Designer Minds: Esé Azénabor

One thing you can’t live without when you begin the design process?

The main thing I always ensure I do before I begin my design process is to pray. For guidance and inspiration, for clarity and to help all the ideas I get to make sense and be cohesive. In terms of my process, I usually start with fabrics as that helps inspire design direction.

Can you tell us the inspirations behind Esé Azénabor’s overall style?

Esé Azénabor is designed for feminine, bold women.

If your style were a song/music genre, what would it be?

I’d have to say a mix of Abba and Classical music (think the Bridgerton soundtrack)- Abba is a representation of my vintage expression and bold colors. It is such a strong memory from my childhood and always reminds me of where I’m from; and that is a big part of m design as well. This cleaner aesthetic and designs you see from my collections, the Classical music is representative of the edgy side.

Do you have a particular piece that you favour the most?

V2 10011: With this design, it was fun to play with organza and all the layers to create the form of the flower that is romantic and simple, and beautiful on its own. Also, style 9004; this gown was really the birth of the Luminous Collections. This was this was the first dress designed in that collection, everything else stemmed from there.

How do you make the final decision on the colour palette?

Usually stay within ivory and off white; I added the rose ivory because of the design of the style 9004. While I didn’t want to stray far from the clean bridal palate, The blush was the perfect undertone to help bring out the dimensions of the flower and now it’s become a part of my staple bridal colors. I also introduced a colorful floral pattern in the style 100014 for the bride that wants to see more color, I was so happy I could include that piece because of my love for eveningwear.

 What has changed as your designs have evolved?

Embracing more femineity. In the beginning my designs were much more edgy but since moving though motherhood of a girl they’ve become much softer. In addition to that, the contemporary concrete structure of New York, one of my favorite cities and the home of our location inspired me with the cleaner lines for the modern bride.

Can you describe the Esé Azénabor bride in three words? What do they all have in common?

Loud(they live life out loud)
Stylish/fashion forward (never want to fit into a crowd)
Multi-cultural (have brides from every walk of life!)

❤️

Photo Credit:

Ines Di Santo