Fri | Dec 12, 2025

Theophilio’s Edvin Thompson imagines ‘the morning after’

Fashions endurance, triumph and J’can energy in new collection

Published:Monday | February 17, 2025 | 10:16 AMOmar Tomlinson - Contributor
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A ribbed knit polo teamed with wool flare trousers.
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A ribbed knit polo teamed with wool flare trousers.
South Sudanese-Australian model Aweng Chuol in a velour cinched blazer and velour miniskirt.
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South Sudanese-Australian model Aweng Chuol in a velour cinched blazer and velour miniskirt.
The 15-look Theophilio Fall/Winter 2025 showcase — including this grand coat with rabbit fur trim and monogrammed bodysuit — was shot on February 4 in Manhattan.
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The 15-look Theophilio Fall/Winter 2025 showcase — including this grand coat with rabbit fur trim and monogrammed bodysuit — was shot on February 4 in Manhattan.
Theophilio’s plunging neckline, twisted waist confetti knit dress.
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Theophilio’s plunging neckline, twisted waist confetti knit dress.
Celebrated Jamaican fashion designers Edvin Thompson and Rachel Scott photographed on the red carpet at the Fifteen Percent Pledge Gala held at Paramount Studios in California on February 1.
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Celebrated Jamaican fashion designers Edvin Thompson and Rachel Scott photographed on the red carpet at the Fifteen Percent Pledge Gala held at Paramount Studios in California on February 1.
Theophilio founder and creative director, Edvin Thompson.
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Theophilio founder and creative director, Edvin Thompson.
Lawrence in a corset top, newsboy hat and one-seam trousers. “The oversized newsboy caps were something I took from my father,” the designer disclosed.
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Lawrence in a corset top, newsboy hat and one-seam trousers. “The oversized newsboy caps were something I took from my father,” the designer disclosed.
A pinstripe single-breasted blazer is matched with pinstripe flared trousers.
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A pinstripe single-breasted blazer is matched with pinstripe flared trousers.
Lawrence wears a mink newsboy hat, leather trench cuff, checkered single-breasted blazer, and knit pants with a matte finish.
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Lawrence wears a mink newsboy hat, leather trench cuff, checkered single-breasted blazer, and knit pants with a matte finish.
Thompson recently designed the exclusive McDonald’s jersey for Chicago Sky basketball star Angel Reese, which features 1,000 Swarovski crystals on the embroidered 5, plus custom ‘REESE’ detailing with matching shorts. Reese is in partnership with the
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Thompson recently designed the exclusive McDonald’s jersey for Chicago Sky basketball star Angel Reese, which features 1,000 Swarovski crystals on the embroidered 5, plus custom ‘REESE’ detailing with matching shorts. Reese is in partnership with the fast-food chain for McDonald’s first-ever national meal collaboration with a female athlete, which launched on February 10.
SAINT’s Winston Lawrence in a newsboy hat, jacket and leather trousers.
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SAINT’s Winston Lawrence in a newsboy hat, jacket and leather trousers.
This Theophilio evening dress with a plunging neckline and twisted waist was inspired by Thompson’s childhood memory of his mother.
Contributed
This Theophilio evening dress with a plunging neckline and twisted waist was inspired by Thompson’s childhood memory of his mother.
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Home is where the heart is for Theophilio founder and creative director Edvin Thompson.

“Jamaica is always present in my work,” piped up the ebullient womens and menswear designer in a conversation with The Sunday Gleaner, hours after his latest – a co-ed Fall/Winter 2025 collection of knitwear, leather separates and sultry silhouettes – dropped in a ravishing lookbook, photographed by Justin French, at the tail-end of New York Fashion Week.

“Whether it’s in the textures, colours, or the way I think about movement in clothing, Theophilio is rooted in my heritage, and even when it’s not overt, there’s always a connection to home,” added the 30-year-old fashion architect. “The confidence, the resilience, and the boldness in this collection – that spirit comes from Jamaica.”

Jamaican SAINT International star Winston Lawrence, a muse for Thompson, and South Sudanese-Australian model Aweng Choul are the faces of Theophilio’s 15-look showcase.

Giving us the backstory of his new designs, the Brooklyn resident, who grew up between St Catherine and Clarendon before migrating to the United States as a tween with his family, revealed that for his latest oeuvre, “I played with a mix of textures – wool satin, lambskin leather with grommets, velour, ribbed knits, and pony hair. The contrast between structure and fluidity was important to me,” he explained on a super-busy day with back-to-back interviews with global fashion media. “So, you’ll see that in the way corset tops and tailored pieces interact with softer, more relaxed elements. I also introduced the oversized newsboy hat and experimented with lace-up detailing on coats and dresses to add a sense of movement and edge.”

Thompson moved into the fast lane in 2022 when supermodel Imaan Hammam’s stylist reached out to him. Hammam had loved his work from afar, but now wanted him to dress her for that year’s Met Gala, themed ‘Gilded Glamour’.

He sketched the intricately beaded, semi-sheer dress, with peacock feathers, a nod to the Caribbean’s carnival heritage, on the same night and the model ended up wearing the look to the iconic charity event.

Returning to the present day, and asked to explain the title of the new collection, ‘The Morning After’, the designer said: “I landed on this name because it captures that feeling of pushing through, of still standing after long hours and hard work. It’s about endurance – the moment when exhaustion and triumph coexist, and you wake up ready to go again, even if it’s in the same outfit. That’s the energy I wanted to infuse into this collection.”

Peppered throughout his freshly constructed looks are tributes to his parents. ‘’The knit evening dress with the plunging neckline is a direct reference to something my mother used to wear in my childhood, with a twist, and the new oversized newsboy caps were something I took from my father,” he disclosed.

Outlining the creative fuel driving the design aesthetic he presents this time around, Thompson detailed, “I wanted to explore tailoring in a new way and introduce fresh brand perspectives with structured silhouettes that meet with inherently Theophilio accents, whether it’s a metal grommet or surprise fur lining. There’s a tension between hard and soft textures throughout that is exciting and unexpected.”

The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) Emerging Designer of the Year winner four years ago, incidentally the same category that fellow Jamaican designer Rachel Scott would take home at the CFDA’s November 2023 awards, Thompson has taken his label’s collections on the road, far from his usual Big Apple stomping ground.

He showed his Spring/Summer 2025 collection, ‘Shaunie’, first staged last September at New York Fashion Week to the West Coast to close Los Angeles Fashion Week, in November last year. Hinting at what’s to come for his celeb-attracting label, whose ardent fan base includes musicians Chloe Bailey and Summer Walker and supermodels Joan Smalls and Hammam, the 30-year-old said Theophilites can expect knitwear and more men’s offerings.

Off-the-clock, Thompson is big on discovering new places. “Outside of fashion, I love to travel with my partner Doquan, running the streets with my two-year-old puppy Maca,” he noted. “And if we are at home, binging on the latest movies added to all streaming platforms.”

The green-black-and-gold shines bright in his heart always and remains top of mind. “I would love to do a show in Jamaica, a sort of homecoming. Not only for myself but for the brand and the community we’ve built through Theophilio,” Thompson shared, politely wrapping up our convo to move along the queue of waiting journos.

lifestyle@gleanerjm.com