Earlier this month I had the great honour of being invited to the Kosibah 20th Anniversary Event and the launch of Bienvenue 20 collection held at the amazing The Institute of Directors, 116 Pall Mall SW1. I was thrilled that two of my designs would be included in the fashion show, a lovely large red flower hairpin and matching hand beaded bouquet, how excited do you think I was! Accompanying me was my good friend and website designer Tamzyn.
Dressed to impress we joined the other guests for canapes and champagne and were able to have a close look at some of Yemi Osunkoya's designs that were displayed in the beautiful reception room. Yemi established the Kosibah brand in London in 1991 and chose the name Kosibah in honour of his mother who gave so much support in his pursuit of becoming a designer. The name Cosiba comes from the Republic of Benin and is the day name of a female child born on a Sunday. I met Yemi through Twitter and have always been impressed with the way that Yemi always takes the time to converse with all his followers and was thrilled to meet Yemi in person just before the show started.
The show was amazing. Lord and Lady Boateng opened the event with a message via video link and as the collection was inspired by the ballet, we were treated to two ballet dances which included The Dying Swan from Tchailovsky's Swan Lake. A saxophonist serenaded us and during the show a soprano added to the magic of the night.
The fashion show was in two parts; evening wear followed by the bridal collection. The designs were stunning, the evening dresses were tailored to perfection and had a real Parisian feel. I would have to say I instantly fell in love with the very first dress which was an elegant, just below the knee, fitted black dress and when the model turned around there was a striking flash of orange as the back had been cut in a deep V-shape with the material from the V being folded back and trimmed with the exciting orange accent (apologies for my total lack of tailoring technical knowledge here!). The model was accessorised with red leather gloves, red corsage and matching fascinator, the overall effect was - I Want That Dress!
Then came the bridal gowns. The collection gave a soft romantic feel that echos Yemi's inspiration of the ballet. The variation in styles and cuts meant that there was a design to suit all body shapes in the Bienvenue 20 Collection. Brides have a real dilemma though as all of the dresses were beautiful - how to choose?
Then came the penultimate bride in a beautiful strapless design with a full skirt, cascading soft frills down the front and embroidered flower detail on the bodice with tiny flowers scattered throughout the skirt in a way that conjures up images of confetti. The subtle red embroidery of these flowers was picked up in my hand beaded bouquet and the matching red hand beaded hair pin. I would have to say that I found it very hard to sit down at this point as all I wanted to do was to shout out "I made that". But ever the professional, I stayed sitting and just grinned like mad at my friend.
Here are some behind the scenes images that I was kindly given by Yemi. How amazing does the model look, if only I could pose like that!
The reason I waited before I shared this amazing event with you was because I wanted to show you some of the images from the photo shoot that was held a few days later. These unofficial images taken at The Hempel Hotel really capture the elegance of Yemi's designs, plus I am rather proud that my designs have been included again.
If you would like to see more of Yemi's designs, please visit the Kosibah website. Thank you Yemi for an amazing evening x
You can see my designs used in the show on my Tiara Heaven website here: hand beaded bouquet and large beaded flower.
Heres a list of all the fabulous people involved in Kosibah 20th Event:
Venue styling/Tablescape (above): Cedar Event
Couture Stationery and Invites: Lovicci
Florist: Blue Sky Flowers
Heirloom Bouquet: Tinygems
Chiavari Chairs: I am Wedding Hire
Soprano Singer: Lisa Carlisle
Mini Ice Cream Cones: Ice Angels
Cake: Elizabeth’s Cake Emporium
Stylist and Choreographer: Adebayo Jones
Hair Stylist: Kasia Fortuna
Makeup artist: Kemi Kings Beauty
Compere: Diana Dalia
Bridal Tiaras/Headpieces: Claire Ogden Designs
Saxophonist: A I Romantic Sax
Hats/Fascinators: Lyze Bamigbola-Silas
Videographer/Showreel: Laja than Life Productions
Handbeaded bouquet and hair pin: Tiara Heaven
 |
| Image by White Gold Images |
Dressed to impress we joined the other guests for canapes and champagne and were able to have a close look at some of Yemi Osunkoya's designs that were displayed in the beautiful reception room. Yemi established the Kosibah brand in London in 1991 and chose the name Kosibah in honour of his mother who gave so much support in his pursuit of becoming a designer. The name Cosiba comes from the Republic of Benin and is the day name of a female child born on a Sunday. I met Yemi through Twitter and have always been impressed with the way that Yemi always takes the time to converse with all his followers and was thrilled to meet Yemi in person just before the show started.The show was amazing. Lord and Lady Boateng opened the event with a message via video link and as the collection was inspired by the ballet, we were treated to two ballet dances which included The Dying Swan from Tchailovsky's Swan Lake. A saxophonist serenaded us and during the show a soprano added to the magic of the night.
The fashion show was in two parts; evening wear followed by the bridal collection. The designs were stunning, the evening dresses were tailored to perfection and had a real Parisian feel. I would have to say I instantly fell in love with the very first dress which was an elegant, just below the knee, fitted black dress and when the model turned around there was a striking flash of orange as the back had been cut in a deep V-shape with the material from the V being folded back and trimmed with the exciting orange accent (apologies for my total lack of tailoring technical knowledge here!). The model was accessorised with red leather gloves, red corsage and matching fascinator, the overall effect was - I Want That Dress!
 |
| Image by White Gold Images |
Then came the bridal gowns. The collection gave a soft romantic feel that echos Yemi's inspiration of the ballet. The variation in styles and cuts meant that there was a design to suit all body shapes in the Bienvenue 20 Collection. Brides have a real dilemma though as all of the dresses were beautiful - how to choose?
 |
| FO Photography |
 |
| Image by White Gold Images |
Here are some behind the scenes images that I was kindly given by Yemi. How amazing does the model look, if only I could pose like that!
The reason I waited before I shared this amazing event with you was because I wanted to show you some of the images from the photo shoot that was held a few days later. These unofficial images taken at The Hempel Hotel really capture the elegance of Yemi's designs, plus I am rather proud that my designs have been included again.
 | |||||
| Image by Chris Dunn |
 |
| Image by Chris Dunn |
If you would like to see more of Yemi's designs, please visit the Kosibah website. Thank you Yemi for an amazing evening x
You can see my designs used in the show on my Tiara Heaven website here: hand beaded bouquet and large beaded flower.
Heres a list of all the fabulous people involved in Kosibah 20th Event:
Venue styling/Tablescape (above): Cedar Event
Couture Stationery and Invites: Lovicci
Florist: Blue Sky Flowers
Heirloom Bouquet: Tinygems
Chiavari Chairs: I am Wedding Hire
Soprano Singer: Lisa Carlisle
Mini Ice Cream Cones: Ice Angels
Cake: Elizabeth’s Cake Emporium
Stylist and Choreographer: Adebayo Jones
Hair Stylist: Kasia Fortuna
Makeup artist: Kemi Kings Beauty
Compere: Diana Dalia
Bridal Tiaras/Headpieces: Claire Ogden Designs
Saxophonist: A I Romantic Sax
Hats/Fascinators: Lyze Bamigbola-Silas
Videographer/Showreel: Laja than Life Productions
Handbeaded bouquet and hair pin: Tiara Heaven
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