Goodbye 28

It's the day after my 29th birthday and I feel good. So so fuckin' good!!!!!!

I just want to open the door, stand on the balcony and shout it out. My no-money neighbours would be chuffed, the new-money ones would be appalled and just give me dirty looks but my old-money ones would write me a letter of complaint on the finest paper mulla can buy and someone from the Body Corporate crew would ring me first thing Monday morning to discuss the 'incident'. So... there will be no shouting anything out. I'll simply put on some reggae tunes, write a little and boogie the afternoon away in my fluffy robe.

So much has happened since my last post. I simply don't know where to start. I've been eating less take-out, drinking less cheap wine and watching less dodgy films. Yes. I'm a better human being now that I'm not constantly bloated + hungover and searching high and low for my glasses before sprinting off to work. Since a country getaway a couple of weeks ago, I've started thinking about a healthier lifestyle and what organic 'this and that' I can afford. I've found a new GP, a South African who understands lobola and why I need my skin to look like that of a newborn. Also, I've started culling people in my life who don't seem to add value and I guess I'm on the road to mending true friendships I didn't value and loved ones I've neglected along my merry way.

Fashion-wise... I snapped up a pair of Alexander McQueen pumps that 'spoke to me' at the Miss Louise super sale. Had to get ghetto on some ladies to get to where my bad boys were. Oh they look so good but they hurt like hell:(

Then a few days later, I finally bought something that I had put on my vision board, a Herve Leger dress. I bought my first Freakum Dress after seeing a Naija fashionista rocking one on Bella Naija, researching the construction of the dresses and eyeing all the different styles for close to two years. On the night of its purchase, I'd also been thinking about a recent-ish trip to Singapore where I almost did the plunge.

Rewind to Singapore
Defensive Angie walked into the ION Herve Leger boutique in full geek mode and minutes later emerged from the dressing suite (not changing room) looking tastefully thick and quite sumptuous. I looked like a star. While the sales associate squealed with glee and handed me a sparkling water, I was calculating what buying a dress would mean financially. I could hardly breathe in my favourite style but purchasing it would mean I'd have to put it on two cards. I felt like a trillion dollars but I'd been raised by two accountants and I just couldn't do it. It didn't make financial sense. I left feeling rather deflated and headed straight to good ol' ZARA where I found a tunic that did.

Today
The grainy image of my dress is no longer on my vision board now that my Freakum Dress hangs in my wardrobe. Just an image of a blue Bottega Veneta Knot Clutch remains...

Musings of an Empress

I just got off the phone with a new-ish dear friend of mine. Funny how people become part of your life without you really knowing much about them at the beginning and not much more even with time. My friend, who we shall call Bambino, is young man I'm certain is going places. I don't know how to explain it but I've got this gut feeling that he most definitely is. He doesn't know but I'm extremley proud of him. I'm so proud. Despite all his years studying architecture in the West, he hasn't forgotten home and the importance of giving back to a society that has shaped the young man he is today. Bambino is determined to make some serious money but also to make a difference. A real difference. Not a day goes by that I don't acknowledge how blessed I am. I'm so blessed. I'm so fortunate to know him.

Fast-forward before the call

Before the 40 minute or so chit chat with Bambino, I was sitting around with my apartment-mate discussing our summer clothing purchases and debriefing her on today's lunch with my ex. Lunch was fun and the food sensational! Thought I might share what I wore with you.

Clothing - ZARA jacket, Missoni Sport top, Levis jeans

Accessories - Kazuri earrings, Barneys New York bag, BVLGARI watch and ring, Scanlan and Theordore belt, Sergio Rossi pumps, ring from India and cheap+cheerful eyewear from China

My faithful Sergio Rossi's

I love Sergio Rossi shoes for their timelessness, sexiness and comfort. I can stand all day, boogie all night and run after a cab in all the pairs I've bought. Viva Sergio Rossi!

Baldie returns

Oh what a Busy and Not-So-Busy Bear I've been. I've seen so much fashion-wise but read so little about my passion over the last couple of weeks. I've felt a little out of my depth. A little over-eating here and a few too many wines there are also to blame. Life is so good!

Summer is fast-approaching and I could not be happier. Melbourne's blazing summer reminds me of Harare's heat and my city's inhabitants with shiny foreheads and enviable skin tones. I long to be home. I find myself looking at housewares thinking of my home at home. Something to call my own. Just yesterday I was in the glassware section of my favourite department store (after Selfridges) looking at wine glasses I'd only dreamed of owning. Funny how a little spending power years later changes all that.

I spent hours looking at small appliances and crockery then moved on to cutlery. With cutlery, it became a case of 32 pieces versus 56 pieces, contemporary versus classic and matte satin finish versus high shine silver-plated. The 'Made in Vietnam' and 'Made in China' issue became a non-issue but I was still struggling. Andrew, a sales assistant deserving of a medal, quickly came to my aid 'breaking everything down' brand by brand and collection by collection. I told him of my return to Zimbabwe and the importance of cookware, tableware, glassware, furnishings etc that have longevity and that are heavy-duty. As soon as I got home, I poured myself a stiff drink and toasted to my new love...housewares:)

Kazuri

I have the sweetest brother in the world. His name is Nigel.

Now Nigel went 'home' (Zimbabwe) a few months ago to see our parents and to sort out a few things business-wise. Mr Busy had a stopover in Nairobi and bought me two pairs of Kazuri's hand painted ceramic earrings. Thought I might rock the Pansy Double Drop tonight!

The earrings are available online at http://www.myasho.com/ and don't forget to check out other Kazuri products at http://www.kazuri.com/

Monroque madness

Happy people! I've got this glorious Monday off and I've got so many things to do, so many glossy magazines to get through at Borders, so many acquaintances to catch up with and then an art house film to watch. I'm tempted to cancel a coffee date with one acquaintance-slash-friend but I need some advice. I've fallen in love...

I've fallen for Shala Monroque, the super stylish Editor of Pop Magazine. I saw her on my first ever trip to New York where I spent hours aimlessly stalking the shoes at Bergdorf Goodman. I was trying to work out exactly how much money I had and what percentage of it to be spent on a pair of shoes that I could actually walk hundreds of metres in. I had waited years for this day. The day I could just try serious designer shoes and actually buy a pair. Remembering one pair and one pair only. I couldn't decide so 'cruised' a number of Fifth Avenue stores holding tightly to my bag. My Lonely Planet guide and my mum had warned me about New York's so-called hoodlums so I was on high alert. Back at Bergdorf and fast forward to seeing Shala in person....

I hadn't seen a black woman with such grace in ages. I had studied in London and seen many well-to-do and well-dressed Black Butterflies but this was the first time I saw one that:

1. did not have a weave
2. had minimal make-up
3. had natural elegance
4. looked individualistic and effortlessly chic
5. did not look like new-money

I hoped that she'd notice me rocking larger-than-life frames, vintage riding boots, Topshop tunic and a DVF coat that I had snapped up in an underground DVF sale. I hoped that she would say "Oh my. Can I please try those pumps that stylista is trying on?" and perhaps compliment me on my style. She didn't. She didn't notice me but I noticed her and years later I still remember her entire outfit.

The thing is every month or so she seems to pop up in my life. Yes in my life! Just a moment ago I logged on to style.com and there she was again. Thanks to Scott Schuman, Garance Dore and one other blogger, I can share this Black Butterfly with you.

The Essentials Saga

My 'sister under the skin' a.k.a my apartment-mate and I are both on our laptops researching fashion must-haves. She's off to Italy for a friend's wedding + a wee break and I'm helping her with The List. The list of essentials and not-so-essential items that every fashionista should carry with her at all times and at least glance at before handing over her method of payment for a major purchase. Deciding what is essential is proving to be very difficult. Are statement coats, power clutches, Missoni knits and cramp-inducing pumps essentials? I'm not entirely sure. What do I know? I'm just a self-indulgent mere mortal who adores subtle and not-so-subtle accessories, vibrant silks, cuddly cashmeres and multiple pairs of comfy Converses. I've made many mistakes over the years but I've made some unbelievably great purchasing decisions. For good guidance check out Nina Garcia's Little Book of Style and style.com. Both are yet to fail me.

Dreaming of Vogue Africa

I've had the most relaxing weekend in ages. Yesterday I stayed in, chatted for nearly 5 hours to a good friend in Shanghai, read my new fashion 'Bible', Elegance by Kathleen Tessaro, cleaned my room, laundered 'my smalls' and researched summer's affordable must-haves. I recently splurged on a pair of LV pumps to complete my 1950s look so I'm super skint. Super skint with fabulous shoes...

I can't stop thinking about Vogue Africa.


I can't stop visualising its first cover, Mario Epanya's image. I can't stop dreaming of a magazine full of colour and my continent's best exports donning fabulous creations by both well-known and upcoming African designers. I yearn for a publication that celebrates black beauty and one that also addresses issues that plague women of colour. I'm desperate for a Vogue Africa that has 'honest shots' and real women (not just Jozi's Elite and Nollywood's Bleach Queens). One that is not 60% advertising and one that is not filled with unattainable products. I yearn for a magazine of real substance and on my weekly (sometimes bi-weekly) visits to Borders I find myself looking out for it as if it exists. With a heavy heart I skim through Essence and Ebony and then settle for New African and African Business. These magazines sometimes have interesting articles on the different countries' manufacturing and textile industries and their developments (or decline). For those of you in the diaspora, I urge you to subscribe to them.

This Empress is guaranteed to be thinking of Vogue Africa for the rest of the day. She's off to watch I Am Love again...

New beginnings

Hello friends,

I've been meaning to start this blog for a little over a year now but have simply lacked the confidence to write about my real passion. I've agonised over my first words, my writing style, my grammar and if what I feel about the complex and fickle world of fashion can be deemed 'normal'. I know more about the rise of super brands, the inevitable fall of the mediocre ones, trends, heel heights, luxury price-points, textures and finishings than I will ever know about politics, global markets and contentious issues relating to the environment. I can admit that I'm one of those shallow beings that religiously reads glossy over-priced fashion publications, that avoids social events to head home and research products that have captured my heart that day and that can easily mend a broken heart with a pair of Tods moccasins. Oh yes I can!

Enjoy:)

kaAngie