Pimp my African dress

Selmor Mtukudzi in a pimped dress.

IF YOU have watched ‘Pimp my ride’, then I am sure you will remember that on a show, every time a car goes through a makeover, the end result is always phenomenal. The old beat-down-not-good-for the road vehicle becomes something just out of this world and everyone who sees it wants it. Same concept with the ‘Pimp my African dress’. Our designers have put the African wear under such serious makeover that the dress is hardly recognisable as the kind our mothers used to wear just last year.

On August 15 I went for the opening of the International Images Film Festival for Women (IIFF) and when Selmor Mtukudzi stepped on stage to perform, I could not help but be mesmerised. Clad in a java print dress-top with an ankle length tail combined with a pair of skinny jeans and fashionable ankle length boots she couldn’t stop the heads turning even if she tried. Mtukudzi was the very essence of elegance, beauty and style.

Her ensemble is just one example of how young Zimbabwean women are making the African dress fashionable and appropriate for them. I remember not too long back declaring that I would never be caught dead in African attire. Nowadays, I would just die if I did not get my hands on some of that java. The style that seems to be slowly becoming a trend is the high waist java print skirt. You can either wear it as casual or formal wear with everything else being your usual fabric.

The skirts come in various colours and designs so that you can use a top of virtually any colour. Black and white tops are the norm, however pairing the skirt with a matching bright colour transforms the outfit into something out of this universe. It had been quite a while since the last trend. Colour blocking must be the last thing that made every woman in the country go wild. Now I am pretty sure that very soon walking in town is going to feel like a photo shoot with an African theme happening and many people being truly and proudly African.

So your questions might be, “why would you want to get yourself a piece of java?” Besides following the trends, does it have any real appeal at all? Would you not look like your grandmother from the village and end up being the laughing stock amongst your friends? My answer is YES! Yes, you do want to add not just one piece of java to your wardrobe but a number of them. You want to add a top, a skirt, a dress, some pants maybe, heels, pumps, a clutch… the list of things you can do with java print is so endless that I am still in awe at how it has taken us this long to discover this.

If you are the kind of young woman who likes to stand out and enjoys the attention that comes with putting on a great outfit – then the pimped up African dress is what you are looking for my friend. Even if you are the quiet and reserved kind who would rather be invisible 99.9% of the time, you can make the pimped African dress work for you too. You just play down the colours and accessories and although you might get a little more attention than your preferred bargain, you will not regret the look – I can guarantee you that.

So if you had not gotten yourself anything java yet, the clock is ticking. Get yourself that pimped up African dress and give yourself a new style this summer. – Shanee Banda