All White Glamour

There are two trends that have absolutely stolen my heart at the moment but today I am only going to talk briefly about one of them because I want to save the other one for an outfit post:)

I have always been a little bit wary about white as I am not the tidiest person to have walked this earth..lol..I always get my face powder, makeup or lunch soup on my clothes and when I wear white it's always a disaster at the end of the day. But I can't help loving the all white trend!

All white is so chic and classy and I love how effortless it all seems to be. I'm not sure if there are any hard or fast rules about this trend but I think the trickiest part is choosing the shoes to ear it with. I would really rather be safe with this look and go with either gold, nude or silver shoes but as I always say, there really are no hard rules in fashion, as long as you can work it!

My favourite all white look is most certainly the pant suit! It's something you can wear to work and also to a red carpet event and tick all the boxes. The celebrities are certainly not shying away from white glamour, here are a few looks I absolutely love with my top look being the ever trendy Rihanna!

Pictured above: Rihanna, Vanessa Hudgens, Camilla Belle, Taylor Swift and Mila Kunis
 

I also like the all white look as a casual look, throw on some skinny jeans, cropped pants or a t-shirt and you are instantly casual chick. I also like it with a skirt:)

  

And finally I have to say that wearing   the all white look with shorts is the epitome of glamour for me!

Have you tried this trend yet? What do you think of it? Let me know in your comments or follow me on twitter @ghetogal.

Diamond Casino Opening Night & Freshy Ground Concert

Last week I got to attend the official opening of a new casino in town called the Diamond Casino. Usually I would not have been ecstatic about it as I do not know much about casino's and do not really care to gamble but one of the main features was that South African band Freshly Ground was going to be performing for the opening.

The first single I ever heard from this band was a catchy song called Doo Bee Doo which is the video I have shared above. They are such a talented group. My young brother is completely in love with them and is really a bigger fan than me as I only know a few of their songs but I was still excited to watch them!

I wore a little black dress I have been storing at the back of my closet for a special event. What I love the most about this dress is that it has an open back and a lovely bow at the end and is really simple and sweet. I got it for a total steal while “thrifting” (I thrift shop a lot!) and it's got a special place in my heart.

I met up with one of my good friend Mkhudzo who I have been to two events with already in the past month, both of which have been so much fun as she is such a bubbly person. She is one of the nicest people I know and is such a naturally beautiful girl both inside and out. She is getting married in two weeks which is so exciting and I hope to share some of her wedding pictures with you after the event!

Here are some pictures from the concert and opening night. Enjoy!

Freshly Ground performed so fabulously! 

                                          

 A little peak inside Diamond Casino

 Thank you for reading:)

Braids Are Taking Over

If you haven't noticed yet that braids have made a major comeback then I don't know where you have been!

To be honest braids have never really gone away in my opinion, they just took a back seat while everyone went crazy about weaves and Brazilian hair, lace wigs and mawhawks and all the wonderful things we women can do to our hair. What impresses me is that throughout time and fashion changes, somehow, somewhere, there has always be a girl who has had braids and not looked out of style.

Personally I have not braided my hair in over 5 years. I have constantly weaved it as my natural hair is a headache to maintain and I have been forever grateful to the person who invented weaves. (shout out...lol)

I watched with interest as the really tiny braids came back into fashion about two years ago. We call them "Masai braids" in Zambia because the native men of Kenya who are known as the Masai are the experts at doing it. About three Masai men braid your hair. YES, you heard right MEN! I hear it is a bit painful as they pull it in three different directions but they are so neat and normally this hairstyle would take two to three days but they do it in four hours. Brilliance!

I have not had the courage to do it, firstly because it is just a little bit pricey (but let me mention in the long run it's cost effective as you can keep it up to four months at the most) and secondly because my hair is very fragile and the last time I did small braids a lot of it fell out.

Anyway I have been obsessed with Solange Knowles for the longest time and I just love her unique style and especially love how she braids her hair so she was my major inspiration to try braids.

Not sure I can go that long but the size of the braids really had me thinking I could pull something like that off.
 So before I show you what style I settled for I will show you a collection of some of my favourite braided looks. I am so in love with bigger box braids so this will be biased towards that. What do you think?

And finally a look at my hair! I settled for big twists, they are easy to do and look super cute but I must warn you because they are so big they come off pretty quick. This hairstyle has only lasted me two weeks so it's a bit of a luxury hairstyle, only do it if you want to look good for a short while like for a week away on holiday or for a special event. I would recommend you go for a smaller size if you want to keep the twists in your head for longer but the up side is, it's so affordable and for a week I promise you will be the absolute envy of everyone!

It feels great to have braids back in my head, plus they are so low maintenance! All you have to do is buy an oil based spray to keep your hair oiled and vibrant, no toners, and no fights with the blower in the morning and no bad hair days!

If this post inspires you to braid, let me know by sending me a link to your blog. Follow me on twitter @ghetogal, I love discovering all your fab blogs! Thank you for reading

The Black & White Colour Block Dress

Hello lovelies,

Trying to be in your good books and blogging whenever I can! Last week I attended a wine tasting at the opening of a new wine shop in Lusaka called The Wine Shop. I have never really been to a wine shop, I just get my wine from the supermarket and don’t think twice about it but I loved that the entire shop was all about wine and the owner took the time to explain where the wines were from and the vintage and all that stuff polished wine lovers like to know.

I wore a colour block black and white dress, I got it while thrifting and in fact was doubtful about it but I had seen a similar look on Alicia keys and thought I should try it. A girl at the stand actually pointed it out to me and said I would probably look good in it, I’m so glad she convinced me because I love it.

Here are some of the pictures from the wine tasting. I was happy to bump into the gorgeous Esther Mwila. I met her at another event and she is absolutely lovely. I love how photogenic she is, she is definitely one of my favourite people to photograph, and she is certainly my girl crush!

I love it when I own anything that is even remotely close to any of my favourite celebrities, yes, I am shamefully a celebrity whore..lol...

The black and white colour block dress has been doing pretty well on the red carpet. Celebrities like Alicia Keys, Mischa Barton and Rosie Huntington to mention a few have rocked the look! Here are a few varaitions of the black and white colour block dress that I love!

And a last look at me of course..lol... thank you for reading xoxo

Letter To My Sixteen Year Old Self

Dear 16 year old me,

What would you like me to start with, the good news or the bad news? Lol, just kidding, you should probably know that you’re actually not doing too bad. Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves though, you have really made some HUGE mistakes over the past couple of years but your present self is coming to terms with it.

Remember how terrified you were of going out there in the big bad world on your own? Well, you live on your own now, well you do have a housemate and your boyfriend is there half the time (yes, you have a boyfriend, you won’t die alone as you often feared..lol) but you are an independent woman, you left your family and relocated to another city! You would be proud.

You will also be pleased to know you graduated from University with a degree, you almost got a distinction but you were really very lazy throughout uni and ended up with a merit. You still hate studying and you still do everything last minute but you really had fun getting a degree, you have very few regrets because unlike other people who took school way too seriously, you took it in your stride and were your usual happy go lucky self.

Oh by the way, you will really grow up during uni, and I don’t just mean your mindset. You will develop into a pretty awesome young lady and thank heavens you will develop a sense of style! You will become more confident about your body and your looks and people will start to notice that you are beautiful because of this, and your inner glow. Appreciate your body, you will later on gain some weight and miss your body but then again you don’t look so bad..lol

I know you are curious to know about your love life, you were always such a hopeless romantic and you still are! Wish you would stop watching those stupid romantic movies though! Anyway, you will meet quiet a lot of guys during uni, you will even have three guy best friends during that time, some of the friendships will not continue after uni but they will always be your friends. You will go on a couple of bad dates, haha, you won’t believe this but at some point you will try internet dating and this guy will start stalking you and try to force himself on you but thank heavens you will come out alright. That probably taught you a lesson.

There will be this one guy; you know how you always had a weakness for good looking guys? Well this one will be pretty good looking! You should know that he is going to go down in history as your first love, you will have the biggest crush on him for three years but sadly you will never really get together, it is going to be so complicated, you are going to cry a lot and yes kiddo, your heart is going to break into tiny little pieces. Let me tell you that you are partly to blame for this but don’t be too hard on yourself, you will only be protecting your heart and at least you will come out with your dignity. He will always respect you for that. You will be young and kind of childish at that time and very innocent and naive, so forgive yourself. You will learn so much from this experience; it will help you through the next stages of your life. I’m concluding on your behalf that you will always feel a bit of sadness over this but is that not the story of first loves? And don’t read this and think maybe someday you two will get back together because he is getting married to someone else soon. Yes, he told you himself and you cried and couldn’t breathe for a minute but it passed and I think you are going to be okay.

Ah, don’t feel too bad because guess what? You will fall in love again. And it is going to be a lot like the fairytale you always wanted but be warned, it will not be easy! You will still have issues from your past relationship and because of that you will nearly lose this love. Nearly, but you won’t. He is an amazing guy, you will love him differently but with just as much intensity. He is sweet and thoughtful and he would probably do anything in the world for you. He will even take you to the world cup! Imagine that! I won’t let the cat out of the bag but somewhere during this time something very terrible is going to happen, you will want to die, in fact, if it wasn’t for God’s mercy you would have probably died. It will be a milestone. This too will always have an effect on your relationship but somehow the strong belief that you were meant to be together will keep you together through every hardship.

I am not going to tell you anything about your intimate life, I just want to tell you that you were very right about waiting; you have no idea how right.

You’re still terrified about marriage! You always said you would do it as late as possible and kept saying you will get married at 29 and I tell you, this is looking like a huge possibility. But you’re not worried about when this is going to happen, there’s something about you that I like, you take each day as it comes, you’re not in a rush and you believe that everything will work out for your good in the end and it usually does. I really think this guy you’re with is the one, you know, the one you’re going to marry and I wish you much happiness! I do not know what kind of a mother you will be, it will be so funny to see but I will keep you updated.

Your sister will have a baby girl! She is the most gorgeous little princess on earth and she is so clever, she reminds me a lot of you when you were younger.  Your sister will also be getting married soon. Your mum and dad are still together so don’t get so depressed when they talk about divorce, they will stay together in the end and learn to live with their differences. Their relationship has taught you some valuable lessons, it has also harmed you in a way and put fear in you about love and marriage but you are determined to have a different story and it looks like you are doing just fine!

There is a lot I have left out but what would be the fun of spoiling everything for you? What I would really like to tell you is you are doing much, much better than you think. I am so proud of who you are at 16, you have no idea what a lovely person you are and what great values you have, you’re a fighter in your own sweet yet stubborn way. I love that you are getting to know God, later on in life it is those lessons you will learn that will guide your life because sometimes you won’t be good at going to church and praying as much as you are starting to do now. I hope you get back to being Godly, you know it is the most important thing in life. I like that you are always trying and you really do love God. It’s extremely important.

 Enjoy the years, you will grow up soon and it’s not as fun as you think! Most importantly stay true to yourself, don’t let people change you, you’re amazing just the way you are!

With love,
Your 20 something year old self.



PS: This is how you look now:)

Everybody's Free (to wear sunscreen) ~ Inspirational Thoughts

It's been forever since I posted something on here, my apologies!

Today all I want to really do is share one of my favourite songs which has one of the best messages ever! But what would a post be without some pictures? Thought I would share a few of my favourite people with you. This weekend I will be attending a one year memorial of a really close friend, it makes me realise that we are only here for a moment and we should always, always appreciate the people we love.

 


Everybody's Free (to wear sunscreen) Baz Lurhman

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '97... wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be IT.

The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience.

I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked.

You are NOT as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

    Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts, don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

    Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long, and in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements.

    Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium.

Be kind to your knees, you'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't, maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't, maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself, either. Your choices are half chance, so are everybody else's. Enjoy your body, use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance. Even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents, you never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings; they are your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography in lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard; live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

    Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths, prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do you'll fantasize that when you were young prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're 40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.