Recently, a friend called to tell Charlene Prempeh she was pregnant. Before she had finished the teary “What am I going to—,” Prempeh had the answer. What to wear when your life and body are suddenly in a state of flux? Issey Miyake . Her friend bought four pairs of Pleats Please trousers and several tops. “Suddenly, at least one part of being pregnant was less terrifying,” says Prempeh.

When Prempeh was three months pregnant, amid sleep deprivation and doctors appointments, she considered two things: “How could I avoid purchasing clothes I didn’t like, and how could I look like a version of myself I recognized.” The London-based founder of Black-owned creative agency A Vibe Called Tech wore various shapes and colors of the easy-moving, elegant Pleats Please at work and on weekends.

See Full Page