Nensi Dojaka is a fashion designer who has captured the world’s attention with her unique style. She creates sheer dresses that make women feel strong and confident. Instead of just showing skin, her designs celebrate the female body in a thoughtful way. Born in Albania, she now works in London. Her brand, started in 2019, quickly became popular. Celebrities love her clothes, and she has won major awards. This article explores her life, her ideas, and how her dresses empower women.
Her Early Life and Education
Nensi Dojaka grew up in Albania, a small European country. She always loved fashion and design. As a young woman, she moved to London to study. She first attended the London College of Fashion, where she learned about lingerie, which is women’s underwear. This helped her understand how to craft clothes that fit the body perfectly. Later, she studied at Central Saint Martins, a renowned school for art and design. There, she honed her skills in creating clothes that look like art. Her background in architecture also influences her work. She thinks of dresses like buildings, with strong shapes and careful details.
In 2019, she launched her own brand to secure a work visa to stay in London. Starting out was tough, but her talent stood out. Her first collection caught the eye of major stores like SSENSE. Soon, she was presenting at London Fashion Week. Her story shows how hard work and smart ideas lead to success.
Winning Big Awards
In 2021, Nensi won the LVMH Prize for Young Designers, a prestigious award in the fashion world. It provided her with funding and expert guidance. She was the first Albanian designer to win, making her country proud, with even the prime minister celebrating her achievement. She also received the BFC Foundation Award at the Fashion Awards. These wins helped her brand grow rapidly, proving her ideas were fresh and significant.
Design Philosophy: Strength in Delicacy
Nensi’s designs blend strength and softness. She embraces minimalism, creating simple, clean looks. Her clothes feature architectural shapes, like sharp lines and curves that hug the body. She focuses on feminine sensuality, making women feel confident and sexy in a positive way. Her core idea is the “female gaze,” meaning her clothes are designed for how women see themselves, not for others. She wants women to feel empowered and in control.
She explains that her dresses aren’t about revealing too much. “Personally, I don’t see it as revealing. For me it’s normal, and although there is still that ‘male gaze’, I think people are more accepting of it, and of the female body.” This quote reflects her approach. She incorporates lingerie-inspired elements into everyday wear, blending underwear and outerwear in a fresh way. Her color palette often includes muted tones like black, nude, pink, and red, keeping her designs elegant.
The Magic of Sheer Fabrics
Sheer means see-through, and Nensi is a master at using it. She works with fabrics like organza, georgette, tulle, mesh, and jersey, which are light and flowy. Her dresses feature strategic cutouts, openings placed carefully to show skin while concealing what needs to stay hidden. This technique, called conceal-and-reveal, makes her dresses exciting without being overly bold.
For instance, her dresses often have intricate straps, thin bands that hold the garment together. They look delicate but are strong. She adds ruffles or layers for texture, and some designs include heart-shaped cutouts or sequins for a touch of shine. Her clothes hug the body yet feel light, making women feel dynamic and flawless. This is how she empowers, by making the body look beautiful and strong.
Empowerment Over Exposure
Many dresses show skin to be sexy, but Nensi’s approach is different. Her sheer dresses empower by celebrating the body, making women feel confident and comfortable. It’s not about shocking others but about feeling good in one’s own skin. She embraces the body-positive movement, designing for all body types and using diverse models on her runways to show her clothes suit everyone. A friend, Camille Charrière, says, “There’s a real poetry and beauty in Nensi’s work, she’s not just doing sexiness to be provocative.” Her designs are meaningful, blending delicacy and power.
Influences and Inspirations
Nensi draws inspiration from many sources. Her lingerie studies taught her about fit and comfort, while architecture informs her structural designs. She looks to 90s fashion for simple, sexy aesthetics and is inspired by the Antwerp Six, a group of designers known for deconstructive styles, which involves taking things apart and reassembling them creatively.
Modern life also shapes her work. After the pandemic, people craved fun, expressive clothes, so she incorporated bright pinks and playful details. Her Albanian roots give her pride and a fresh perspective from a small country, which she blends into her unique style.
Notable Collections
Nensi has created many standout collections. In 2021, her Spring Summer 2022 collection featured sheer burgundy dresses with spaghetti straps and cutouts, worn by Zendaya at a party. Her Fall Winter 2023 collection celebrated curves with figure-hugging dresses in black and red, paired with long coats and frilled tights, using materials like velvet and leather for strength.
The Spring Summer 2025 collection, shown in September 2024 at London Fashion Week, took place at the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel. She collaborated with Calvin Klein for lingerie pieces, featuring stretch tulle, ruffles, and sheer stripes in knitwear, alongside leather bustiers and denim. The palette included soft pastels, mixing floral and geometric shapes. Reviews praised its technical skill and sophistication, calling it a surprising take on sexy.
Following the success of that show, with large crowds and positive feedback, fans are excited for her next collection. The Spring Summer 2026 collection, expected in September 2025, will likely build on her signature style with new fabrics or collaborations. Nensi only shows when she has something new to say, ensuring each presentation is special.
In 2023, she also launched a bridal collection with Mytheresa, featuring 24 pieces for modern brides, with white sheer dresses and elegant details.
Celebrity Fans and Red Carpet Moments
Nensi’s dresses are a favorite among celebrities. Bella Hadid kicked things off in 2020 at the VMAs, wearing a sheer top and skirt. Stars like Zendaya, Rihanna, Emily Ratajkowski, Hailey Bieber, and Dua Lipa followed. Beyoncé sported a black cutout dress in 2022, and Kylie Jenner wore a minidress in 2023. In 2025, Dakota Johnson wore a long-sleeved sheer midi dress with tulle in New York, looking strong and stylish. Other fans include Gigi Hadid, Irina Shayk, and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who wear her designs to events and share them on social media, boosting her brand. Everyday women also love her dresses, often tagging her on Instagram.
Impact on the Fashion World
Nensi has redefined sexy clothing. Previously, sheer dresses were often about exposure, but she makes them about empowerment. Her take on “naked dressing” is empowering, creating a buzz with high online searches. Her clothes are sold in major stores and on her website.
She prioritizes quality, producing in Italy for superior craftsmanship. Following her father’s advice to “think long-term and suffer a bit at the beginning,” she builds a sustainable brand. She’s expanding into shoes, bags, and outerwear, positioning her as a full-fledged fashion house. In Albania, she inspires young people, showing that talent from small countries can shine. In London, she reinvigorates Fashion Week with her bold vision, influencing other designers.
Challenges and Future Plans
The fashion industry is challenging, and Nensi faced hurdles like visa issues and starting small. But she grew strategically, sometimes skipping shows to focus on business sustainability. Looking ahead, she aims to keep empowering women through her designs. Fans anticipate more collections and possibly more awards. Her Autumn Winter 2026 collection, likely at London Fashion Week in February 2026, may introduce new twists on sheer. Collaborations, like her work with Calvin Klein, and an expanded bridal line are also possible. She wants women to feel free and rebellious in her clothes.