HAPPY THANKSGIVING

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Helloooo everybody!!!

 Am in such a joyful mood today. Must be the weather..

 Anyway, it is Thanks giving and apart from getting ready to feast on some turkey, mashed potatoes, greens, stuffing….and so much more. I'm taking this moment to be grateful. For my family who loves me beyond measure and are ok with unconventional ways. For friends who are always there for me through the good times and the bad. Now those, those are the ones you keep really close. They are members of my family as well. For you my dear reader, who has been reading my posts from day one, or found a link along the way and decided to click on it. Thank you. I am also grateful for the gift of life, ever wondered how many people wanted to see this beautiful day and they didn’t? You have. Make it count.

Every time I get on social media or turn on the news channel on Tv, I get bitter, heated, or angry. Sometimes I am dumbstruck at the avalanche of negative news coming straight at me. I start wondering what is happening to our society. Have we lost our humanity?

I once saw a quote that said something along these lines, “Humanity is the keystone that holds nations and men together. When that collapses, the whole structure crumbles.”

To be honest I can give a dissertation on humanity but I believe I will be left with more questions than answers? I choose not to dwell on it today. I choose to dwell on the positive. The great things in life that make it worth living to see another day. The awesome things in life that will forever be cherished.

Hear me out. The most amazing thing with gratitude is that no one will ever tell you it is enough. People love feeling appreciated. It goes along way. Be it the waiter who refilled your glass of water at the restuarant, the guy who held the door open for you, the woman who told you politely that the dry flat tag on your shirt collar was peeking, the teenage boy bagging your groceries at Whole foods, or the gentleman that held the elevator doors for you. Saying thank you goes a long way. Dish it out. It’s not a jar of milk, it won’t run out.

With Thanksgiving celebration marks the beginning of the festive season. A season to be joyful and as that song goes it’s the most wonderful time of the year. May this celebration give us much more to be thankful for.

Photo Cred: Kimnation

Gold and nude was my color palette today. Gold is always festive, and since I'm  in such a festive mood, my vintage skirt with gold prints will do. Paired it with a nude furry sweater and nude high heeled sandals.

As always thank you for stopping by. 

Happy Thanksgiving my friends

NOT YET

Fall weather. Just voicing out those words puts a smile on my face. The falling of leaves, fir and pine cones, the smell of spices and herbs, thanksgiving, rich earthy hues everywhere, I can go on forever. Can I also add the gorgeous camel coat in my closet that’s waiting to be debuted? Autumn does get me thrilled but the joy of soaking in the sun in sleeveless tops and dresses is hard to forsake.

Cami dresses, t-shirt dresses, and tank dresses have been the summer go to when relaxing and running errands this past summer. I figured I was not yet done rocking them. I paired the cami dress with a sleeveless blazer and blue sandals. I love big floppy hats, they always give the outfit an extra zing. Plus bad hair days are covered. Literally!

Photo Cred: Kimnation

Thanks for stopping by.

ONCE IN A BLUE MOON

I was looking at this beautiful cotton fabric thinking how the circular printed shapes resembled the moon. An orange crescent moon wrapped individually beside quadrants of blue full moons. Perfect title for someone who RARELY  posts outfits she has made.

Some of you reached out to me trying to figure out why I took a hiatus from blogging for a few weeks. Huge thanks by the way*

Truth be told, I had been draping and sewing my tail off. Much needed time to get back to the basics since half the time what I worked on was mostly crap. Patterns were off, draping was a disaster, seams and darts not aligned, don’t get me started on the zippers and sleeves. Most of my initial work looked like crap because I’d not been working on the craft, hence the rustiness. It was frustrating to say the least. I promised myself not to do “once in a Blue Moon” ROSHIE ANNE outfits, but rather have at least one every week moving forward.

YES, at least one.

It’s quite a daunting challenge considering I'd have to drape the design I visualized, make a pattern, then perfect the said pattern with muslin, finally work on the actual design in a fashion fabric of my choice.

But what’s life without a good challenge now and then?

I thought to myself that this is what my favorite author Malcolm Gladwell was talking about when he wrote about putting 10,000 hours in his book, "The Outliers."

Amazing read by the way.

So here I am rocking my, hold on, first Roshie Anne outfit of the year. Wait, what!! First?

Aaah, never too late to start.

The fabric above was used as a headwrap (see pic on my instagram page) a couple of month ago. Using the same fabric, I'd envisioned  a short sleeveless dress perfect for summer. The bodice and the skirt were draped separately to create the pattern, then the pieces were sewn together to make the dress. For such a vibrant color, I opted for neutral accessories, donning nude high-heeled sandals with a navy blue bag.

How could I forget my other accessory? A big bright smile to complete the look.

Photo Cred: Kimnation

Once again thanks for stopping by and have an awesome day.

Happy Thursday.

THE BOMAS OF KENYA

      Nostalgia took me back to the Bomas of Kenya. I remember taking school trips to the Bomas back in primary school, singing songs on the bus trip, giggling and talking incessantly. At the time, I was more excited to miss out on the classes of that particular day and spend the day with my friends.

      Kenya is a country of 52 or more tribes living together, they all have their different set of cultures and lifestyle. I could go on a breakdown of the tribes just to show you how much I paid attention in class, but that’s a dissertation meant for another time. The name ‘Boma’ is a Swahili word for homestead. The Bomas of Kenya gives a visual aspect of how the tribes lived in the past. Potraying an insight into their social, cultural, and economic backbone setup of the tribes, pre colonialism. It’s also a preservation of our rich history for future generations.

 Then there is me, in my usual heels, soaking it all in. I had just left a meeting rocking a very neutral look with shades of black, white, and grey then decided to stop by the Bomas.

Peeking out through a watch tower of the Mijikenda Boma.

Photo Cred: Stella Nonny

Walking from one homestead to the next was such a thrill for my sister Nonny and I. We peeked through the watch towers, stepped through a tiny tiny doors of  thatched huts, the little granaries on the compound, and trying to come up with stories of how each the tribes lived their lives. It is amazing how so much changed post colonialism. Although Kenya has become more westernized, we have not forsaken parts of our rich culture. 

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend.

NAVY

       I paired my classic white shirt with a sleeveless navy dress which gave me that schoolgirl vibe. My sister Flo, took these pictures at Panari Hotel where we were shooting Season two of the web series, Fashion with Roshie. The guys at Panari were the best!!! We had great service and they made us feel at home.

      The architectural design of the building was a pretty interesting backdrop. Speaking of architecture, that used to be a career choice for me growing up. The creation of nothing to something was and still is a subject of fascination to me. Well, I eventually decided to see where my budding relationship with fashion would take me, but I still gawk at majestic buildings.

Photo Cred: Flo Ngesh

Happy Monday and thanks for stopping by.