Tuesday, 27 February 2018

Rule Breaker

"Fashion should be a form of escapism, and not a form of imprisonment."
- Alexander McQueen


I couldn't agree more with Alexander McQueen, it's true; fashion should be a form of escapism and not a form of imprisonment. We should all have the ability to think for ourselves and therefore decide within ourselves what is best for us in every aspect of life, including, what it is we wear and how we portray ourselves to others. I'm all for expressing yourself in your fashion choices and that is exactly what I done with this outfit.

To be honest, and if you have been following my journey for a while, you'll realise I don't have a particular style. I'm always changing things up, whether it be my hair or the clothes and shoes I wear. I guess I just get bored easily and hate to appear predictable. I like to leave people wondering what I'm going to wear and how I'm going to style it. With me there are no rules, and if someone tries to promote or encourage rules, I always break them.

Hey, what's the fun in following fashion rules anyway. I see beauty in the unexpected. I'm the one who would like the dress that everyone would think is ugly or unflattering. I'm the one who would wear yellow with green, although they should apparently never be seen together. And yes, like with this outfit; I'm the one who would wear sexy black gold studded ankle boots, with simple laid back, overly basic jogging bottoms, or sweat pants (to my followers who live outside of the UK). I'm a rule breaker.

I decided I wanted a cool laid back but edgy look this time round. So I paired the unusual jogging bottoms and ankle boots combo with a cropped sweat top from Pretty Little Thing. I added a trendy camouflage anorak from Forever 21 and my oldie but goodie faux-leather clutch bag from Zara. The finishing touches, which I think brought the outfit together well, was black lipstick from Kiko Cosmetics, gold layered necklace from Pretty Little Thing and black and gold sunglasses from Topshop. 

Now if this outfit isn't breaking the rules, I don't know what is. 


Shop My Look
Trousers - Forever 21
Boots - Public Desire (sold out)
Jacket - Forever 21
Bag - Zara (old)
Sunglasses - Topshop (old)
Watch - Abbott Lyon






Photography - Aurelia V (@aureliav)


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Friday, 23 February 2018

Just Blaq

"The joy of dressing is an art."
- John Galliano


So with the release of the much hyped movie 'Black Panther' I decided to put together an outfit in tribute to the box office hit; yes, prior to actually watching the movie. It was a tough choice between wearing cultural printed cloth or an all black outfit, I went for all black (not to worry, this Spring I'll be featuring a lot of African inspired outfits). 

Though at the time of shooting this outfit I had not yet seen the movie, I had my ideas about the kind of outfit that would represent it. When I think of black panther, I think of the Black Power Movement of the 60s and 70s; the fight for equality, during times of injustice and overt racism, not just in America, but globally. In fact, my outfits leans more towards the 'fashion' choices of the Black Panther Party, rather than the black panther movie. 

Image: David Fenton/ Getty Images

I decided to use a mixture of textures, but ensured that black leather (albeit faux leather) was prominent, if anything the main feature. I paired this faux leather biker skirt from H&M, with a cold shoulder ribbed top from Boohoo.com. I'd long been wanting to wear this faux leather beret (which I feel is well associated with black panther party) and thought it looked nice with the outfit. I added this cool studded bucket bag from Zara and perspex heel ankle boots from Public Desire, as the perfect finishing touches. The only thing missing, my big gravity-defying afro!

Even though this is not a complete homage to the movie, I'll attempt to create a look again, sticking to the theme... the movie! Though I must say, putting together this outfit and writing this post has enabled me to learn so much more about The Black Power Movement and the Black Panther Party, especially the unjust black people faced during that period. Whilst racism still exist all over the world, although now more covert, I'm glad we are living in better times. Much has improved, but we still have a long way to go.


Shop My Look
Top - Boohoo (old)
Skirt - H&M
Boots - Public Desire (old)
Bag - Zara
Sunglasses - Pretty Little Thing








Photography - Aurelia V (@aureliav)
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Monday, 19 February 2018

Hard Camo

"Trendy is the last stage before tacky."
- Karl Lagerfeld


For so long I had been wanting to wear these khaki green boots from Missguided, but hadn't found the perfect outfit to wear them with... that was until this belt came along. This belt from Pretty Little Thing literally is literally the best thing I've ever bought from the retailer. As soon as I got it I had so many outfit ideas in mind, this was just one of them. I went for a tough but sexy military look with a bit of glam, with the gold embellishments on the belt. I added hot trend sunglasses, also from Pretty Little Thing and mandatory black lipstick, to finish of the tough look.


Shop My Look
Gilet - Forever 21 (sold out)
Skirt - Zara (old)
Bag - Zara (old)
Top - Boohoo (sold out)
Sunglasses - Pretty Little Thing
Boots - Missguided






Photography - MishMash Photography (@mishmash_photography

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Wednesday, 14 February 2018

Denim on Denim

"The most courageous act is still to the think for yourself. Aloud."
- Coco Chanel


It has been extremely cold in London, as expected. It well known that February is one of the coldest months over here, but occasionally we are blessed with mild weather. So a few days ago when the weather picked up, albeit it temporarily, I decided to wear this cool double denim and faux fur outfit. Of course I had to take a few shots, to post on the blog.

With this outfit I paired together both old and new pieces. I teamed up y long-line Misspap blue denim jacket with a matching mini skirt from Missguided. I decided to keep things neutral; opting for a white long sleeve t-shirt from Zara, sock boots from Public Desire 9which are currently on sale), a faux fur stole from Zara and a matching wide brim fedora hat from Forever 21. I finished off the look, with a Chloé inspired bag, from MissPap. I must admit, this outfit has got me longing for warmer days... roll on Spring. 


Shop My Look
Hat - Forever 21
Jacket - MissPap (old)
Top - Zara (sold out)
Skirt - Missguided
Boots - Public Desire
Bag - MissPap (sold out)
Stole - Zara (old)






Photography - MishMash Photography (@mishmash_photography)

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Friday, 9 February 2018

Red x Pink

"Always dress like you're going to see your worst enemy."
- Kimora Lee


Recently I've been featuring a lot of colourful outfits on my blog, wearing unusual colour combinations, like Purple and Orange, and Green and Pink. But I wanted a challenge, to be set a task and attempt to execute it well.

So I decided to make use of the Instagram stories poll tool. I selected six colours (Red, Pink, Yellow, Green, Blue and Purple) and my followers voted in favour of Red and Pink. I knew I owned quite a few pieces in those colours, so got to work immediately on putting together what I think is a rather stylish outfit, and very fitting, giving that Valentines Day is just around the corner.

Only worn once on my blog, I decided to bring out my super soft faux fur Pink coat, that I got from Missguided. I teamed the coat with a red long sleeve top from Pretty Little Thing, a tie waist skirt from Missguided and  faux fur heel from Hidden Fashion. I finished off the look with a cute cross-body mini bag from Zara and cat-eyed sunglasses from Forever 21, which helped tie in the colours of the outfit.


Shop My Look
Sunglasses - Forever 21(sold out)
Skirt - Missguided (old)
Coat - Missguided (sold out)
Shoes - Hidden Fashion (sold out)
Bag - Zara







Photography - MishMash Photography (@mishmash_photography)

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Sunday, 4 February 2018

Smart Casual

"Fashion is not necessarily about labels. It's not about brands. It's about something else that comes from within you."
- Ralph Lauren


Before I go into the details of my outfit... which I will, I thought I'd stick to my word and as promised on my Instagram post, and allow my readers/followers getting to know me. I'm quite a reserved person on social media, I only really feature things to do with my outfits and that's it. So I thought with it being a new year, I'd make a change and open up a little. So here are ten interesting facts about 

  • Fashion is my third love, after food and football. I've supported Manchester United since the age of nine, when my eldest brother brought me a Manchester United duvet cover and scarf, for my birthday. I love watching English Premier League football, even if it's not my team. I find it particularly enjoyable when I'm munching on snacks (see fact #10).
  • Though I was born and raised in London, I have Nigerian blood running through my veins. People often find it difficult to guess where I come from, apparently I don't have typical Nigerian features... whatever that means. But yes, I'm Nigerian. My patents were both born in River State and came to London the they were relatively young.
  • I have a footwear addiction. I know that I own 12 pairs of trainers (sneakers, to you non-Brits), of which I only wear two. I don't know how may pairs of shoes I own, and to be honest, I find it quite annoying when people ask. I have better things to do with my time than count how many pairs of shoes I own.

  • When I was young I couldn't decide what I wanted to be when I was older, it was a tough choice between a Fashion Designer and a Lawyer. I studied Art Textiles for GCSE in Secondary School and done quite well, achieving an A (of course my parent being Nigerian wanted an A*). However, I went down the law route in university where I studied a combined degree; International Relations with Law. My hard work paid off and I achieved a respectable 2:1. Surprisingly I opted for a different career path altogether, and since graduating many years ago have worked in Financial Regulation (it of course has legal elements to it). 
  • As I didn't pursue a career in Fashion, but have always had  love for it, after being convinced by a friend in college (thanks Chantel) I decided to run my own fashion blog. Its been hard work balancing work, social and love life with the blog... but luckily I have a very supportive network of people around me. 
  • I love to travel. Believe it or not I didn't start travelling until my late teens. My favourite destinations are those with hot weather and beautiful beaches; Miami has to be one of my favourite spots. I loved the buzzing night life, delicious food and chilled beaches. Jamaica was magical,  the food was the best I've ever had, the people are so friendly and there's plenty to see and do. The most relaxing holiday I've been on was to Cape Verde, the island of Sal. The untouched treasure has beautiful beaches and some of the kindest people you'll ever meet.

  • I'm only 5'3"! The worst height to be for a woman is 5'3"... as you are often too tall for petite clothes and too short for normal for clothes. When I'm shopping in store, I often have to try things on to make sure they fit properly, before buying. Online shopping is a nightmare, as I always end up visiting my local Post Office to return my purchases, as they never fit quite right, especially trousers.
  • Although I've been natural for a few years now and my afro is quite big, much to my mums annoyance I love wearing wigs. It allows me to change things up, one week my hair is purple, another blue and when I'm fed up of the colour I go back to black, but experiment with textures. I don't actually remember the last time I featured my real hair on the blog, but I will do soon, just to make my mum happy... as she prefers my real hair. 
  • I use to be queen raver. I loved going out with the girls and shaking a leg to the latest R'n'B, Bashment and Old Skool Garage tunes. Now I prefer quiet nights in with the Mr (we have a shared love of Afrobeats, so occasionally dance around being silly), dinners and brunches with my favourite ladies and frequent trips to the cinema with other buddies, to watch the latest blockbusters.
  • I'm addicted to McDonald's fries (with Sweet Curry being my sauce of choice), KFC Zinger Tower Burger and Tesco's Blueberry Juice. When I' not stuffing my face with rubbish, I quite enjoy Sushi, which I convinced myself until only last year I did not like, despite never having tried it previously. 


So there you go... a little about me. Now... back to the clothes. 

I'd long been admiring the track pants trend, but never got round to featuring a look, until now. Many know that I am a sucker for yellow, as it is my favourite colour, so when I spotted these track pants in my local Missguided store, I simply couldn't resist. I decided to go fora smart casual look, pairing the trousers with a black blazer from Pretty Little Thing, a black v-neck t-shirt from Zara and black pointed court puts from H&M. I finished off the look with Yellow over-sized sunglasses and my staple Michael Kors black handbag. 


Shop My Look
T-shirt - Zara
Track Pants - Missguided (sold out, similar here)
Shoes - H&M (old)
Sunglasses - eBay






Photography - MishMash Photography (@mishmash_photography)

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