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Lethabo Xulu

@elxulu

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i'm a dot connector โ€ข design futurist โ€ข disciple โ€ข
MaMA : ๐Ÿ‘ง๐Ÿพ๐Ÿง‘๐Ÿฟโ€๐Ÿฆฑ๐Ÿ‘ง๐Ÿฝ
thinker : all of life is design
doer : @design_residency | @modern_staples
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Happy New Year Fam! โœจ I know it's late but ke ๐Ÿ˜Ž๐Ÿ’…๐Ÿฝ Later in this post Imma share a little about what my Great Loves in Life are. But before that, here's young intro as to who I am. Ke nna Lethabo Xulu, full time MaMA and thinker, part time cultural entrepreneur and practitioner. I love connecting dots and sharing insights on African design past, present and future. I also enjoy engaging on motherhood, faith and everything inbetween! This year I'm keen on engaging a more around these topics so if this isn't what brought you here, I'm hoping this will keep you here or at least think about what our points of connection are ๐Ÿคœ๐Ÿพ๐Ÿค›๐Ÿพ If you've seen something so far that you'll love for me to double click on, please let me know in the DMs or comment section. ๐Ÿชด In the meantime, as you enjoy @victoryboyd 's joint #Elshaddai, catch a glimpse of 5 of my Great Loves... ๐Ÿช‘ - Fifth is my love for design ๐Ÿชฎ- Fourth is my love for my community ๐Ÿ‘ง๐Ÿพ ๐Ÿ‘ฆ๐Ÿพ๐Ÿ‘ง๐Ÿฝ - Third is the unique love for the folk who call me mommy, or mama, or maaameeee depending on the occasion ๐Ÿ’๐Ÿพโ€โ™€๏ธ ๐Ÿ’ - Second is my love for My Love a.k.a covenant bae a.k.a baby daddy @sihlesx ๐ŸŒŽ - First is my love for the Lord Jesus Christ - YHWH, from whom all of life and every good and perfect thing flow. The greatest teacher and enabler in how to love others as I love myself. Now that you've taken a peek and who I am, I look forward to getting to know ya'll better, fr fr ๐Ÿ˜Ž #mama #africandesigner #africandesign #futurist #thinker #bauhaus #wife #christian #elxulu #modernstaples #afrominimalism #afromaximalism #decor #interiors #researcher by @elxulu
19
2 years ago
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A short story about creative parenthood. This is me in our family room after my first point of resonance when another creative MaMA, @00.sj0090 , showed me her BTS during a Google meet. I showed her mine (pictured) and here we all are, catching a glimpse of my MaMA archive ๐Ÿ˜ฌ It was until I stumbled on the latest research on Care and Creative Practices by @incca_arts that I was like, ok this is it, this is real. Yes. And amid the highs and lows of creative practice we meet the highs and lows of motherhood and the million hats we wear with fragility. Much like the state of African design research, practice and global collective efforts to understand it, we form a path forward amid continued discourse and uncertainty, embracing both sparks of brilliance and doubt. There are more dope reads and community stuff on my WhatsApp channel linked in bio. From my cosy chaos to yours, MaMA. #creativemotherhood #creativeparenthood #MaMA ps: @xiv.khanyi did ncane use tea correctly? by @elxulu
13
a year ago
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A few words from our workshop coordinator and lead facilitator, Lethabo Xulu. Workshop Details: ๐Ÿ“ Transwerke Studios, Braamfontein, Johannesburg ๐Ÿ“… 30 September โ€“ 21 November 2026 ๐Ÿ’ฐ R3,750 per participant (Payment Terms Accepted) ๐Ÿ‘ฅ Limited to 10 participants ๐ŸŽ“ No prior qualifications required Spaces are limited. See link in bio to complete the registration form and secure your place. #afri #leselaascalicoworkshop #patternmaking #patternmagic2 #conhill taken in Transwerke Studio's Constitution Hill by @elxulu
7
17 days ago
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Meet Our Workshop Facilitators ๐Ÿ’ฅ Lethabo Xulu: Lethabo Xulu @elxulu is a thinker, designer, and futurist leading elxulu studio @design_residency , a research and design firm transforming the everyday objects and experiences of African people, particularly in South Africa, into urban living and design discourse. With 16+ years in the design industry, her practice pioneers African design futures across food, fashion, and interior design typologies. off-duty, she enjoys time with her husband and 3 kiddos, binge-watching Survivor, and fighting to keep her house plants alive. --- Morapedi Floyd Manotoana: Morapedi Floyd Manotoana is a Soweto-born South African fashion designer and founder of Floyd Avenue Apparel @floydavenue , known for blending African urban culture, contemporary menswear, tailoring and androgynous design. Since launching the brand in 2013, he has developed a distinctive, urban culture-driven design language focused on individuality, craftsmanship, unconventional silhouettes and timeless fashion. A winner of the South African Fashion Week Scouting Menswear Competition, Manotoana has gained international exposure and contributed to South Africa's fashion heritage through collaborations, international showcases and garment production for other brands. --- Workshop Details ๐Ÿ“ Transwerke Studios, Braamfontein, Johannesburg ๐Ÿ“… 30 September โ€“ 21 November 2026 ๐Ÿ’ฐ R3,750 per participant ๐Ÿ‘ฅ Limited to 10 participants ๐ŸŽ“ No prior qualifications required Spaces are limited. See link in bio to complete the registration form and secure your place. #AFRI #LeselaAsCalicoworkshop #JoburgCreative #JohannesburgDesign #DesignWeekSouthAfrica taken in Transwerke Studio's Constitution Hill by @elxulu
15
a month ago
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Looking back to #FashionAccounts 2024/25 and man, fashion histories [really] should mean much to all of us. Here's why. In his book, "Loving the City", Tim Keller expresses contextualisation and culture as things that don't necessarily mean the same thing. This made me think of why we gather to talk and think through African design histories : ------- swipe for full text review ------- >>>> // Fashion Accounts explores how dress becomes a site of memory, resistance and preservation through the practices of collecting, archiving and memorialising. Curated by Wanda Lephoto, Erica de Greef and Alison Moloney, the exhibition interrogates colonial museum practices and the material cultures they have collected and preserved, featuring works by The Sartists, Mimi Duma, Thebe Magugu and Sindiso Khumalo. supported by African Fashion Reseach Institute and the French Institute of South Africa. \\ Not in the fashion industry? This applied to your field, too. ๐Ÿ“ธ : @simphiwestixmajozi @wandalephoto | @ericadegreef | @amoloney_ @urban_mimz | @sindisokhumalo | @thebemagugu #thesatarists @afri_digital | @ifas.southafrica | @renee.vanderhoek #africandesignhistories #elxulustudio #MaMA "So contextualization has to do with culture, but what exactly is culture? .... Culture is popularly conceived narrowlyโ€”as language, music and art, food and folk customs โ€”but properly understood, it touches every aspect of how we live in the world. "....Culture takes the raw materials of nature and creates an environment. When we take the raw material of the earth to build a building or use sounds and rhythms to compose a song or fashion our personal experiences into a story, we are creating an environment we call a culture...." "....We do all this, however, with a goal: to bring the natural order into the service of particular "commanding truths," core beliefs, and assumptions about reality and the world we live in." - Tim Keller. We all participate in culture making and the 'commanding truths' of those who came before us are imbedded in our practice around dress/fashion today. The work we do as cultural practitioners is an insanely deep work and the best of des by @elxulu
0
2 months ago
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Before there was Johannesburg, there was Kampala! ๐Ÿงต Our Lesela as Calico Workshop Series kicked off with Pattern Magic 2 by Tomoko Nakamichi โ€” a hands-on, practice-based dive into pattern-making beyond the Western canon. Participants built their own DIY mannequins, unlearned old techniques, and reimagined patterns in barkcloth. Just two weeks remaining for participants in and around Joburg to register and take part. ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฆ If you'd like to learn more, please comment using 'Lesela as Calico' in our comments section to gain access to our online information & presentation session on Wednesday the 30th of September 2026 at 19h00 SAST. Workshop Details: ๐Ÿ“ Transwerke Studios, Braamfontein, Johannesburg ๐Ÿ“… 30 September โ€“ 21 November 2026 ๐Ÿ’ฐ R3,750 per participant (Payment Terms Accepted) ๐Ÿ‘ฅ Limited to 10 participants ๐ŸŽ“ No prior qualifications required Spaces are limited. See link in bio to complete the registration form and secure your place. Photography Credit: @mona.okulla.obua Photography Credit (Slide 3): @ban.tucreations #AFRI #LeselaAsCalicoworkshop #JoburgCreative #JohannesburgDesign #DesignWeekSouthAfrica by @elxulu
5
a month ago
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I'm convinced that the things kids create are meant to keep their caregivers accountable. ๐Ÿ˜…๐Ÿ˜‚ This self-portrait my son painted was a conduit to the art piece Wisani and I chose for our Uju collab. I have 3 small humans, all three with different melanin hues, too. We talk about it often. How beautiful each one is and what a gift it is to be unique within this close-knit community as a family of 5. Peep my baby girls' process and finished work. It's cute, I promise. 1. 1&6 - son in @wisani_manyisi studio (cc @august_house76 ) 2. 2&3 - my boys' self-portrait. 3. 4 - my youngest's POV. Have you seen or been able to notice how any kids around you respond to the world around them through the art they make? by @elxulu
3
4 months ago
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@afri_digital is bringing the Lesela as Calico Workshop Series to Johannesburg. Over 6 weeks (10 October - 21 November), facilitators @elxulu and @floydavenue will guide participants through alternative pattern-making, reviewing Tomoko Nakamichiโ€™s Pattern Magic 2, and exploring garment construction through a Pan-African lens. Swipe to find out more about the embodied, practice-based approach to decolonial fashion thinking workshop. Link in bio to book your spot! #decolonialfashion #africantextiles #AfriLab patternmagic johannes taken in Johannesburg, South Africa by @elxulu
4
13 days ago
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A short story on embracing pockets of pause and practicing presence โœจ #MaMA #blackreclining #urbanretreat #africandesign by @elxulu
9
3 months ago
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Our honey range is built around one question: what happens when research becomes retail? modern staples is proud to engage in a limited edition Uju(as in) Honey drop with artist and art educator @wisani_manyisi. Online access from Monday 01 June 2026. #ResearchToRetail #ModernStaples #DesignEconomy #AfricanInnovation #LandLabourLanguage taken in Johannesburg, South Africa by @elxulu
6
5 months ago
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Building on AFRIโ€™s successful Pattern Magic II workshop piloted in Kampala earlier this year, Lesela as Calico Workshop(s) makes its debut in Johannesburg for a six-week exploration of alternative approaches to clothing construction, pattern-making and material culture. Using Tomoko Nakamichi's Pattern Magic II as a starting point, participants will learn through drawing, making, experimentation and collective learning, moving beyond the idea that fashion knowledge exists only within books and established educational systems. Participants will create body forms from discarded materials, develop unconventional patterns, and explore the translation of two-dimensional forms into three-dimensional garments. The series culminates in a material exploration using heritage textiles from across the African continent, including Aso Oke, Adire, Gara and Kente. Through making, we will consider the relationships between pattern, material, body and cultural context, while opening up conversations around Pan-African exchange and knowledge. The Johannesburg workshop will be led by multidisciplinary designer and researcher Lethabo Xulu @elxulu , alongside renowned fashion designer and founder of Floyd Avenue @floydavenue , Floyd Morapedi. Workshop Details ๐Ÿ“ Transwerke Studios, Braamfontein, Johannesburg ๐Ÿ“… 30 September โ€“ 21 November 2026 ๐Ÿ’ฐ R3,750 per participant ๐Ÿ‘ฅ Limited to 10 participants ๐ŸŽ“ No prior qualifications required Your registration includes: โ€ข 1 online introduction session โ€ข 3 guided in-person pattern-making sessions โ€ข A guided textile tour โ€ข An intimate learning cohort โ€ข Light snacks during in-person sessions โ€ข AFRI-Lab Workshop Certificate upon completion Spaces are limited. See link in bio to complete the registration form and secure your place. #AFRI #LeselaAsCalicoworkshop #JoburgCreative #JohannesburgDesign #DesignWeekSouthAfrica taken in Transwerke Studio's Constitution Hill by @elxulu
0
a month ago
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A short story about space, time and what makes a city as city... Decided to see how walkable our downtown is with kids (also, down town? what exactly is that?) Started at our library, ofcourse, kids loved it. Looked into any and all books around fashion (read:costume) design and spatial practice dedicated to kids and the selection was skinny, and with an African focus, naturally waaaay skinnier. ๐Ÿ˜… We walked past 6/7 restaurants which made my heart glad, food is a biggie for us black folk and the type of food was also memorable. Not many family friendly third spaces as it were, I'm not sure if this is a cultural imperative or modern preference to have in a city but third spaces are a growing thing. Let's see how it plays out in my part of town. All in all, day one of walking Edenvale was interesting. How often do ya'll walk the town space (meaning the commercial part of your town/city? #tourismchic - a term coined by the ever so dope @narindwa_ #schoolholidays #MaMA #walkablecities #thirdspaces cc @bedfordedenvalenews by @elxulu
14
3 months ago
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