Buki Akomolafe

Kids of Immigrants Support Your Friends Tee, Buki Akomolafe Waffle Pants, The Palatines Inergia Chealsea Boot

MY STORY: For me, the holidays are usually a time to relax and enjoy with family. This time around was honestly pretty stressful. It's difficult for me to be in a constantly changing environment. Since I'm off school until next year, my schedule has been different every week and the change has really gotten to me. On top of that, my work schedule changed and my mom came to visit. I just feel overwhelmed with everything that is happening in such a short amount of time. With that, my winter session class will start next week along with both my jobs. I am hoping that with a more constant schedule, I will be able to gracefully juggle everything with the help of the Lord. Even with all these changes happening, I am grateful to have a community in LA with people I can do life with through the ups and downs.

BUKI AKOMOLAFE'S STORY: Buki Akomolafe founded her contemporary, androgynous feel, high-end women's clothing line in 2016. Her designs and vision have a refined balance between clean European classical tailoring and traditional craftsmanship of West Africa from her German and Nigerian heritage. Buki now lives in Berlin but she grew up in Africa with her father who manages an agricultural project in Nigeria. Having been exposed to this at a young age, Buki learned to appreciate the conscious use of resources. Buki only uses high quality eco-organic fabrics such as certified cotton, organic hemp-silk, and African waxprints.

Ovna Ovich

Ovna Ovich Odin Blazer and Tuda Trouser in Light Linen

MY STORY: It feels so odd to no longer be waking up at 6AM to head to school every morning. I finished my first semester of fashion design school last week and I'm already onto something new this week. For a while, I've been thinking about taking on an additional job. I asked around and decided I should start looking online. I ended up applying to a few but didn't hear back from many of them.

One night, I was hanging out with my friend Tiffany and she mentioned that she was recently promoted. She was looking for someone to work on the same team as her and I offered to do it. A week later, with no resume or interview, I had landed myself a job. I was in disbelief that this was possible since I had only known the formal process of submitting an application and resume followed by an interview. This story gets even crazier because I had initially mentioned this company was hiring to Tiffany and that's how she ended up working there. On top of that, I had been looking online for the exact position she offered me and it's at an ethical fashion company! I feel extremely blessed to not only have a new job but also to be working on the same team as Tiffany. After the first day, we both agreed that we are so excited to spice things up in 2018!

OVNA OVICH'S STORY: Marina Davis founded Ovna Ovich, a women's clothing line dedicated to making environmentally and socially aware pieces. In Russian, ovna means feminine and ovich masculine which really describes the elegant and effortless clothing Marina offers. In her collections, there is a balance of energies: realist - dream, feminine - masculine, and shadow - light. Her pieces are made with beautiful fabric and construction and feels amazing against the skin.

August

August Adea Shirt, Thrifted Pants, Adelante Cordoba Sandal in Caramel

MY STORY: I recently took a day trip to Joshua Tree and went to Key Views, the highest point in the park with a stunning view. It was my first time there and I was blown away both mentally by the natural majestic beauty and physically by the wind. While we were there, someone asked us, "What are your dreams?" We thought about it for a second and replied, "We're living them."

It's honestly such a blessing to be able to say that as our response. I feel that it is easy to be drawn away to doing something unenjoyable just because it's stable, easy, or what someone else wants you to do. I've spent time dabbling here and it made me sad and unable to enjoy what life truly has to offer. I fought for change and now I'm working in ethical fashion, a field that I actually like and look forward to learning about. It's not an easy journey to fight to live your dreams but I can vouch that it'll be worth it.

AUGUST'S STORY: August, a sustainable clothing brand offering innovative designs in natural materials, is founded by Estonian designer Ali Kargoja. Ali creates pieces that harmonize comfort, practicality, and style. For Ali, the materials and manufacturing process are very important. She uses fabric from Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certified fabric mills and sustainable fabric fairs. Also, all her pieces are made in Estonia.