Ode to My Fashion

 Hello! I had one busy weekend. Let me recap! Bonjour! J'ai eu un week-end chargé. Je vous raconte. Altered Zara dress - Numero Uno Scarf - Gift Bag - thrifted Leather sandals - Ngaye Necklace - bought from a friend On friday, I had my niece sleep over because she wanted to spend time with her older cousins, my sons. My niece is 3 and slept over in our house only once last year during Christmas. She also stayed with us for one night during our get away to Somone over the Summer (more on that later on the blog). Her stay started flawlessly. By now we now her wants and needs: watch cartoons on YouTube, drink juice, eat candy (she calls chewing gum for some reason). She also had pizza for diner with her cousins, almost trying to grab all the food and wanting to save some for the day after (clever girl). However, soon enough she started with her antics: messing with the living room decorations, wanting to play with the water cooler, biting my son to get attention, asking me questions e...

Since I have decided that I would celebrate me turning 39 by indulging a bit, I started checking places where I could get the things on my birthday list . As a frugal shopper, I rarely buy something the first time I see it. I usually check other places where it  is cheaper. Remember the Cauri shell bracelet and the Bogolan tote bag, that were on my list? Well I had to see if I could get it cheaper. I decided to go check the Artisan's Village of Soumbedioune or Village Artisanal de Soumbedioune. The Village Artisanal de Soumbedioune is a small mall located right next to the Soumbedioune fish market along the corniche. It has been there for as long as I can remember, or since the 60s to be more exact. It was created by the first president of Senegal in an effort to boost Senegalese artists. It used to be visited by many tourists who wanted to buy unique souvenirs. There you can find articles in African prints such as clothes, pouches, silver jewelry, paintings, sculptures, and even...

Hi Y'all! Can you believe we are almost at the end of January? I can't! This month went by so fast for me. Last December, I attended a fashion show/ private sale from a local brand I like: Zadada. Zadada is owned by the older sister of one of my friend. I started patronizing her last year around this time because I like her designs. She uses African fabric mixed with others to make very beautiful dresses and bubus that are very feminine yet comfortable. The event was organised in a local restaurant in collaboration with another designer that makes accessories with woven fabrics. I arrived just before the fashion show started. I watched with sparkly eyes because everything was so beautiful and oh so my style. Zadada collection was inspired by Senegalese women of Nder who were known to have honor and be extremely courageous. Every piece that came down the runway was a mix of African prints, eyelet fabric, even a special kind of fabric that is from my Mother's ethnic gr...

Hello! How was your Christmas day? Do you even celebrate Christmas? I come from a family with a Muslim Dad and a Catholic Mom. It means that we mostly celebrate all major holidays from both faiths including Christmas. Truth be told, Christmas is celebrated all over my city of Dakar whether we are Christians or Muslims. Because Christmas has become a commercial holiday where people are forced to buy food to make a feast, and gifts for the kids.  For me, Christmas means family. My Mother always made sure we had a small party at home. She would put her finest china out and we would eat in the dining room. In fact, the only time we used that dining room was for Christmas's eve diner. She also made sure we dressed up, in suits for my brothers and a fancy dress for me. We usually had Chinese rolls, salad as appetizers, roasted chicken in mustard sauce and french fries as entree and Christmas log as desert. After diner, my father would take us to the local photo studio to have...

While y'all are already thinking about your fall wardrobe, we in Dakar are still going to enjoy Summer till October or further. The cold really comes in my city after December. Therefore we will be fanning ourselves probably till 2019. This means that for a while I will have to rely on a wardrobe that is versatile and easy breezy to survive the heat wave.  I did some shopping to try to add those versatile pieces to my wardrobe this Summer. I concentrated on thrifted things because I did not want to spend too much money. I wanted tops that were easy to wear, easy to style and vibrant. As for the bottoms, I wanted an alternative to jeans. So, I went for skirts, maxi and midis. It is too hot to have something between the legs that will chafe you. Maxi skirts in chiffon or cotton are going to be my friend this season. Finally I wanted maxi dresses in chiffon that require minimal to no ironing. I was lucky enough to find almost everything that I needed at Colobane market. Colo...