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Day 1: MTN Lagos Fashion and Design Week

Style House Files presented the first Lagos Fashion and Design Week sponsored by MTN. The show ran from Wednesday the 26th to Saturday the 29th and seeing as I was interning backstage as well as front house for the duration of the event, I experienced a lot of drama and was under immense pressure.

Leading up to the event, I had showed up late at a briefing with Blow London, the PR team in charge of the event. This is because until the very last minute, I was uninformed about the time and date of the briefing. You can only imagine my fury to find that not only was I the last person to get there, but I was also the only one that was informed at the very last minute. All eyes were on me as I walked in and all talk about punctuality appeared to be directed towards me solely. From then on, I made up my mind that I’d do everything in my power to alter this perception.

On Wednesday the 26th we were all to arrive at the venue, Eko Hotel, at 9:00am prompt, however I showed up at 8:30am and my plan was already in full swing. Michael B from Blow PR told me just how impressed he was with my punctuality and as a result, I was made the coordinator of all interns backstage. Equipped with a walkie talkie and clipboard I started assigning interns to the various design teams.

Right before the show started, I was told that I’d be working front house as well as backstage as I would be calling the show assisted by John backstage, Ola the sound technician, Dada the lighting technician and Jenny, Darrell and Micheal the front house team. As you can imagine it was manic, there was tons of pressure and communication was key.

Nevertheless, I pulled off the job and still managed to get a good view of the show. I must say, I was particularly impressed by Phunk Afrique’s Collection. The splash of colour, the feminine maxi’s and the chiffon were all objects of my wardrobe fantasy.

My backstage Pass

Right before the designers began coming in. I had to wear all black!

A list of the models and their groups.

Akpos Okudu (a nominee for MTN young designer of the year). You might remember her from my LPM post.

Jess Stefani another nominee for the MTN young designer of the year.

IamIsigo yet another nominee

Koketso pieces

Me and Funke Ogunde, the designer of Phunk Afrique

My favourite piece from the Phink Afrique Collection

Another one of my favourites from the Phunk Afrique Collection

xXx

Ps: I take no credit for the last two photos.

Pps: Sorry, it’s a rather long post.

Birthday

Yesterday was Taiwo and I’s twenty-first birthday (not really, we’ve got a few good years on that, Lol) and we were lucky enough to receive some of the most heartfelt bbm’s, texts, e-mails, tweets, whatsapp messages, DM’s, facebook messages and phone calls ever! Lol. Here are a few pictures from our amazing birthday:

Daddy, Mummy and Wura were nice enough to get us this beautiful chocolate sponge cake, delicious 😀

Olumide was such a sweetheart and sent me and Taiwo cupcakes (here are Taiwo’s… duhhh!)

Fifikins is one of the best friends in the world!!! She came over 🙂

xXx

Ps: Gbonju and Laitan signed our cards before Wura moved back to Nigeria and then sent them through her! How amazing are they? My family truly is the best!

Pps: The real party’s not till saturday 😉

Ppps: This is my first (and probably last) post that’s not about fashion/style/beauty :S

Dara

Ever since I’ve been back, I’ve seen my cousin, Dara, a lot more and even though she’s about 9 years younger than I am, our love for fashion makes us so coeval it’s unimaginable.

Like myself, Dara’s style has evolved over the years however, she seems to have found her distinctive look not to be influenced by anyone or anything. Her contemporary simplicity appears easy and comfortable enabling a sleek transition through various settings. Less will forever be more and she makes this evident by setting a plain base over which she builds her style. I better watch out for this little Diva, she just my be snatching my top spot!

xXx

Ps: It’s my birthday on Wednesday!!!!!!! 😀

Women’s Gold

Shea Butter reminds me of cheese. Feta cheese, goat cheese, any kind of block cheese! It smells bad and it looks bad, but the effect it has on the body is nothing short of priceless.

I recently purchased raw, unrefined, pure, organic shea butter (yes, I’m aware all those things mean the same thing lol) and researched its uses and benefits. Here are my top 3 uses for what is often referred to as ‘Women’s Gold‘:

Moisturises and Hydrates: Shea Butter is an intensive moisturiser which allows the skin to absorb moisture from the air. It eliminates dry, chapped or cracked skin and consequently works wonders as lip balm and on cracked heels.
Hair treatment: Unrefined shea butter is amazing for treating the hair. It should be applied to the hair and scalp the night before shampooing in order to get silky soft hair and improve hair growth.
Shaving: Shea butter should be applied before shaving. This is because it conditions the skin improving results and reducing bumps. I guess we could say shea butter is as much men’s gold as it is women’s. Lol.

If you know of any more uses of shea butter, do let me know.

xXx

Ps: Erm…. wow. No Ps’s today! Lol!

Le Petit Marché

Last Sunday marked my first experience of the infamous ‘Le Petit Marché‘ (LPM). Like the name implies, LPM is ‘a small market’; and based in Lagos, it serves as a platform for promoting and building the ever-growing Nigerian fashion industry.

As a self-proclaimed fashion aficionado, I deemed it necessary to step into this fashion dimension and draw up a personal conclusion of the atmosphere, the location and most importantly, the vendors.

Upon arrival at the GET arena I was overwhelmed by the turn out. I must have arrived smack bang in the middle of peak period because it was packed!!! The ambiance was absolutely amazing and had me immediately delving through the racks of Akpos Okudu. The jaw-dropping craftsmanship at Raindrops on Roses (R n R) was breathtaking with the presentation signifying a stamp of good quality. House Of Marie was also present displaying a collection of ankara inspired blouses; and a royal blue Virtue (by Dipo Abiola) blazer sitting on a mannequin was just the sight for sore eyes.

This October, LPM are handing over the reins of the Marché to you (well us) all you need do, is send your idea or what you’d like to see to: info@lpmnigeria.com. I hear there’s even a prize to be won 😉

In the mean time, here are pictures from September’s LPM…

Akpos Okudu

House Of Marie

Oremi Crafts

Virtue by Dipo Abiola

CamCam SweetsOurs By Juliada

Raindrops on Roses (R n R)

xXx

Ps: I forgot my camera at home that Sunday so all pictures are courtesy of Taiwo’s phone 🙂

Pps: Kanye West at Paris fashion week is on right now. I’m eager to see what he had to offer.

Fashion Week Series: Matthew Williamson

Matthew Williamson is always a breath of fresh air. He’s never too scared to dive into a splodge of colour and every time he unveils a new collection, I’m overwhelmed by the same refreshing feeling of his previous collection. What can I say…? The man’s Genius! He unlocks realms in fashion, the every day woman only dreamed existed and this season is no different.

Williamson’s Spring/Summer 2012 collection consists of colours that could only depict the beginning of a beautiful summer. His fiery oranges, sunshine yellows and his hint of electric blue are a rainbow dream only existent in fantasies. His rope belts and cultural prints are loosely based on Japanese influences and the nonchalant attitude that lingers in every perfect piece is ideal for the fortunate few amongst our dual population. Here are a few of my favourite pieces from his London Fashion Week collection….

xXx

Ps: Yes, you guessed it. It’s Milan Fashion Week 🙂

The 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards

Last Sunday night was the 63rd Primetime Emmy awards and despite my ill health, Taiwo deemed it necessary to wake me. For this reason alone, I will be eternally indebted to her lol.

Incase you were unaware, the Emmy’s red carpet is my all-time favourite red carpet beating the VMA’s, the Oscars and the Grammy’s!!! I’m not sure whether it’s E!’s incredible 360 degree camera or their ingenious stiletto camera that quite serves as the icing on the cake, but the Emmy’s just do it for me (whatever ‘it’ might be).

This year welcomed a lot more reds than I was used to on any red carpet and although myself, I’d have been sceptical about the blend, it appeared to work quite the treat last Sunday night. The likes of Vampire Diaries’ Nina Dobrev looked stunning in a floor length Donna Karen dress with an origami finish; Glee’s Lea Michele was ever the poser in a low draped back, rosette sleeved Marchesa dress; and Modern Family’s Sofia Vergara was dressed in a coral one shoulder chiffon Vera Wang dress.

Heidi Klum was looking every inch the supermodel in her Christian Siriano custom made dress, proving that with a little silk tulle, a bit of vintage lace and a splash of organza, a dress can be transformed into art.

Finally, Evan Rachel Wood depicted sex appeal in her Elie Saab couture dress proving that sexy needn’t be slutty. She looked absolutely gorgeous with her Salvatore Ferragamo shoes and minimal accessories, after all, the dress did do most of the talking. Here are my favourite looks from the Emmy’s 2011……..

xXx

Ps: I tried blogging using wordpress’s app today so forgive me for not referencing my sources and please forgive the different sizes of the images, I’m yet to master how to effectively use this app. Until next time……