‘I hoped I would not get struck by lightning’: Thebe Magugu on cutting up Pierpaolo Piccioli’s dress

Following his successful launch with Adidas, South African designer Thebe Magugu has worked on a designer swap project with prestigious Valentino designer Pierpaolo Piccioli.

The 28-year-old designer worked on Piccioli’s AW18 Haute Couture collection, whilst the Italian fashion designer transformed Magugu’s Basotho-inspired suit into a regal cashmere handstitched cape.

Designer swap

The two designers worked together for the September issue of Vogue magazine.

Thebe shared this milestone on his Instagram account, with a post captioned: “For the past few weeks, I have had the incredible honour of working on a Vogue Designer Swap with Pierpaolo Piccioli. He sent to our studios in Johannesburg a look from his AW18 Haute Couture collection; an arresting off-shoulder silk-taffeta plisse-waist dress worn by @traceeellisross.

“In my research, I understood that Pierpaolo, for that collection, was looking at 18th century women. This made me ask who were 18th century women in Africa? I thought of the strength and regality of Queen Nandi Bhebhe (c. 1760 – October 10, 1827) – mother of the King of the Zulus,” he said.

Thebe said it broke his heart to cut up such a magnificent dress from Piccioli. “It actually rained that day, and I hoped I would not get struck by lightning.”

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Pierpoalo, 54, is an Italian fashion designer and the creative director of Valentino for over a decade.

“We completely unpicked the dress, recut using patterns I had developed, and moved it from a whimsical dress to an elevated trench coat with voluminous sleeves. All the tulle in the garment we hand dyed into the classic PP Pink and created wide leg-pants and a frill-neck blouse,” the contemporary designer said.

The Moët Hennessy-Louis Vuitton (LVMH) prize winner said he created the hat from the supporting corset from Piccioli’s original dress.

“I created a special logo merging our sisterhood emblem and Valentino’s classic crest, screen printing it on the crown,” he concluded.

‘Finding Beauty’ collaboration

Meanwhile, the previous weekend, Thebe and Adidas had a luncheon in Johannesburg to celebrate their collaboration “Finding Beauty”.

The event was attended by the likes of Mohale Motaung, Rich Mnisi – who collaborated with Adidas a few months ago – Boity and Gomora actress Siphesihle Ndaba.

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