Inaugural Fashion

I'M BACK!!! and I'm talking inaugural fashion at the desk at NY1 News, with our very own Kristen Shaughnessy!

On January 20th 2017, Donald J. Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States. With all the pomp and circumstance surrounding the day, I had to talk about the fashion!!

We saw Melania Trump make her first appearance as the FLOTUS, dressed in a baby blue Ralph Lauren mock turtleneck dress, coupled with a criss cross cropped jacket (say that 10x fast!). Her look was reminiscent of Jackie Kennedy's 1961 inaugural ensemble.

We also saw former FLOTUS, NY Senator, Secretary of State & most recently Democratic Presidential Candidate Hillary Clinton, also in Ralph Lauren, sporting her signature pant suit, in white giving props to the suffragette movement.

Finally we have Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway, looking very patriotic in a red white and blue Gucci coat. As per "the internets", this look was a hit for some and a miss for others.

Check out the segment here.

Miss Jackson if you're nasty...DIY Halloween costume

23 Years later and this look is still kickin' ass! Crop tops never went out of style and somehow chokers are back en trend! In case you missed it, this look is from Janet Jackson's "If" music video. The song was from her 1993 album "janet." and this video solidified her sex symbol status FOREVER!! 

Because I love all things Jackson, I decided to take a stab at this iconic look (minus the smokin' abs). In true NaY form if I was going to do this, it had to be affordable and from #mycloset. Here's a list of things I bought or already owned to get the look!

The look is fairly simple, black pants, black vest, and a choker, the details are what make it stand out. The choker is Buffalo bone style jewelry usually seen on Native American garb, the vest has the same Buffalo bone accessories. Finding a vest with that same detail is nearly impossible, so I bought the 3" beads (pack of 25) and sewed them on with the same needle and thread you would use to sew in a weave (trade secrets, lol). I originally used regular thread but it wasn't strong enough and the beads kept falling off. 

In the video Janet's rocking bell bottom pants which I traded in for a pair or stretchy black jeans I already owned and instead of a chunky heeled shoe I opted for flat, knee high boots for all day comfort. I completed the look with a curly wig from the discount bin of my local beauty supply store. 

The final piece is make-up. I'm by no stretch of the imagination a make-up artist or good at following make-up tutorials, but this one by Jamie Sykes was most helpful. There's also this one by Destiny Godley which was also exceptional and recreated Miss Jackson's look for "That's the Way Love Goes".  Both Janet video's were from the same album so the make-up and styling are very similar.

Here's a list of what you'll need to pull off this look:

Choker: $7.99 ebay

Vest: $9.99 Amazon

Buffalo Bone Hair Pipe Beads: $10 Amazon

Wig: $15 local beauty supply store discount bin

Black pants: $9.99 H&M (already owned)

Black Boots

In total I spent $42.98...Not bad for a very specific costume!

NaY

Dress Form

I'm not a seamstress, but I own a dress form and it all started as a DIY pinterest project. Like many others I troll pinterest for ideas from decorating my home to hairstyles. Two years ago pictures of Christmas tree dress forms went viral and I was fascinated! I vowed this would be my next DIY!!

When I posted this picture to my social media December 10th 2014 the caption read "Next year's Christmas tree" and I made good on that!

This was my version of the Christmas tree dress form! I loved it so much I named it "Belle", she's now part of the family people come from near and far just to lay eyes on her. She's the Rockefeller Center Tree of Queens, NY.

When I started this project the hardest part was figuring out how to make the hoop skirt. I took my curiosity to youtube to find my answer and this tutorial was the best, easiest  and free!! This one is good too!

There are plenty of others out there but they charge for the good info. If you want to save  your coins you'll have to get creative and thats what I did, I made a couple of amendments to accommodate what I had, and purchased very few new items. Unfortunately I didn't do my own tutorial...maybe this year.

After the Christmas season was over I thought "What the heck am I going to do with this thing?!" the dress form that is. I thought about selling it, but didn't want to in the event that I'd do another tree dress the following year. I'm not a seamstress so I didn't need it for that and all my seamstress friends already had dress forms. So I got creative! 

I've always secretly wished I could make my own clothes, but because I can't, I used my dress form to put together outfits I already owned and played grown up dress up!! every season I change her outfit like a store front mannequin and I rename her. Check out some of her past looks.

"Diva"

"Mbilia La Belle"

"Summer"

Like past seasons my dress form has changed clothes like Jay-Z, she's shed her warm weather duds for a cold weather frock. Meet the newest look "Misfit"

NaY

Ankara Bazaar

Studio Arte, in Manhattan's garment district was the setting for The Ankara Bazaar Saturday September 17th. The shopping mixer was part of a 2 day event hosted by Afropolitan Insights an organization committed to highlighting positive images and narratives of Africa and Africans living in the diaspora.

Upon arrival you were met with a pink carpet where event goers stopped to pose for pics.

Pink Carpet

Pink Carpet

Tees in the trap T-shirt
Zara leather pencil skirt
lace up peep toe booties

The event space was literally transformed into an ankara bazaar with wearable fashions from wall to wall.

Rahyma

A'maze Africa

The DJ played the latest Afrobeats, the henna artist adorned hands with decorative designs

while patrons shopped & sipped...YUP!! there were adult bevy's and delicious eats by Grace Specialty.

The energy in the room was explosive reminiscent of a market place in "Anywheresville", Africa, minus the persistent, borderline pushy vendors. Men and women ran to and from the fitting room making sure they got the right fit before finalizing their purchases.

Forever Audacious

Beriqisu

Midget Giraffe

Rahyma

In the midst of it all, organizers pulled off a fashion show featuring creations from the very designers showcasing at the bazaar! Models set the runway on fire with their fierce walk while their frocks dazzled the eyes.

Not only were there fab fashions for grown ups, but  you could dress baby too...AND your home!! There were gorgeous throw pillows and art work to beautify your home.

 Yacine

African Prints in Fashion

Alana Ladson Art

 There was an array of accessories to chose from like hand bags, shoes, bracelets and head wraps that will enhance any look!

Elvira Clayton Accessories

Ma'am

African Prints in Fashion

Rebellerie

Nishkami

Forever Audacious

In all it was a shoppers paradise. For more deets on any of the items or vendors seen on this post or to view some of the vendors who participated but did not appear in this post please see the links below.

Alana Ladson Art

A'maze Africa

African Prints in Fashion

Beriqisi

Elvira Clayton Accessories

Forever Audacious

Ma'am

Midget Giraffe

Nishkami

Rahyma

ReBellerie

Yacine

Zizi Africa

NaY

New York Fashion Week: Jenny Packham

Click here to see my coverage of the Jenny Packham Runway Show

Here are some BTS pics

Jenny Packham pre-show

finishing touches

Spring Summer 2017 

Make-up Maven Bobbi Brown

Jenny Packham pre-show interviews

NaY

Don't Touch My Hair!!!! NO PICTURES PLEASE!!!

I went to Thailand back in March with my gal pals, even though Southeast Asia (or any part of Asia) wasn't yet on my travel radar (I wanna see Africa first...I'm African!). Honestly, I'm not that picky about travel, if someone suggests a place I've never been, I'm usually DTF (down to fly,lol). We started talking about going to Thailand Easter 2015, we actually got serious about it January 2016 and bought tickets not too long after the new year. The goal was to plan our trip around attending the Full Moon Party on Koh Phangan which would be our final stop before heading home...And so our journey began!

Me, Steph, "Tiggs", Savoyé, Patty

Passports ready, we set off for Thailand, with a layover in Taipei. Our first stop, Bangkok "not bangkitty". After about 4 days of temple hopping, we planed it to Krabi, an hour or so after that our ferry arrived in Koh Phi Phi (pee-pee) the land of parties and beaches. Insert ferry ride back to Krabi 3 days later to catch a plane to Koh Samui, our actual final destination. The Full Moon Party which is an all nighter (7p- 7a) is on Koh Phangan, about a 30 minute speed boat ride from Koh Samui.


Before I get into the hairy scary I should mention, Thailand was an amazing experience!! the food was delicious, the sights were breathtaking & the culture was rich. I should also mention China Airlines is probably one of my favorite airlines to date, we were very well taken care of. This post isn't about all that though, this post is about why in 2016 black people with ethnic hairstyles can't travel without being treated like museum exhibits.

This is how I wore my hair while in Thailand...

Maya Bay- Bound

Bangkok, Thailand

Me & My Aunt Josepha in France

This type of protective styling is called crotchet braiding my natural hair is nicely tucked away and protected up under there. This look has become very popular in the states amongst black women. Now, whether or not you live in the states, or you live someplace where you're exposed to people of color, in 2016 no matter where you live on earth, should  anyone be so amazed at seeing black skin or black hair to the point of picture taking. Not only have I had this experience with strangers wanting to touch my hair or take my picture, but my friends and relatives have had indistinguishable encounters. My aunt who wears dreadlocks  and is a dancer has run ins frequently in Asian countries and my friend who just visited Australia had an encounter there.

Golden Buddha Temple

I'll be the first to admit that taken the size of my Thai-do (big hair don't care) I did stand out, but I wouldn't call it a spectacle. From the time we arrived in Thailand, people would reach out and pet my head and others would walk towards me arms stretched ready to go in for a feel.  I got to the point where I would walk in between my friends so they could shield me from curious hands. Then there was the picture taking... some people would secretly take my picture others would ask. One of my earlier encounters at a Thai temple was with an Indian looking man who innocently asked to take my picture after we'd asked him to take our group's picture. I posed for the picture and thought later, and the thought was who was that guy?what's he going to do with a picture of me (a stranger to him)? After that I stopped obliging when asked. There was a woman on Maya Bay who had her husband ask me if she could take a picture with me...I politely said no, they were cool and walked back over to their spot on the sand. By the time we arrived in Koh Samui, you could've stuck a fork in me, cause I was done and by the time the Full Moon Party rolled around all I wanted to do was wear my hair up and get lost in the crowd.

Koh Samui, Thailand

While in Koh Phi Phi we asked a Danish couple staying in our hotel what the fascination was? The only answer they could give was that they only see black people or  black people with interesting hair on TV so to see us and our hair in real life awes them and they love it! I remember being a kid and being told not to stare, it makes me wonder if that's taught in other cultures...doesn't seem so. Here's a sistagirl hair 101 tip: look but don't touch and don't stare. European hair very different from my own hair, but even as a kid I'd never stare let alone as an adult.

While I'm at it, I should mention Egypt, the entire country, on the continent of Africa has a huge problem similar to this but that's more of a racial bias issue and a post for another day.

My mom in Aswan, Egypt getting stares from locals

When I go on vacation I think of it as an opportunity to bring out my alter ego, my Sasha Fierce, "Cachaça". The best way I know how to do that is by changing my hair, unfortunately my fellow humans got me "feeling like an animal with these cameras all in my grill"

Bangkok, Thailand

Salvador de Bahia, Brazil

NaY