I absolutely do. The inspiration for lemlem arose during a trip home to Ethiopia with my husband. While we were there we visited groups of traditional weavers who no longer had a market for their goods. Seeing this inspired me to start lemlem to preserve this traditional art form while simultaneously creating job opportunities. I believe that Africa is a wonderful place to base production, be it for a fashion line or another type of company, and I hope that the success that lemlem has had encourages others to feel confident in doing so.

I really love a pop of neon, intricate patterns, strong colors. Ethiopia is a bold and beautiful place and I love having that reflected in my clothing and accessories.

I try to go home as much as possible, Ethiopia is such a beautiful, inspirational country. I normally make it back several times a year and the first thing I do is visit my family and the lemlem weavers and design team.

Bringing along a soft lemlem scarf, pictures of my children, and a favorite book.

With lemlem, our hope is to add a sense of diversity to the fashion market, while fueling prosperity in another. I feel that as long as their inspiration, and ideally production, is based in Africa, designers can stay in touch with their roots.