Ethnik by T.O. is a stylish range of contemporary African design footwear and fashion accessories made with beautifully woven Aso Oke, a traditional Yoruba textile. The collection, launched in 2015, is the brainchild of photographer and designer Tunde Olowabi, who by tapping into his heritage is adding to the diverse creative voices shaping contemporary African design.

Senegalese jewellery designer Ngone, is best known for her avant garde creations, which I have featured previously on Atelier Fifty-Five. She now introduces a new collection exuding luxurious femininity that includes jewellery pieces that can be transformed into hair accessories.

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LONDRÉ TAN is a luxury South African brand of fashion accessories made in Africa that caters to the modern woman. Based in  Johannesburg the brand was launched in 2014 by Lilian Muhammed, a fashion industry entrepreneur. Style, exceptional craftsmanship and luxury epitomizes Londré Tan’s collections which include handbags, belts and jewellery. Named after a major South African city, each design pays homage to the diversity, rich culture and beauty of the country.

If you are passionate about designing and producing accessories that not only look good, but have positive impact, then it is not too late to enter the Abury Design Experience (ADEx) competition to be in with a chance to create a capsule accessories collection for sustainable luxury accessory brand, Abury. Abury’s ethos is to combine traditional, old world crafts with avant garde design to create a new luxury style that fosters intercultural exchange and helps preserves world crafts. And, now in its second year ADEx is an international design competition- held in partnership with Harper’s Bazaar Germany -that builds on Abury’s crafts skills exchange ethos. And, in addition to designing a collection for Abury the winner will also receive travel, stay, a production budget and up to three months in Morocco collaborating with local artisans.

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Luxury French fashion house, Hermès recently launched La Marche du Zambeze, a stunning silk twill scarf that was the result of a collaboration with South African ceramic studio, Ardmore. Celebrating African art and creativity the scarf was designed by Ardmore’s artisans. La Marche du Zambeze is set in the great river lands of the Zambezi tracing its course from the savannah to the delta marshes and feaures a majestic elephant at its centre, symbolising family and power. Gathered around the elephant are the creatures of his kingdom, giraffe, zebra, leopard and crocodile. The river’s flora is silhouetted all around the composition, off-setting rich patterns of python and crocodile skin.