At age 17, designer Afiya Butler already had a way with fashion. Using her mother's credit card, she purchased items online and sold them to folks who were interested.
"I always had a knack for style and I would put outfits together. I sold to mommy's co-workers and my friends. I sold to teachers at school," she said.
Perhaps it was also a knack for business–at school she had a leaning towards business subjects. But it was the exposure to art, thanks to her friends who were studying the subject for Cape, that attracted her to be more creative. She added art to her already demanding school load; and for her, the subject was more stress release than an additional burden.
"For the practical, I created a piece which was avant-garde. I created five for the collection and I got a one in the subject. At UTT, I did fashion management. I didn't know the process then or the fact that someone had to make beads together," she said.
At UTT, the fashion students were encouraged to dress and Butler used the opportunity to create unique jewelry exclusively for her, never thinking about developing it as a business until she was approached and encouraged by Catherine Nurse.
Still at school, Butler opened her jewelry store in Woodbrook.
"Customers want something different. My collection was not the same thing, they were one-of-a-kind pieces," Butler said.
Clothing came not too long after that: "I design for the woman who wants to be bold, confident," she said.
Her boldness comes from moving away from the traditional black and white outfits that are often seen at the office, a concept which she suggested was taught as one way to compete with men who wear black and blue in the workplace.
"You could mix it up to be appropriate. Prints can be fun and not so intimidating," Butler said.
Hence her LOUD label speaks of confidence as she presents a woman's alter ego, being bold to wear clothing that is loud enough to speak for itself.
Butler has presented at Trinidad Lookbook's Style Spirit. In May, she launched a line of full-skirt maxis in her collection Edit which had a showing at Akimbo, Arima, which supports and houses local and Caribbean fashion and art. Her collection was a mixture of her trademark African prints and bold patterns tailored for a retail-ready, transitional and easy-to-wear clientele.
"I am trying to target stores like Little Black Dress and Cache to carry my line. I want to take it up the islands. I want to take care of the Caribbean first–they would get the aesthetic faster–Barbados, Jamaica–whichever comes first," she said.
Among the designers she admires are Adrian Foster, Risann of Brown Cotton and Rhion Romany because of how they define Caribbean style for younger people.
At 25, Butler has a lot under her belt, including styling for local artistes such as Denise Belfon, Patrice Roberts, Lil Bits and Olatunji. As for the jewelry which started her career, that has been put on hold. "Artist's block," she said. "But eventually, I will get back to it."