Ever since I first saw the beautifully patterned dress and Zuri.com http://www.zuri.com I wanted one. Finally when they’re pink and blue mushroom print oh Oh Shitake! hit the site I took the sartorial plunge and put it on my wish list.

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Made out of 100% washed cotton Kitenge cloth sourced from Tanzania the mid-weight fabric stands away from my body elegantly. Side pockets and a row of black buttons sewn down the front complete the spacious silhouette.

Created in 2016, when New York fashion designer Sandra Zhao married invention with necessity the dress is comfortable, versatile and attractive enough to be worn anywhere. For Zhao, that included “her travels to the southern Sudan from her home in Nairobi Kenya.”

LBD (“little black dress”) classic, but also unique as a snowflake, she discovered it was a conversation-starter as well. On the day she attended a wedding, wearing the dress, another guest Ashley Gersh Miller approached her and proposed they become business partners and start a company together. Launched in 2017, they named it Zuri which means “beautiful” in Swahili.

“Zuri means beautiful in Swahili”.

One of the biggest selling points of the design is it accommodates most sizes, ages, and lifestyles within its large demographics. Another big selling point is his flexibility. Whether worn with a sun hat and shades, as a tunic top over black leggings, or as an open coat over a white tee and slim cut jeans it’s the perfect addition to any woman’s wardrobe.

Although all of these reasons, and the $145 price tag, are why I considered buying a Zuri dress, my purchasing decision was finally made when I realized it would allow me to express my African American heritage and comfortably deal with my lupus photosensitivity outdoors.

Challenging and stressful at times, especially in the sunny clime where I live, this side effect of the disease really impacts my social and professional life. To cope with it I continually search for clothes, like the Zuri dress, luxuriate in their stylishness, and remember while wearing them I’m a woman who is actually a warrior instead of a wounded victim with a challenging disability.

Product Rating: 5 Stars for affordability, comfort and versatility