The first time a photo of Njeri Akosua’s explosive tie dye crop tops showed up on our feed, you can bet we stopped scrolling. It’s clear the queer, black, femme-owned brand is goals. Color goals. Comfort goals. Empowerment goals.
The often-vintage, always one-of-a-kind clothing that designer Njeri Summey (she/her) creates left us needing one (or two) of her pieces to call our own. And we aren’t the only ones.
“People know me as ‘the tie-dye’ person,” said Njeri. “That’s definitely how I got into making clothes.”
More than an aesthetic
Tie-dye was massive in the late 80s and early 90s, and we all know how huge its influence is today. But Njeri is drawn to the medium for more than just its aesthetic benefits – the concept of art meeting function is what got her hooked.
“With tie-dye, I love the fact that when I’m finished I’ll have something to wear,” explained Njeri. “I’ve always been drawn to making art that can live and work with me after I’m done with it… I have a lot of experience with ceramics and I’m drawn to that for the same reasons.”
Njeri got her start by scouring thrift and vintage stores for pieces whose potential spoke to her. Next came reimagining, cutting and tie-dying the pieces to give them new life. What she loves about her creative process is seeing something as it is at that moment, and envisioning what it can become. “Sometimes I’ll walk up to a piece of clothing and I know right away – this has to be this one thing,” said Njeri. “Other times, it’s different. It’s me playing around with the fabric for a really long time, or making the same thing over and over until one day I’m like, ‘… wait…’ and see I something completely new.”
To her, one of the best parts about creating clothing is how she is able to help support the queer community. “Already, queerness, queer people and what comes out of our queerness is all about seeing unlimited possibilities,” said Njeri. “I feel like that definitely embodies what I try to do as a designer.
I have people come to me and say they don’t really feel comfortable their body, but when they put on what I made, they feel protected and more like themselves. Being able to create the space for someone to feel more like themselves is everything.”
Handmade expansion
Njeri’s designs already include timeless custom offerings like tops, socks, and denim looks, as well as more on-trend items like scrunchies, crop tops and sweatsuits. But Njeri has no intention of stopping there. “I recently got a sewing machine back in March or April, and that has really launched a bunch of new ideas in my brain,” says Njeri. “I actually started hand-making intimates and lingerie for the first time!”
Even as Njeri’s brand continues to expand, it’s still important to work in a way that’s closely aligned with her values.
“The fashion industry has a huge negative impact on the environment as far as water use, power use – just an extreme amount of waste,” said Njeri. “Like, clothing items that are created but not sold just get thrown out. And so while I do make custom sweatsuits from new items, to reuse fabric feels better to me, so I use recycled fabrics most of the time.”
What’s next for Njeri Akosua as a brand? Big dreams and big ambitions. “I want to be in the mix. I want to have celebrities like Rhianna calling my phone like, hey girl, let’s do this collab,” says Njeri. “I want to make custom designs for important events.” And those are some goals we can get behind.
Watch Njeri Akosua’s journey on her Instagram and visit her online store to shop or order a custom design.
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