Miss World Uganda’s Gown Draws on C-Section Anatomy and a Mother’s Journey

Miss World Uganda Trivia Elle Muhoza has brought the anatomy of cesarean childbirth to the Miss World 2026 events in Vietnam through an elaborate couture gown.

Called The Layers of Life, the gown was designed by Ugandan designer Keesha Abdallah. Instead of drawing on flowers, architecture or red-carpet glamour, Abdallah built the concept around seven anatomical layers involved in a cesarean section: skin, subcutaneous fat, fascia, abdominal muscle, peritoneum, uterus and the amniotic sac.

The design translates those layers through color, texture and a dramatic, body-skimming silhouette. Stretch satin and layered tulle form the one-shoulder gown, whose flowing fabric is decorated with pearls, glass beads and crystals. Its palette moves from peach and gold through coral, red, maroon and burgundy.

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When we began creating this gown, race or skin color was never part of the conversation. The starting point of the design was women and the extraordinary layers of the body.

Abdallah said each color and layer represents a stage, texture or transition in the cesarean process. She stressed that the colors were not intended to represent any particular race or skin tone. "When we began creating this gown, race or skin color was never part of the conversation. The starting point of the design was women and the extraordinary layers of the body," she said, according to HOLA.

The idea also carried personal meaning for Abdallah, who had recently become a mother. "I had a unique idea to transform the layers of the birth process into a couture gown," she said while discussing how The Layers of Life was created. The result presents childbirth as both a physical journey and a source of fashion design.

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I had a unique idea to transform the layers of the birth process into a couture gown.