London Pacific Islander Fashion Week 2020

In London, I first learned about the fashion show through Instagram. I had been following a lot of fashion pages, and one post came up connected to Fashion Week. I wondered if it was something I could do.

I called a friend in London and asked if he could go check it out for me. He attended the event and spoke with the organizer about the process. After that, I applied for the following year. There was a fee to participate, and once I was accepted, I began making the collection.

The collection was Afro-Polynesian inspired, using red, yellow, green, and white. I wanted to showcase my designs, my aesthetic, and the language of my SF Regalia work. The collection was made in San Francisco, and it became my first runway collection.

People were excited to see someone coming from the United States. The show often featured Pacific Islander designers based in London or Europe, so my presence brought a different perspective. Many people responded strongly to the work. Some said they had never seen anything like what I was showing, while others recognized the Islander influence in the designs. The experience confirmed that my work could travel beyond San Francisco while still carrying the culture, materials, and visual language that shaped it.