Lagos is where Adebayo Oke-Lawal of Orange Culture shares his most intimate stories, and this season was no different. Kicking off the city’s fashion week with his pre-fall 2027 collection, Oke-Lawal wanted his guests to be introspective and self-appreciating. “I want people to personally connect to the story,” he said.

Our immersion into the show began while walking into the venue; draping from the ceiling were large sheets of fabric with quotes like “I was never outside of love” and “even here I am held.” “It’s an opportunity to fall in love with yourself,” he explained.

The collection, titled The In Between, was an exploration of longing, both romantic and platonic. Women’s and menswear both danced the line between sensuality and softness. There were fanciful dresses and asymmetric sets sprinkled throughout. Standout looks included a red and black dress with an exaggerated and deep side cut-out, and a soft pink and butter yellow chiffon set, which swayed with the model as she walked down the runway.

Oke-Lawal introduced new crochet pieces and prints that resembled the tiling in his childhood home, a memory he holds very dearly as it was destroyed in a fire. He also played around with genderless fashion; his label has long blurred the lines between women’s and menswear. A red crocheted top worn by a woman in the last collection was reimagined as menswear. “Everybody should be able to wear anything, and that’s the dream Orange Culture likes to sell,” he said. “It’s a very important freedom we’ve always offered to our customers.”

There were no tears in the crowd this time around. “The last season we had in Lagos was very heavy,” he said, noting that the collection was an ode to his late mother. This show happened to fall on the anniversary of her passing, but he wanted something lighter. “I want it to be a more joyous and celebratory experience even though it’s a really tough day,” he said.