Life is a Beautiful Safari: Meet Kenyan Designer ANNA TRZEBINSKI, African Queen of Slow Fashion.

by Cecile Paul · Published August 21, 2021 · Updated August 21, 2021

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Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram. Spanish shawl with feathers by Anna Trzebinski.
Photography Dominique Cunningham Reed

Image Credit: Images Sourced Anna Trzebinski Official Website and Instagram:

www.annatrzebinski.com | @annatrzebinski

Anna Trzebinski is a child of Africa, her roots deeply planted in the African soil, her heart in tune with the hypnotic pulse of the African drum. She lives the ultimate African dream.

Her memories are those of an enchanted barefoot childhood in Kenya. She remembers leopard and giraffe drinking from her pool at night. After a brief European stint – Scottish boarding school as a teenager followed by a Politics degree from LSE Anna Trzebinski dashed back to her native Kenya, lured by what she knows and loves: the allure, the magic, the sights and the sounds of the Kenyan savanna and its inhabitants, the iconic Maasai and Samburu people who have been part of her earliest perceptual set, growing up in the African bush.

No wonder her extraordinary creations speak of sun-filled days, red-dawn sunsets, deep African lakes and the artisanal inspiration of tribal cultures. The inimitable natural mystery and otherworldliness of the African continent find their way into each and every one of Anna’s signature designs. These pieces bedazzle and enchant, with an African thread running deep through the fabric of each.

At the forefront of everything Anna Trzebinski does, is the notion of fostering a local spirit and uplifting the immediate community. Wholeheartedly focused on the women surrounding her, she creates a ‘nest’ for the women, helping them thrive by means of a powerful female collectiveness because, she says with conviction, “Women are the heartbeat of this continent.’ Through her design leadership she teaches her co-creators to fashion highly sophisticated products that appeal to an international, universal audience, making the most of their exceptional African artisanal skills and age-old traditional crafting methods.

An enthusiastic proponent of Slow Fashion, Anna’s creative journey typically starts with selecting the finest quality raw materials that she and her team of local craftspeople then fashion to create unique, beautifully embellished, one-off pieces of wearable art, really. From subtly hued fringed leather bags and handmade beaded sandals to feathered pashminas and heavenly pieces of jewellery, each item is a unique heirloom design that comes – from conception to finish, with the exclusive hallmark of a hand-made, carefully crafted luxury item with a serious social conscience.

These highly desirable beauties then find their way to local stockists – mostly 5-star hotels that are as exotic as their names suggest (see the list of *Stockists) and many get whisked away to destinations as far afield as Texas and Florida, to be coveted and snapped up by those in the know, those who want to possess a piece of unadulterated enchantment from the African continent.

It is befitting to leave you with Anna Trzebinski’s own take on things, as no-one says it better than this African Queen:

“My work has a magic that reflects the incredible gift Africa and her people can give us: to remind us where we came from and how pure the human spirit is. Africa is the true cradle of humankind. She reminds us how healing and powerful her energy is and how important tribal rituals are to those who inhabit her. Perhaps it is time to return to Mother Earth and honour her and remember how beautiful we truly are. What we wear is just one tiny way in which we do that. It feels wonderful to make beautiful things with such integrity to the people and the soul of this continent.” – Anna Trzebinski

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram. Photography Elizabeth Gilbert
The designer and her tribe

The designer Anna Trzebinski in her studio with her local helpers. Photography Elizabeth Gilbert. Credit Robb Reports

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram. Models: Cathi, Patricka and Lana with Masaai warriors from the Mbirikani Ranch. Safari Wear by Anna Trzebinski. Photography Bill Phelps

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram. Model: Lana Trzebinski in a one-of-a-kind Headdress and Seahorse Necklace by Anna Trzebinski. Photography Bill Phelps

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram. Model: Lemarti wearing Crocodile Cuff by Anna Trzebinski. Photography Stevie Mann

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram.
White Ceremonial Shawl with exquisite detail – at Anna Trzebinski

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram. Model: Patrick on Malaika. Safariwear by Anna Trzebinski. Photography Bill Phelps

Image Credit Anna Tzrebinski website
Safari, anyone?

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski on Instagram
Burnt Sienna Ostrich Feather Pashmina by Anna Trzebinski.

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram. Model: Lana Trzebinski in white Maa Choker and beaded bracelet by Anna Trzebinski. Photography Bill Phelps

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski on Instagram
Rusty ochre ensemble with exquisite embroidered detail – at Anna Trzebinski

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski on Instagram
Navajo Fringe Clutch in Grey Ostrich Leather with Antique Tuareg Cross by Anna Trzebinski.

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski on Instagram. Model: Lana Trzebinski wearing Pashmina by Anna Trzebinski. Photography Bill Phelp

Image Credit Anna Trzebinski on Instagram
Cow Horn Pendant with Silver Inlay

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski on Instagram.
The Ntito Coat – each garment is a uniquely beaded, feathered heirloom

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram
White linen moments with a handsome companion – at Anna Trzebinski

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski on Instagram
Maa Gladiator Sandals with Fringing by Anna Trzebinski

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski on Instagram
Alligator Evening Bag by Anna Trzebinski

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram. Photography Maganga Mwagogo (https://nataal.com/cotton-is-queen).
Camouflage Safari Jacket by Anna Trzebinski

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram.
Box Clutch Bag with Antique Yemeni Silver – at Anna Trzebinski

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski.
Instagram Model Michaela Guzy wearing the Navajo Fringe Jacket by Anna Trzebinski. OhThePeopleYouMeet

Image Sourced Anna Trzebinski Instagram
Life is a (fashionable) safari. Feathered Pashmina by Anna Trzebinski. Photography Dominique Cunningham Reed

Find Anna Trzebinski at their flagship studio, 94 Tumbili Road, Nairobi, Kenya.

For online sales contact them at sales@annatrzebinski.com or shop your quintessential Anna Trzebinski gems from the following stockists in Africa and further afield:

*Stockists

Hemingways – Nairobi, Kenya

https://www.hemingways-collection.com/nairobi/

Angama Mara – Suswa Mara Triangle, Kenya

https://www.hemingways-collection.com/nairobi/

Ol Jogi – Ol Jogi Wildlife Conservancy, Kenya

https://oljogi.org/

Sirai House – Borana Conservency, Kenya

https://siraihouse.com/

Bateleur Camp – Masai Mara, Kenya

https://wild-wings-safaris.com/accommodation/bateleur-camp

Ngorongoro Crater Lodge – Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania