After Hours fashion show highlights local Maryland talent

By Kendra Bryant, Contributing Writer

Lights, cameras, rose petals. This past Sunday, fashion-based student organization The Creative Times hosted its second annual fashion show, After Hours. The audience was treated to an hour-long performance of modeling, a spoken word piece and a dance segment by Allure Models Entertainment. 

With inspiration from The Weeknd, the “House of Balloons” themed show featured pieces from Black designers including Honey Rosado, Lost Pieces, Temptation Unveiled, Christopher Schapper, ONle ViBez, OMRY and Kymestri Couture. 

President and founder of The Creative Times, Chika Agwumezie, said that when deciding on designers, she reflected on struggles that many face when finding their style. “Not everyone can find a balance between sexy and classy,” Agwumezie said. “In After Hours, you can see the contrast between Honey Rosado’s incredibly sexy collection and a more neutral denim line by Lost Pieces.”

When entering the event, guests were greeted by a diverse student-led art show. As the music created a sensual atmosphere, self-portraits, digital art and even paper mache creations were on display. The artists featured are Tia Trawally, Ryen Holt, Jasmine Conyers, Tessa Flora, Kamau Cooley, Jayred Osei and Janiya Foreman. 

Agwumezie shares that her biggest inspiration for starting the organization was to highlight the local talent here in Maryland. 

“It would be crazy to think of doing anything else other than creating a platform to help these creatives be seen through a different lens,” she said.