By Rita Okoye
There’s a common saying, but it takes a while to sink in – looking good is a great business.
The truth is, a lot of questions go through your mind whenever you’re trying to make a choice on the right dress to wear for an occasion. It could be for official meetings or events, parties or casual outings, exclusive fashion runways or entertainment shows, or even religious gatherings. You flip through the dresses hanging in your closet as you wonder which of them should be the right pick.
At this point, every single dress in your closet would seem to call for your attention. However, you have a million reasons to turn them down. This is because subconsciously, you understand the depth of what you are wearing.
It is common knowledge that fashion communicates our personality, style, and class, but beyond that, it also helps us make good connections with people. The way a beautiful fragrance is pleasant to the nostril senses, it’s the same way a great sight is pleasant to the eyes.
There are different fashion designers around Africa, especially in Ghana, who have taken the time to craft modern fashion pieces that could help people advance in life, and the Opong Studio fashion brand is one of them.
Opong is a distinguished wear brand founded by the visionary designer Samuel Oppong. It is dedicated to celebrating the different nature of womanhood through fashion. It is inspired by the belief that clothing is a vital form of self-expression, and so Opong aims to empower women to embrace their individuality and style.
Their collections show present designs which are bold, yet with romantic silhouettes. Each of the pieces is made in their artisanal studio located in the heart of Accra, Ghana, ensuring attention to detail and quality in every garment.
At Opong Studio, there is a provision that allows clients to create dresses that are tailored to their exact needs and occasions. With a focus on great fashion pieces, their design encompasses femininity, playfulness, and practicality, which makes them ideal for women who make their way through various roles in their daily lives.
Samuel Oppong’s journey into fashion began in a creative household, where his mother worked as a fashion designer and his late grandmother was a talented dressmaker. He built his skills from a young age. He learnt the art of sketching, pattern cutting, sewing, and visual marketing.
Opong fashion brand was officially launched in July 2019, and after seventeen months of gaining practical experience, Samuel furthered his knowledge by enrolling in a Master’s course in fashion business.
The launch of this 2023 Opong Modern Collection is proof of this fashion brand’s focus on crafting beautiful modern pieces that resonate with contemporary people.
This is a beautiful and well-crafted piece from the 2023 Opong Modern Collection. It’s a one-piece outfit. Its silhouette is ball gown, fitted bodice with a slightly full skirt area. It seems to create the desired visual impact; for example, it’s elegant, playful, and sophisticated. The silhouette seems to be well-defined and intentional.
The dress embodies a style that is romantic because of its fabric choice, the elemental details, embellishment and general silhouette. The style is clear and consistent throughout the design, and the elements work together to reinforce the intended style.
This dress will be suitable for high-profile events such as exclusive fashion runways and entertainment shows. However, it is not suitable for official meetings, casual outings or religious gatherings.
It has a shore-like material around its shoulders, and it extends down to the waist and resembles a U-shape. This material may have been added for the reason of embellishment, but it seems like the designer was trying so hard to please and, in the process, added unnecessary features.
Though the black colour of this shore-like material blends with the yellow hue of the dress, the feature itself isn’t needed.
The sleeves are long and puffy, but slim-fitted at the wrist, while the gown flows above the knee, giving the dress additional appeal.
The volume of the sleeves doesn’t correspond with the size of the bodice – there is no uniformity in visual weight. But the sleeves seem to be too large for the torso and the abdomen.
In total, the dress is attractive and appealing, and it’s pleasing to the eyes. It is a charming dress for an evening date or dinner, plus it has a romantic allure about it. But the puffy sleeves, as mentioned earlier, and the shore-like material that was made to embellish the dress ironically tone down its beauty.
The design shows an attempt at creative thinking, offers a unique take on style, and has novel elements imbued in it. It offers a fresh perspective and brings something new to the table, but it may not be too catchy. Different doesn’t always mean better.
The material used in creating the dress significantly impacts its look, feel, drape and durability. The fabric seems to be appropriate for the intended style and season. It drapes well and improves the design. The fabric contains no flaws of snags, or uneven colour.
The seams are professionally finished without any sign of poor stitching or rushed work. They appear strong and durable. There are no skipped stitches or areas where it is too tight or too loose.
This is a dress that will attract women who need to look powerful and attractive. It has an appeal that builds interest in observers. Though it has areas in its physical elements that are not enough or overdone, it will still make heads swivel with interest at events.
This is another beautiful fashion piece from the 2023 Opong Modern Collection. The colour is the first visual attraction. The lemon green is good to look at, and it’s believed that green depicts nature, growth, renewal, and harmony.
It is a one-piece garment. It has a shirt-collar that merges into a cleavage that reveals the beautiful flesh around the woman’s chest. The neckline will be flattering to the wearer, and it is appropriate for the style of the dress and a fancy occasion. It is well-finished and lies smoothly. The cleavage ends at the midriff. It has a waistband that tightens with a button.
The skirt area has layers of beautiful pleats, which are elegantly arranged. They seem to be intentional, and they contribute to the overall design. They are well designed and appropriately placed, and the sleeves are long and loosely fitted. Their length seems to be right for the dress, and they are properly constructed and finished. Though the proportion seems to be wrong. Perhaps it would look better if the sleeves were slightly more fitted than they are.
The pleats are well-sewn and finished, and they contribute to the enhancement of the dress, and they look like a necessary style for the garment. They are also in proportion to the rest of the dress.
This dress can be worn for special occasions, such as exclusive fashion runways and entertainment shows. You will be admired, and it will make heads swivel your way for the right reasons. It is a romantic gown and naturally has an appeal for attraction.
It may not be acceptable at some religious places because it flows above the knee, and it may seem inappropriate for business meetings and generally in workplaces. This dress is only suitable for exclusive shows and high-profile events.
This 2023 Opong Modern Collection is something that should drape nicely in your wardrobe, and will help you scale up in your career, because looking good is great business, and Opong fashion has got you covered.
This is another beautiful fashion piece from the 2023 Opong Collection. It is a two-piece outfit with a blouse and trousers. The silhouette is regular and balanced, and should draw out the shape of the wearer. It is fitted, structured and flowing. It emphasises the curvy areas of the wearer. It has a sheath silhouette that follows the natural lines of the body. It doesn’t look too tight and doesn’t seem to restrict movement, but it skims the body smoothly. It has an appropriate length.
It is an armless dress with frills at the shoulder areas, which adds to the embellishments of the dress. The blouse has a colour of pitch, and the trousers are pink; these hues blend harmoniously and give a perfect visual composition.
The style brings to mind a groovy feeling. It has the party feel-good vibes, and it will suit women who love to get down and have a good time.
The trousers are vast in size and don’t balance with the slim bodice of the dress. The frills at the lower end of the trousers seem unnecessary. The embellishments aren’t in excess, but the wrong positioning makes it look like it’s in excess.
Depending on who is looking, the dress may look catchy. It isn’t very different from other fashion pieces out there, but the slight appeal that it possesses could make up for that.
The material choice for the design seems appropriate, and it drapes well. The fabric is flattering and looks durable. The fabric pieces are joined smoothly; they are straight and even, and they lie flat. There are no puckered seams along the side, so no poor sewing techniques or mismatched fabric tensions. There are no raw, unfinished seam allowances that could make the inside look messy. The seams are neatly finished.
Samuel Oppong had party lovers in mind while making the pieces of this collection. The garments are beautiful, but they also have their downsides and areas where the designer’s creativity wasn’t enough. But overall, this 2023 Opong collection is a creative piece of work.