Seven layers, one dress: Miss Uganda transforms cesarean section into couture

Also known as Keesha, the stylist explained that she worked from a medical illustration that had struck her with its colors and overlays. The dress combines stretch satin, tulle, and gradients of peach, gold, coral, red, burgundy, and wine, adorned with beads, glass elements, and crystals. The creation involved a team of five people working for about a month, according to Pulse Nigeria.

The garment does not aim to replicate a surgical gesture literally. The seven layers serve as a visual framework for the designer, who transposed the layers she identified from her reference image into the fabric. Several publications dedicated to the dress note that the concept emerged from her experience as a young mother and her conversations with women who had undergone cesarean deliveries.

Abdallah also expressed a desire to counter the stereotype that sometimes portrays cesarean sections as an easier route to childbirth. The World Health Organization emphasizes that it is, in fact, a major abdominal surgery, involving preoperative, surgical, and postoperative stages, along with both short- and long-term risks. Thus, the garment remains an artistic interpretation, not a medical diagram.

Trivia Elle Muhoza, 22, represents Uganda at Miss World 2026. Her official profile describes her as an entrepreneur in beauty and skincare, with a philanthropic commitment to women and children. Earlier this year, she had already engaged in initiatives around menstrual health in the Kabale and Rubanda districts.

Muhoza wore “Layers of Life” on August 27 during the Vietnam Beauty Fashion Fest XVII, held as part of the Miss World program. The final of the competition took place on September 5 in Nha Trang.