Nairobi, Dec. 24 -- It is December and wardrobes across Kenya have already shifted. The weight of the year loosens, calendars open to reunions and celebrations, and fashion, quietly but deliberately, takes centre stage.

Holiday dressing has always carried meaning - a visual marker of joy, gratitude and renewal. But in recent years, that meaning has evolved.

For New York based Kenyan designer and visual artist Anyango Mpinga, says holiday fashion today is no longer about excess or rigid glamour. It is about intention, comfort and identity - and above all, freedom.

"Holiday fashion has become more personal," she says. "People are no longer dressing to impress systems. They are dressing to honour themselves."

Across Kenya's cities and to...