"Fashion is in the sky, in the street; Fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening."Coco Chanel

The way we live...

Happy New year to you all... Its been a year and some.... since we started Maali and we have been blessed and overwhelmed with the support so far. Thanks to everyone who has bought...lived... and given Maali. These are just some pictures of us @ random times living life and wearing maali. Stay Blessed x

Alheri wearing Ghana Print dress on the way to church

Linda @ the Nigerian 50th anniversary celebration

Linda and Alheri (left) wearing Maali women's and men's wear

Alheri in pink Maali vest and tutu skirt

Alheri in Maali T, scarf and purple tutu skirt

White Soul of Africa Maali T

Amina wearing Maali lace dress

Purple African print dress n purple George dress by Maali

Blue dress by Maali

Green short dress by Maali

Pink Dress

Alheri in Cream Maali lace short dress (2nd left)

Amina wearing soul sista Maali T

Kash Money wearingTuk Ham Festival red T

Red skirt @ Leeds Fashion week

Christmas Day Party '09

@American University of Nigeria all wearing Maali

Maali yellow and red rara skirt

Maali Tie Back green skirt

Alheri wearing Maali scarf

Soul Sista Red Top

Brown Soul Sista Top

Family wearing Maali

 Maali White T

Fela Blue T

Male Soul of Africa and Chungai by Nature T

African Print and Aso-oke embelished dress

Black Soul Sista top

White and Green Chungai by Nature T's

Short pink Maali dress with stones

I Love Abuja purple Maali T

Cool Soul Maali T

Maali scarf

Brown Soul Sista Maali T

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We Like... Duro Olowu...

Hard to find his biography... So this is all I could come up with...
Duro Olowu, 44 is a Nigerian, London based Designer who began his career as a lawyer before getting into design. His signature dresses with vivid prints and bright colours caught the eye of the US and British vogue editor. He eventually won the 'new designer of the year' award at the 2005 British Fashion Awards. He is influenced by both the culture of Lagos, Nigeria (his home town) and London, England.

Last year he was given the International Designer of the Year Award at the 2010 Africa Fashion Awards, In Johannesburg.

Duro Olowu fans include Princess Caroline of Monaco, Iman and Michelle Obama.

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M.I.A....Music, Art, Fashion, Politics...

Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam (born 18 July 1975), better known by her stage name M.I.A., is an English songwriter, record producer, singer, rapper, fashion designer, visual artist, and artist of Tamil Sri Lankan origin.

An accomplished visual artist by 2002, M.I.A. came to prominence in early 2004 through file-sharing of her singles "Galang" and "Sunshowers" on the Internet^. She released her Mercury Prize-nominated debut album Arular in 2005. Her second album, Kala, was released in 2007 and gained her mainstream chart success. She has been nominated for two Grammy Awards and an Academy Award.

Her compositions have been noted to encompass various genres, often with political lyricism and artwork. M.I.A. has described her music style as being "other". In addition to her work as a graphic designer, providing artwork and photography for releases and as a director of music videos, she has also experimented with documentary film and in 2008 released a collection of her fashion designs. She is the founder of the record label N.E.E.T.

In 2009, Time magazine placed M.I.A. in the Time 100 list of "World's Most Influential people" for having "global influence across many genres".

Mathangi Arulpragasam was born in Hounslow, London, England to Kala and Arul Pragasam. Her family is of Sri Lankan Tamil descent.When she was six months of age, her family moved back to their native Sri Lanka. Motivated by his wish to support the Tamil militancy on the island, her father became a political activist.Her stage name, M.I.A., stands for Missing In Action.

Because of the Sri Lankan Civil War, the first eight years of her life were marked by displacement. During a period when her family temporarily resettled in Sri Lanka, the war escalated further and her school was destroyed in a government raid.In 1986 she, her older sister Kali, younger brother Sugu, and mother moved back to London where they were housed as refugees. She learned English in the late 1980s, on a council estate in Mitcham, South London.

M.I.A's first public exhibition of paintings in 2001 at the Euphoria Shop in Portobello Road, London, featured graffiti art and spray-paint canvasses mixing Tamil political street art with images of London life and consumerist culture. The show was nominated for the Alternative Turner Prize; (Jude Law was among early buyers of her art); and a monograph book of the collection was published by Pocko, simply titled M.I.A..

Politics and global ideas are prominent in M.I.A.'s art. On the political nature of her work she has said, "I have to be true to that--I can't take certain things away. I do have a political background.In a 2009 Coachella interview M.I.A. said, "The Third World deserves freedom of speech just like everyone else. We want to fight the battle to say what we want, whether to be serious or just make fun of ourselves. Thats what 'Worldtown' is about, that's what 'Paper Planes' is about. It's what people in the third world live through.
We are inspired by M.I.A and her combination of music, fashion, art and politics.

Visit her website on http://www.miauk.com/

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New Gingham Men's Shirts @ Maali

Gingham is on trend for Spring/Summer 2011. Our new Men's shirts reflects just that... hurry to the Maali Shop in Jabi Abuja and grab one of our new tailor made, well crafted designs made just for you in time for the new year and remember when you buy Maali, you bless a child...

Maali Gingham Shirts @4000NGN each 

Maali Short Sleeved Gingham Shirt @ 4000NGN

 Crisp long sleeved White Shirt

Blue Shirt with Gingham collar and sleeves 

Multicoloured Gingham short sleeved shirt

...more shirts in store...

Also watch out for the new intricately designed Kaftan collection by Maali

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