Fashion
South African Fashion Week Makes Its Return
South African Fashion Week (SAFW) will return in April 2026 after a year-long break. This event is not just coming back, it promises to appeal to more people.
The South African Fashion Week was founded in 1997 with the goal of connecting designers and investors. It is held twice a year in Johannesburg to transform creative collections into fashion businesses. It promises to put South Africa designers on the global stage.

Photo: Instagram
However, the decision to pause the event in 2025 was to make it more sustainable. According to SAFW founder and director Lucilla Booyzen, the conventional system of large runway shows no longer reflected the current realities facing designers.
“After 28 years of shaping the South African designer fashion industry, I began to notice a gradual but unmistakable shift in how fashion operates,” Booyzen tells Vogue Business. “Instability in the supply chain has made fabric sourcing unsustainable, unpredictable and costly. Production costs have increased, while opportunities for visibility and retail presence for designer-led brands have reduced.”
The COVID-19 pandemic is another factor that contributed to the pause. Many South African designers shifted to digital sales models like Instagram and WhatsApp. Consumers now prefer buying directly through social media apps which pushed organisers to rethink strategy.

Photo: Instagram
Read Also: 3 Fashion Trends We’re Glad to Leave Behind in 2025.
The event now has a hybrid structure which combines physical runway shows with expanded digital participation. This digital participation includes livestreamed runway shows, where collections presented on the physical runway are broadcast online in real time and enhanced social media integration where backstage moments and interviews are shown on TikTok and YouTube. This will give South African designers more global exposure.

Photo: Instagram
Initiatives such as the New Talent Search and national student competitions will be introduced to support creatives. By changing its format, SAFW hopes to position South African designers to make them compete favorably with their peers around the world.
This new hybrid format will allow digital participation, enabling wider international access and South African designers reach new markets.
Fashion
Nqobile Khwezi Reveals a Little in Burgundy Outside the Louvre
Nqobile Khwezi was photographed outside the Louvre Museum in a recent Instagram post. The photo shows Khwezi in a burgundy ensemble. The post, simply captioned “Candid outside the Louvre,” The image features her wearing a burgundy blazer.

Nqobile Khwezi:Instagram
The outfit included an oversized burgundy blazer from BABY BOO, worn without pants, with the blazer partially unbuttoned to reveal a black lace bra. She accessorized with reflective burgundy glasses with a dark frame, partially obscured by her long hair. Her accessories included a Dolce & Gabbana burgundy bag and a neck chain featuring a burgundy pendant. She completed the look with burgundy slingback pointed heels, and her makeup and nails were kept in nude tones.
Read Also: The Inward Gaze: Pearl Thusi as Her Own Muse
Known as a brand strategist, Khwezi has built a reputation for a distinct fashion presence. Her Instagram, followed by a large audience, showcases curated outfits ranging from casual streetwear to sophisticated tailoring.

Nqobile Khwezi:Instagram
Social media is a powerful platform for fashion personalities to control their own narratives. Unlike traditional editorial magazines, images like this allow creators to present fashion through personal experiences.

Nqobile Khwezi:Instagram
Khwezi’s appearance outside the Louvre shows her participation in international fashion spaces and social media visibility. By being photographed in this historic location, she presents African fashion in a global context. Moments like this contribute to her wider recognition as a fashion influencer.
Fashion
The Inward Gaze: Pearl Thusi as Her Own Muse
Shot in black and white, Pearl Thusi sits on a bed, dressed in lace lingerie with a loose shirt slipping off her shoulders. Camera angle and stillness keep the focus on her pose and face.
She has done similar shoots before. Across past magazine features and editorial shoots, she has used images that mix confidence with softer presentation. The key difference here is the minimal approach. There is no elaborate set design or heavy accessorising drawing focus away from her. The scene feels considered, minimal, leaving the focus on her pose.

Pearl Thusi – Instagram
Her pose drives the image. Leaning back, head tilted, eyes closed, she suggests a private moment, even though it is clearly staged. It appears less staged and more controlled in how she presents herself. The camera is present, but it does not take focus away from her. Instead, she controls how she is presented.
This approach matches how she has been positioned in several lifestyle and fashion spreads over the years. Instead of using dramatic elements, these features often focus on how she presents herself. This image follows that pattern. It suggests a subject who is aware of the camera without adjusting to please it.

Pearl Thusi – Instagram
The black-and-white image removes colour and highlights contrast and texture. The lace, the soft bedding, and the smooth lighting add visual detail without making the image busy.
The image shows control. It remains understated and is not overly styled, and it does not rely on heavy styling. It keeps attention through its simplicity.
Fashion
Wild West! Thabsie Makes Cowgirl Style Look So Good
Thabsile Zikhali is embracing a Western-inspired look in a recent photoshoot shared online. The singer steps away from her usual performance styling to appear in an outfit built around cowgirl fashion elements.
The shoot places Thabsie in front of a worn building. The location contrasts with the polished styling, highlighting the intricacies of the outfit.

Thabsile Zikhali – Instagram
A strapless brown dress with a corset-style bodice forms the main piece of the outfit. The top features crisscross lacing across the front, while the long skirt falls to the ground with a high slit on one side. The slit reveals a pair of cow-print boots that bring a clear Western influence to the outfit.
Thabsie completes the look with a wide-brimmed brown cowboy hat. Around her waist is a silver chain belt with layered links worn over the dress. She also wears stacked silver necklaces and long drop earrings that add shine to the look.
The photos show the singer posing in the open parking area outside the building, with the neutral tones of the setting contrasting with the deep brown of the dress and the patterned boots.

Thabsile Zikhali – Instagram
The Western theme has appeared frequently in fashion shoots and celebrity styling in recent years, with cowboy hats, statement belts and boots often reinterpreted in modern outfits. In this shoot, those elements appear through the hat, jewellery and the cow-print boots paired with the fitted dress.
The images offer a different style direction for the singer, presenting her in a fashion theme that blends classic Western pieces with a modern cut.
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