Duro Olowu

I first knew of Duro Olowu from the the pages of Vogue. He got his well-deserved break when he was discovered by Vogue's Sally Singer and Julie Gilhart, of Barneys. It was 2005 and he happened to be in the same league of up and coming dress designers -- such as the girls behind the label Marchesa. Fast forward to now, and their dresses are a familiar presence in every hardcore fashionista's wardrobe.

Luck must be smiling upon the British designer, who is of Nigerian-Jamaican descent. He was trained as a lawyer before he started designing clothes for a boutique he co-owned with his ex-wife. A year after launching his label OG2, he was awarded New Designer of the Year at the British Fashion Awards in 2006. Then he found himself presenting his collection on the runways of Paris and London. According to vogue.co.uk, "Olowu is known for stunning fluid dresses, made from vintage fabrics that he finds all over the world as well as new prints that he's been designing himself, and incredibly desirable one-off, vintage-inspired accessories."

Like Alber Elbaz, whom he admires, Olowu "has the reputation for being the type of man who makes you want to wear his designs before you've even seen them. According to Doru "I like to make clothes for women to feel good about themselves,"... "And that they don't feel they'll see everywhere."

True enough, his clothes are unique (thanks to the distinct Olowu prints inspired by his mother and aunts & vintage fabrics), interesting, and surprisingly timeless.







(Photos courtesy of style.com)