How 23-Year-Old Teniola Adeola Is Changing Fashion One Sheer Piece At A Time

Fashion designer and creator of ‘Slashed by Tia’, Teniola Adeola, is on her way to becoming one of the greatest female couture designers the world has ever seen. Named one of Teen Vogue’s 21 Under 21 class of 2018, Tia has dressed stars like Gigi Hadid, SZA, Kali Uchis, Dua Lipa, Chloe x Halle, Cara Delavigne and is only on her way to doing more.

Teni who started her line, ‘Slashed by Tia’ in 2017 from the confines of her dorm room at Parsons School of Design has already taken it to the runways of New York and Paris fashion week. At just 23 years old, Teni is not shy or timid and she wants to make sure everyone knows that through her designs. She is well on her way to building a fashion powerhouse with her brand and changing the way the industry runs as much as she can.

Born in Nigeria but raised in the UK, Teni was inspired by her upbringing to create clothes as she does now. “Clothes were something I loved for as long as I can remember. Being a designer wasn’t something I thought was convenient or just decided to do for fun. I used to make dresses for my dolls using my mum’s traditional Nigerian Ankara fabric,” she once told Teen Vogue.

But her bold designs easily recognizable by the sheer fabric, ruffles and pears were not just inspired by her upbringing. She attributes the boldness of her collections to her love of art history.

“I studied art history in London and fell in love with garments in Renaissance painting. I wrote my final paper on 16th-century Spanish dress in painting. The royals wore the most amazing clothes: ruffles, pearls, and velvet, which were all very expensive at the time.” More than just creating her designs for the beauty they hold, she also wants to see more black people wear these items formerly reserved only for royals. Speaking to Teen Vogue, Tia said, “I noticed that people of colour were never featured wearing anything of that nature; they were often featured as slaves. So for me, it was taking this notion and reversing it.”

Teniola Adeola has been a part of the fashion industry since she was only thirteen years old. She started her fashion training at the age of 13 under the tutelage of design veteran, Ituen Basi. She has gotten to see many aspects of the industry and there are certain parts she would love to change, no matter the cost. “I feel like in fashion now, particularly in shows, everyone looks like soldiers, the average girl does not look like that. I have friends who are models and I know what they go through to maintain their appearance. People advise me saying, ‘You need tall models on the runway. They need to be skinny; it looks more professional. That’s what the big designers do.’ But if it takes me a little longer to reach my full potential because I won’t conform to that, I’m OK with it”, she told Teen Vogue.

Beyond wanting to see more diversity in the industry, Tia also wants to see more black people in that space. In 2018, when she had a show at LeGrand Intercontinental, Paris, she refused to do it without at least one black model in her model pool. She took to her Instagram to share a picture of the only black model that had walked for her brand that year, saying: “When I initially received my model pool, there were no models of colour. I made it clear that I could not have a runway show with no models of colour. Here is my beautiful Rosa backstage”

She also wants to see more women make managerial decisions concerning the industry as opposed to what is currently obtainable. More of the major fashion houses are being run by men than women, and Tia wants that to change. She told Teen Vogue, “In 21 years, I hope I’ve set up a foundation steady enough to be able to uplift other girls like myself. I imagine having an all-female staff couture house and I’ll train them to be the best of the best, design-wise. I want to see the world filled with female bosses, particularly women of colour. I hope to become one of the greatest female couture designers and help pave the way for others like me.”

When creating bad-ass collections, Teni immerses herself in the total outcome of the looks. Speaking to NBGA, she said, “When I drop a new collection, for example, I do like a campaign video and I plan it for months and put a lot of thought into it. I work with different girls, artists and videographers.” She added that as time goes on, she only wants to continue doing more. She said, “I definitely hope to be making couture, like, one-off pieces. Still keeping the affordable clothes that, you know, every girl can buy, but definitely kicking things up a notch and keep making more extravagant pieces when I have the time and money.”

We can definitely see how that would be possible. With the dedication and time she puts into her craft and collections, it’s only a little while before Tia is the hottest designer ever. If she continues to release unique, classy and bold collections like she is currently doing, there is no doubt that she will soon take over the world with her style!