Connade by Shelley Mokoena

Connade’ show marked a moment of beautiful clarity for Shelley Mokoena, a Joburg-based designer long celebrated for her architectural elegance and emotional intelligence. But this collection was different – softer, more intimate, carrying the warmth of something slow-simmered. “Connade is the culmination of everything I’ve been trying to say through my work,” Mokoena reflects. “It’s my most distilled language yet… where concept meets feeling.”

The garments lived in a palette of refined neutrals and pastels. There were shades reminiscent of vanilla cream, rose macarons and citrus glaze. Yet this wasn’t sweetness for sweetness’ sake; it was sweetness as a mature extravagance. “When I think of confections, I see them not as opposites to depth, but as necessary companions,” she explains, adding that her recent designs have moved toward “stillness, refinement and spiritual grounding.”

Her runway expressed that evolution through softened structures, rounded sleeves and silhouettes that invited breath. There was a tenderness to the pieces but also an undercurrent of discipline – a delicate balance she sees as central to Connade as she continues to think about the body as a vessel of inheritance. “This tenderness and intimacy is about finding pleasure in simplicity,” she explains. And Mount Nelson, with its storied history and architectural weight, served as the perfect grounding point. “It feels like a monumental metaphor for Connade – timeless and steeped in memory. Presenting here was like placing the past and the future in quiet dialogue.”

Even Mokoena’s design process is infused with ritualistic joy. “The most indulgent part of my process is draping… it’s instinctive, almost meditative. When fabric begins to move and fold into form, it feels like watching an idea materialise. This is my personal confection.” She also describes her research – the reading, silence and sketching – as its own kind of luxury. All this contributes to Connade’s deeply felt language, which was communicated through the sensory feast she presented at CxC.“ What I want people to understand is that it’s not just about clothing. It’s memory, emotion and form… a connection to the spiritual and the ancestral. Every piece is an offering.”

Yoshita 1967 by Anil Padia

If Connade offered the silky elegance of a well-balanced dessert, Yoshita 1967 provided the bright, celebratory bliss of opening a box of chocolates with both hands. For Anil Padia, the label’s Indo-Kenyan founder and dreamweaver, CxC wasn’t just a location; it was a revelation. “Once I saw the setting, that’s when things really came together. It’s my first runway, and seeing the clothes worn by so many models… it was mesmerising,” the Paris-based designer shares.

The collection, conceived entirely by crochet artisans in Nairobi, was crafted from just three elements: cotton thread, mirrors and tiny bells. Padia calls it “very pure” and grounded in the labour of the skilled women he collaborates with. Every stitch, every glint and every chime carried the enchantment of something shaped directly by hand, imbuing each piece the power to toll sweetly with every gentle movement of their wearer.

His palette, which includes mint green, baby blue, lilac, ruby, panna cotta and black, felt like an invitation to thrill. “I come from a culture where colour is an expression of joy and play. I don’t shy away from colour, because it carries real feeling.” Likewise, Padia’s process is experimental and sensorial. “I see the garments before I design them… the material tells me what to do. We use the smallest crochet needle available – that’s where the magic starts to happen.” This results in twinkling silhouettes that emphasis the body in a way that is rooted in ease rather than spectacle. “Sensuality is a big part of the clothes – it’s not about being sexy. I want women to feel comfortable in their own way.”

For this emerging designer, Mount Nelson also brought a much-needed indulgence. Not just visually, but emotionally. After several months of hard toil, promoting his debut collection and short film, ‘Temple Road’, he describes feeling held when someone simply offered to take his luggage; and the show became something of a warm balm. “I felt like I breathed out for the first time in a while. The people, the setting, the clothes, the music, the weather… it all merged. The soundscape with the wind: it was harmony.”

His palette, which includes mint green, baby blue, lilac, ruby, panna cotta and black, felt like an invitation to thrill. “I come from a culture where colour is an expression of joy and play. I don’t shy away from colour, because it carries real feeling.” Likewise, Padia’s process is experimental and sensorial. “I see the garments before I design them… the material tells me what to do. We use the smallest crochet needle available – that’s where the magic starts to happen.” This results in twinkling silhouettes that emphasis the body in a way that is rooted in ease rather than spectacle. “Sensuality is a big part of the clothes – it’s not about being sexy. I want women to feel comfortable in their own way.”

For this emerging designer, Mount Nelson also brought a much-needed indulgence. Not just visually, but emotionally. After several months of hard toil, promoting his debut collection and short film, ‘Temple Road’, he describes feeling held when someone simply offered to take his luggage; and the show became something of a warm balm. “I felt like I breathed out for the first time in a while. The people, the setting, the clothes, the music, the weather… it all merged. The soundscape with the wind: it was harmony.”