Lisa McIntosh debuts Timeless collection at Spring into Fashion
Published:Friday | May 16, 2025 | 12:09 AMMickalia Kington/Gleaner Writer
Jamaican fashion designer Lisa McIntosh, founder of the brand Neahlis, made a triumphant return to the runway with her new collection titled Timeless, marking her first showcase in years. The designer debuted her latest work at the Spring into Fashion: A Celebration of Jamaican Fashions show, a benefit filled with elegance and emotion that celebrated womanhood on Mother’s Day at the AC Hotel Kingston.
“It’s been a minute,” McIntosh shared, referring to the time since her last collection. “I haven’t done a collection in maybe a couple [of] years… So, it was really moving for me.”
Inspired by her Caribbean heritage and her desire to uplift women of all shapes and sizes, McIntosh described Timeless as a collection not just for a particular person, but for everybody. “Women of all volumes, ages, sizes, everything,” she explained.
She said that the emotional highlight of the evening came when her daughter praised the collection. “After even having a conversation with my daughter, she’s like, ‘Mom, it was really beautiful’.” McIntosh, visibly moved, admitted, “I came back here [and] teared up… I was in tears.”
She credited the show’s success to her formidable team and sense of sisterhood backstage. “We’re just blessed… It’s rare that you have different designers collaborating and helping each other,” she said, noting the support from fellow designers such as T&T Fashion, make-up artists, and jewellery designers.
When asked which outfit stood out the most, McIntosh struggled to choose. “Boy, it’s really hard because it’s a timeless collection… I’ve walked out there, and all I can hear them say is ‘Your collection was amazing’.”
The brand name Neahlis is a blend of her daughter’s name, Neah, and her own, Lisa. “My daughter, big up to my daughter,” she said proudly. “God has been good, so I give thanks for this time, this energy, for the growth, for the maturity. Not to mention, Mother’s Day, [it] is very important that this line [was] birthed today. And to hear the energy in the audience also too.”
With the success of Timeless, McIntosh looks to the future. “Let’s see what the rest of 2025 has for [this] Timeless new line.”
Meanwhile, newcomer Shara Anderson-Grant, the creative force behind Women of Virtue, made an impressive mark at Sunday night’s fashion event with her standout collection of elegant hats. Though new to the scene having joined a little under five years ago, Anderson-Grant’s designs held their own alongside established names, including a seamless pairing with Heather Laine.
“I feel good, you know. My design matched well with her brand, and she’s such an established one,” she said. “So for me, it feels good to know that coming in as a junior and being paired with such an established brand … it goes so well.”
Among the eye-catching pieces, one hat stood out most for her. “My favourite was the white one. The white sparkly one,” Anderson-Grant revealed. “Right, because it’s a new design that I’m exploring. When you put on a hat ... The outfit is better.”
She explained that the standout piece was made from bridal fabric, rich in embellishments. “Bridal fabric already has a lot of embellishments, a lot of jewellery. But I work with any fabric at all,” she said, emphasising her creative flexibility.
Her choice to focus solely on hats is rooted in personal passion. “Because I love hats. It’s a part of my own personal fashion. As I said, it’s classy, it’s elegant… You can have on a simple, simple black dress, and you put on the right [fascinator], you put on the right headpiece, and it just brings it up a notch.”
Looking ahead, Anderson-Grant is working on a new line of dresses called Her Style, where hats will be paired with dresses.
She believes that Jamaican fashion has strong potential. “I find that the Jamaican market wants to support our own brand… I think that we can have an industry that is booming.”
And if her debut is any indication, she’ll be helping to lead that charge.
The event, which benefits the Riverton Meadows Early Childhood Centre, featured collections from designers including LYRIC by Leontre, ESCALA, and Heather Laine, along with appearances by several special guest models including Broadcaster Paula-Ann Porter-Jones; Yaneek Page, founder and managing director of Future Services International Limited; Dr Sanneta Myrie, Miss Jamaica World 2015; Miss Global Jamaica Keri-Ann Greenwood and Aileen Corrigan, group transformation officer at Digicel Group.