LocalYarn: MaXhosa knits past to future

South African fashion is on the rise with local designers tapping in to our cosmopolitan heritage to differentiate their designs - and the overseas market is falling all over themselves to get a piece of it.

Eastern Cape designer Laduma Ngxokolo of MaXhosa designs recently returned from the Netherlands, where he was the only African designer invited to speak at the What Design Can Do conference. The event, now in its fourth year, was formed by a group of designers from various fields "with the aim of separating what is valuable from what is worthless by showcasing best practices and vision, raising discussions and facilitating collaboration between disciplines".

Ngxokolo qualified for the conference because of his use of locally produced materials and his exploration of his Xhosa heritage. He whipped up an adoring fan base when he created a range of knitwear inspired by the amakrwala (Xhosa initiates). Amakrwala are prescribed by tradition to wear brand-new formal clothing for six months after initiation.

"As a person who has undergone that process, I felt I had to develop knitwear that genuinely depicts my cultural aesthetics," said Ngxokolo. "It started as a fashion school project - to use our own cultural heritage in a design sense. I found Xhosa designs, some of them from the 1800s, and translated them digitally into knitwear patterns, which I then transferred to a knitting program."

Richard van der Laken, the founder of the conference, was looking for a captivating story, said Ngxokolo.

"He was looking for something different and was impressed by my 2013 presentation at the Design Indaba in Cape Town."

Ngxokolo shared billing at the conference with British designer Paul Smith.

"The crowd was overwhelmed with the talk," said Ngxokolo. "It was encouraging to see their fascination with my culture and the understanding of the translation of a story into modern, international appeal.

"One buyer asked whether he was allowed to wear my knits despite the fact that he's not an initiate."

Ngxokolo's yarns are hand-sourced locally and dyed in bright hues. His latest collection is called My Heritage, My Inheritance and is dedicated to his late mother, who instilled in him the appreciation of traditional Xhosa culture, and who was also the person to teach him how to operate a knitting machine.

"The conference instilled in me the importance of innovation in design, which is actually quite rare internationally and locally," he said.

"I also made great contacts and now supply stores in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Namibia and London."

Ngxokolo recently branched out into ladies and blanket ranges, and has embarked on a collaboration with Karoo Looms to create a range of rugs that will be exhibited at a trade show in New York in September.

• Find the MaXhosa range at Merchants on Long in Cape Town and at Egality in Johannesburg from today. Ngxokolo's online store www.maxhosa.co.za will be open from next week and will deliver nationwide