Zashadu

Founded in 2010 by Zainab Ashadu, Zashadu is a leading British-Nigerian sustainable accessories brand that specialises in hand-crafted leather pieces. Stylish mini bags, clutches and totes are just some of the styles that feature throughout the brand’s collections, made from local and sustainably sourced leathers, farmed exotic skins, and rough cut precious stones set in brass. At Zashadu’s Lagos-based workspace, the team of local artisans employs traditional techniques.

Drawing from the designer’s experience as an architect and her work exploring the spatial relationship between geometry and fluidity, Zashadu’s pieces strike a juxtaposition between quiet elegance and unabashed glamour. " mostly from Nature. I make a conscious effort to pay attention to it in my surroundings, and I delight in the patterns that are present, and how we as humanity are all part of it,” the designer tells Shop McCullen. “I'm inspired by beauty and I choose to add to the beauty that envelops me.”

Carried by the likes of writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche and designer Lisa Folawiyo, there’s an innate elegance to the label’s collections, one that’s allowed room to shine by its designer’s minimal employment of flashy embellishments. Taking inspiration from the beauty of nature and her surroundings, Ashadu’s designs are rendered in rich colors, their craftsmanship driven by functionality.