“Follow the Thread,” a film series about fashion designers and their muses, will air on Turner Classic Movies (TMC) on Saturday, July 2, 2022. Host Alicia Malone praised TCM’s programming department for curating the list of films and pairing them with designers, fashion historians and commentators. “For example, American designer B Michael had a great collaboration with Cicely Tyson throughout her career. They also talked about the collaboration between Audrey Hepburn and Hubert de Givenchy and Catherine Deneuve and Yves Saint Laurent. It was fun for me as a host to see how their work paralleled the films that they were talking about.” Be sure to tune into “The Stars and Their Designers” with special guest B Michael airing July 2 on TMC.
You know fashion icon B Michael, co-founder, fashion designer and the creative director of B Michael Global. Presently, he is the chief designer for the brand’s couture and ready-to-wear designer collections. B Michael received acclaim for designing the costumes for Whitney Houston’s collaboration with Ruth Carter for Whitney’s last film, “Sparkle.” He also created costumes for the Joffrey Ballet’s premiere of “Windy Sands” and has received numerous commissions to design for film and television. B Michael started his early career as a millinery designer for the hit TV show “Dynasty.”
Later he worked as a millinery designer for Louis Feraud of Paris and Oscar de la Renta. B Michael is a member of the Council of the Fashion Designers of America and serves on the board of the Youth America Grand Prix. In 2016, he was awarded the prestigious Design Visionary Award by the Lighthouse Guild.
B Michael’s collections have garnered appreciation from other famous stars, actresses and fans including socialites and personalities such as long-time dear friend and muse Valerie Simpson, Phylicia Rashad, Brandy, Beyonce, Nancy Wilson, Susan Fales-Hill, poet laureate Elizabeth Alexander, and Lena Horne. His collections are sold in Beijing, Shanghai and Korea. B Michael’s designer ready-to-wear collection will be available on the brand’s Ecommerce website launching 2023.
Just back from Africa, Adolophine Lukabu Sheeley’s luxury line offers an international collection of leather handbags, fine jewelry, coasters with designs inspired by Picasso, and facemasks. Lukabu Sheeley’s products are sold worldwide and are made in Africa by Kuba artisans. She shares the profits with these artisans, giving them additional income to help them support their families.
LAMG (Les Amis de Mulunda et Georgette or Friends of Mulunda & Georgette), a non-profit organization, was launched during the pandemic. It seeks to assist in the development of the Congo (RDC). Today, Lukabu Sheeley celebrates LAMG’s dedication to the redevelopment and renewal of this African nation. Her company services the Congo’s political elite, top musicians and business leaders, Petroliere officials, executive directors of organizations, and members of Kinshasa’s society elite. She is a native of the Congo, Kinshasa. Her fabrics come from Benin, Senegal, Dakar and other African cities. The handbag line includes yoga bags and handmade tote bags from Rwanda, with prices starting at $300.
Lukabu Sheeley’s work with LAMG helps provides several Kinshasa orphanages with food, health care, and educational services. The organization also operates a farm just outside the city, gifts women with land for cultivation, imparts life and vocational skills to promote self-sufficiency, and supports elders in the community with food, medicine, and companionship. Funding for this essential work comes via Lukabu Sheeley, whose sales allow LAMG’s life-giving activities to continue from day to day.
Lukabu Sheeley visits with the organization’s three operating orphanages, senior assisted living facility, and surveys new farmland locations closer to Kinshasa. She searches locations to establish an intermediate health facility to function between local clinics and the hospital emergency room.
Along the way, Lukabu Sheeley looked for new office space, and enjoyed exploring the cities of Kinshasa, Brazzaville, and Pointe Noire.