THRIFTED VINTAGE AND MUSIC

Helloooo everybody. Hope everyone is doing great!!! I have been hunkered down for a couple of weeks. The arctic blast that has been hitting the nation and the relentless snow storms have made me dread even walking to my car. Can winter be over already? I am even ready for 30-degree temperatures. Any digit under 20 is an abomination. LordT! Anyone on the East coast will definitely agree with me.

I took an opportunity to take a few pictures for my outfit this past weekend. Qui and I were heading to the Hugh Masekela concert that was being held at the Listner Auditorium of the George Washington University in DC. Qui was the one who got me started on Hugh Masekela one night while chilling in the house with my brother Kim. We had been listening to songs by TKZee, Mafikizolo, Brenda Fassie and had dubbed it South Africa night,Qui was quite baffled that we hadn’t heard of Hugh Masekela.  Hugh Masekela is a world-renowned flugelhornist, trumpeter, bandleader, composer, singer, and defiant poltical voice who remaines deeply connected to his South African home .Late last month I happened to scroll by a tweet that mentioned Hugh Masekela and Vusi Mahlasela would be on a tour. The tour was to commemorate the 20 years of freedom in South Africa. Quickly clicked on the link and boom, a tour date for February in DC. Qui was over the moon so tickets were quickly purchased. My sister Flo and our friend Moore joined us as well.

Oh my gudddddoooo!!! What a performance!!! I can still hear Hugh blowing the trumpet while Vusi croons melodiously in the background. It was breathtakingly beautiful. Ever wonder what the world would be without music? I shudder at the thought. Before starting on a number, they would explain the origin of the song, or the thought behind it, especially the ones that were sang during Apartheid. They spoke how South Africa forged unity as a new nation, the amazing wonders of forgiveness and reconciliation. It was musical poetry at it’s best. They would mostly sing in their native tongue while the harmonic tunes had as in a trance. As the last note was being pulled, you could hear sighs then uproar of hurrahs, enthusiastic hand-claps, and standing ovations.  At one point, folks sitting on the edges of the auditorium wall would stand and start dancing by the aisle. We were smack in the middle so I would forlornly gaze at them wondering why I wasn’t dancing with them. As if Hugh heard my wish, they started a number and had everybody stand up. Super!!! The percussion beats had us busting moves and swaying like true traditional dancers. At the end of their performance they waved to the crowd and left, folks were still clapping and at one point some people started leaving.

They weren’t done yet!!  Encore!!! The band came back to do “Pata Pata” by the late Miriam Makeba. If the uproar that filled the auditorium dint awaken the dead, well, thank GOD it didn’t, we wouldn’t want a walking dead scenario!!  We would end up kicking our shoes and running for the hills. That brings me to my shoes, I had to take them off, so I can get down and be in the groove, I must have broken a sweat. We were grinning and shaking our shoulders in pure joy!!! I get why Qui is such a huge fan.

That performance, was beyond amazing!!! Music is so powerful, you may not understand the language, but you can rezonate with it's beauty. The way it makes you feel. Music, is like a rainbow after a dreary rainy day, it brings color into our lives.

Hugh is currently using his global reach to spread the word about heritage restoration in Africa- a topic that remains very close to his heart.

"My biggest obsession is to show Africans and the world who the people of Africa really are," Masekela confides- and it's this commitment to his home continent that has propelled him forward since he began playing the trumpet.

Check out the Hugh Masekela tour dates by clicking here.

Photo Cred: Qui

For my outfit today, I went all vintagy, if there is anything like that. I haven’t put a look with thrifted finds in a long, long time and my outfit on this day was nothing less. You have probably seen most of this pieces before, I paired the sweater with the dress then for extra warmth, my faux fur coat. 

My darling sissy Flo makes her debut on the blog. Whoop! Whoop! She was nervous about having her pictures on display but I think her look deserved to be on here. She had a satin slip dress with tights and covered with a red jacket with a faux fur stole. We love you PETA! Faux real. :) Her platform heels are so divine, I might borrow (read steal) them lol.

I love the contrast in our styles, Flo took the modern route with the slip dress, so groovy, I took the vintagy route. If I put my pictures in black and white, I would put a circa somewhere on the edge. Check out Winter Trend Report to see what we took from it. As I always say, trends should just be a flavor to your style. Find out what works and what doesn't work for you. Own your style. It's your identity and as writer Gore Vidal says, style is knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn.

As always thanks for stopping by and have an amazing day.

Flo is rocking

Asos Coat

Slip Satin dress

Tights

Shoedazzle Shoes

Maasai Market Rings

Mac Rebel on the lips

PRINTS AND STRIPES

New outfit post!!!

I haven’t said that in a while, so here is a quick outfit post from this past Sunday. My girl Q joined me for an impromptu shot after Sunday brunch. My brother Kim was all business directing and looking for angles.  It was quite hilarious plus I think the mimosas had a part to play.

He kept yelling like a Marine commander,

“Look up!! Nice!!”

“Don’t smile, YES!”

"Chin up...."

I was trying so hard not to burst out laughing but I do like the final results.

Q is rocking a printed rose dress and blue wedges while I am in a flowy striped dress with puffy sleeves and mule shoes.

Yes Mules.

Mules are shoes that fuse elements of two disparate forebears: the pump, with its high heel and partially or entirely closed front; and the slipper, with its open back.

Mules have been worn since time in memorial, from the Pope to Marilyn Monroe, true story. Every time the shoe pops up in the sartorial world of fashion, it reinvents itself. Lately, Mules have been all over the fashion shows and as fashion week is right around the corner, am sure we shall see more of this shoe up and down the runway.

Photo Cred: Kimnation

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.

GREY

       The beauty of living in the East Coast is to experience the four seasons fully. To sneeze through spring while admiring how everything is coming to life, Spring blossoms anyone?  To stash away our coats and soak in the summer sun. To watch the leaves change their color, soft breezes, then…. like an unexpected guest who then proceeds to camp in your house for months, winter creeps in. I can already feel it in the wind, the distinct chill. It makes you want to stay indoors, with a hot mug of  hot chocolate, and watch SCANDAL reruns. Ahh the beauty of life.

     I fell in love with my huge grey cardigan on site. Talking about SCANDAL, my sister, Flo mentioned it was somewhat Olivia Pope inspired. Well, why not? We are huge fans of the show and are always intruiged with Olivia Pope’s sense of style.

Is it thursday yet?

For today's look, I paired the grey cardi with a pink sheath dress similar to this one, and gorgeous black heels. The cardi is bound to make rounds this season thats for sure. Happy Monday guys.

Thanks for stopping by. 

PINK OCTOBER

         If you could have asked the then ten year old Roshie if she could wear a dress over pink sweater, you would have probably been stared at……in utter distaste. Dresses??

I was more concerned with scaling up walls like spiderman and running around barefoot, dresses were reserved for Sunday school. I remember this particular sunday afternoon, visiting my grandmother’s and ruining my favorite Sunday dress by climbing up a guava tree. I had assumed a particular branch could hold my weight but what resulted was an affirmation to Newton's law of gravity. The dress was hideously ripped by a branch that even my mother’s perfect stitches would not have saved it!

Flash back to the present day and I am all about dresses and skirts. Pants are occasionally thrown here and there. Whatever happened to me?? LOL

I am wearing a chestnut brown dress over a pink sweater, and I know somewhere, mum is very proud. It’ s Breast Cancer awareness month, hence the pink sweater. I decided to layer it over the long-sleeved pleated dress then added a subtle hint of a print with the shoes. You can rock this look anywhere, just not up a tree!! :)

Have a great day, and thanks for stopping by.