BLUE JEANS

“Jeans represent democracy in fashion.” Giorgio Armani (Fashion Designer)

“Don’t trust the scale, trust your jeans.” Unknown

“Blue Jeans are the most beautiful thing since the gondola” The late Diana Vreeland (former Editor of Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue)

And my all time fave…

“I wish I had invented the Blue Jeans. The most spectacular, the most practical, the most relaxed, and nonchalant. They have expression, modesty, sex appeal, simplicity - All I hope for in my clothes.” – Yves Saint Laurent (Fashion Designer)

   The Late Yves Saint Laurent summed up everything on Blue Jeans. They come in different washes and style, and they are a classic. A must have wardrobe staple. I have yet to meet someone who does not like a pair of blue jeans. I, too, wish I'd invented the Blue Jeans….

Grab a cup of tea because I have a little story.  Long time ago, 1853 to be exact, there was a young guy named Levi Strauss. He was a German immigrant who decided to leave New York for San Francisco with the intention of selling dry goods. When a prospective buyer asked him what he was selling, Levi said he had canvas for tents and wagon covers. The buyer indicated he should have brought pants, since the ones they had never seemed to last.

   After a few google searches (back in 2014) I discovered that 1853 was the Gold Rush Era in Frisco. Lots of miners wearing pants that don’t last??

 Light bulb moment for young Levi!!!  

He started making pants for the miners in canvas, they loved the pants, but they were not comfortable to wear due to chaffing. Young Levi decided to substitute the canvas with “ serge de Nimes” A twilled cotton cloth that came from France, first made in the city of Nime. Eventually, Levi Strauss and Company was born, the fabric was later known as denim, and the pants referred to as ‘blue jeans’

Over the years, the blue jeans have evolved in many different colors and a name for every style. Baggy Jeans, Boot-cut jeans, Flared jeans, Straight –leg jeans, Mummy jeans, Skinny jeans… the list is endless!

Then along comes my distressed pair of blue jeans. My sister Flo, her best friend Val, and I were in Massanutten, Virginia this past weekend. We had a good ol time trying out new things like Zip-lining and horse back-riding in the woods. 

For this look, I decided to change things up from my usual clean, somewhat demure style, to more of an urban street flair. I paired by ‘blue jeans’ with a t-shirt and my now famous biker jacket as we headed out for dinner. I then added a faux fur stole to add some zsa zsa zsu to the outfit, the IT bag that’s debuting on here, and my comfy ‘afande’ boots. The snap back hat made the whole look come together, it was a gift from my friend Sophie, who is all about the Young Life. 

Photo Cred: Flo Ngesh

Happy Wednesday and thanks for stopping by.

CASUAL DAYS

My sister Nonny, mentioned at one time that I am always wearing heels on the blog. Truth be told, I love high-heeled shoes, the higher the better. If you've been a frequent reader of the blog, I  think by now that’s a no brainer. I once saw a quote that said, “Life is short. Heels should not!”

How appropriate!

But let's be honest, I don’t run around in high heels when am running errands. Whenever I feel the need to get things accomplished, I come down to earth, and don some flats.

I got these gorgeous red tomys from a Bata store in Kenya. They are perfect for those casual days. Absolutely adore them! Keziah and I can’t get enough of the Kiondo bags, we carry them pretty much anywhere. The color, textures, and patterns are so authentic, it's a beautiful bag to have.

 Hats are great accessories if you want to add some flair to a look, or on those bad hair days. lol

   The weather has been somewhat ok the past few days thus a simple navy blazer paired with blue jeans and a printed top were a go. After months of nasty winter, massive layering, and mind numbing cold, I am ready to stash away my coats and scarves then soak in some sun.

Spring is right around the corner. What a delight!

Photo Cred: Kez Kez

Thanks for stopping by.

GATUNDU

     My family and I were off to visit my grandmother up-country, at a place called Gatundu, Kiambu County . I remember telling my sister to pull over by this seemingly endless road so we could take pictures (for this post ofcourse). The Kiondo bag was a suggestion by my mum who stood by the road directing the shoot or may be not! She seemed fascinated by this idea of randomly stopping the car, to take pictures for the blog (which I have been known to do). As my mother was enjoying herself watching this shoot per say, along comes this guy on a bike transporting a bunch of bananas. I hailed the man like a cab down on fifth ave and asked him if he wanted to take pictures. He surprisingly agreed and I don’t know if he will ever see this but I want to say Thanks again… guy on bike. He appeared to be in a hurry so I never got the chance to get his name, hence the comparison to that cab on fifth ave. Hurry!! Hurry!! 

Am rocking a dress I got from a thrift store a while back, the style is very 80s. My friend mentioned on facebook when I shared one of the pictures that only I could get away with rocking heels in Gatundu, it made me laugh out loud.

There will be a second part to this post, where I ditch the heels and loosen up a little. Be on the look for that. Find me on instagram and Facebook @Anneconventional and on Twitter @an_conventional

     Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Wednesday.

NO TRESPASSING

  Happy Wednesday!!!

      Keziah and I were running errands in the county and we spotted this beautiful barn on someone’s property. We decide to drive in the property and sneak in some pictures. There was a chance we might get kicked out but……we decided to seize the day!!! LOL

We spotted an elderly gentleman walking about the field and Keziah proceeded to ask him if its ok to take pictures of his barn, permission was granted!!!

      We were so excited about this barn! It had shovels, bales of hay, wheelbarrows, and not forgetting the wagon. A few cows and goats would have given us an idyllic country backdrop. The true definition of country meets city. After taking the pictures, we went back to say thanks to the kind gentleman whose name is Mr. John Roberts. We shared some of the pictures that Kez had taken and according to him, his family used the wagon back in 1918; it was their main source of transportation. He hails from a family of farmers and after chatting for a few minutes, we drove off with some history on his life and garnered an invite back to take more pictures!!

For every post, there is always a story behind it, some are too hilarious, and others just  down right embarrassing. I tend to meet some fascinating people during some of these posts and there’s never a dull moment behind the scenes.

Am rocking a very comfortable casual look today pairing my favorite jeans with a printed sweater. I then threw in a coat and for some pop of color, the orange suede heels.

Enjoy the rest of your day and thanks for stopping by. :)

POLKA

                  I was in New York over the weekend working on a project with Kenyan Vibe. I had such an amazing time and I can’t wait to share what we were working on. Look out for that particular project in a few weeks.                        

Everyone needs a little polka in their life. Am wearing a retro polka dress with high-heeled sandals from Bakers. The shoes were my last buy from Bakers before they closed off all their stores. How I miss those little Bakers Stores. I am rocking jewelry pieces from Ghanian jewelry designer Kojo. He hand crafts really beautiful pieces. Check out his work on his facebook page    here

As I was editing pictures, I came across this last pic and decided to put it on here. I don't know if I was walking, running, or just about to take off ha ha!  I bet the guy across the street was wondering the same thing. LOL.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week.