and environment every day.
We have a variety of rich cultures in Africa that need to be celebrated. Quite a lot of fabric at Maki Oh is organically dyed using a process called ‘Adire’ on organic silks and cottons, as opposed to industrial printing and dyeing. We strongly believe in sustainability. What’s the fabric process like and how long does it take?
Our fabrics are locally dyed in southern Nigeria using methods passed down, unchanged, from generation to generation and this authenticity appeals to me. The use of natural indigo and the Adire dyeing processes is our own small contribution to preserving a dying art.
Actually, five metres would probably take about a day to do the actual hand-painting and eventually an extra day to do the dying and waxing.
Does the idea of dressing for self or women play a role in your designs?
Each Maki Oh piece has a hidden meaning taken from the traditional clothing ideology in Nigeria where various outfits were worn to pass messages. I believe that the woman wearing Maki Oh thinks much further and deeper than the physical, because she is a multifaceted woman who projects her whole being in everything she does, and in the clothes she wears.


For the full story, check the Vanguard newspaper.