The Chunky Jumper Dress

Hello my nerdly beautifuls! Last week, I was in a relatively "lazy" mood in regards to dressing up. Not in a negative way (you gotta keep the mood swings stylish!), but I loved being able to throw things on and be on the go and this jumper dress from H&M helped me do just that! It is literally the perfect length, very comfortable and warm - kept me cozy all day!

Thank you so much for reading! Hope you're having a lovely week thus far. Xx

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Jumper Dress - H & M

Black Jeggings - American Apparel (old)

Silver Watch - Forever XXI

Black Boots - Payless (old)

Tote - Just Fab

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Stay Smart; Stay Beautiful,

-Onivie

Goodbye NYC :(

"One belongs to New York instantly, one belongs to it as much in five minutes as in five years." - Tom Wolfe

The quote above perfectly describes my emotions towards New York City at the moment, part of me feels like I "belong" here. When I just got here it was completely overwhelming, too busy, crowded and made me feel disconnected. Now, I can't believe that my stay here is over! The other day, I helped a few people that needed help navigating through the city and felt incredibly proud of myself, haha! Especially because that was me four weeks ago. :)

I wore this outfit to start off my last weekend here. We (my friends and I) planned on visiting the National History Museum, but ended up just catching up, reminiscing, shopping, and riding through Central Park. It was such lovely day! I plan on going to Coney Island today, I'll try to take more pictures! 

Oh, and I wore this dress in another blogpost! Incase you're interested in other (more summery) ways you could wear it! :D (see here)

Printed Gather Dress - Zara

Grey Cardigan - American Apparel

Black Sun-glasses - Aldo

Yellow Satchel - Accessorize 

Brown Flats - Payless

Hoop Earrings - H & M

Stay Smart; Stay Beautiful,

-Onivie

A Lupita Nyong'o Inspired LookBook

Salut mes beautes intelligentes,

I am very pleased and excited to share my very first styling project with you guys!!! This was also my first time directing and styling a shoot, and part of what I worked on during my time at the Fashion Institute of Technology this summer. The client I chose for this project is the one and only Lupita Nyong'o - an academy award winning Kenyan actress! I chose Lupita for this project because not only does she have a great sense of style and color, but I wanted to go for someone that would serve as a good challenge for me. I was starting to get accustomed to styling for my skin tone, and body type, and so I found this project very refreshing and unique. You can view more of Lupita's style, here :)

We all know Lupita is known for wearing juxtaposing colorful dresses that elegantly complement her skin tone, which is why I went with bright colors with pieces that show off her superb figure, and took a few risks with the printed patterns. I gravitated towards African print in order to incorporate her culture (and mine - reppin Naija lol), and highlight the fusion between African prints and modern day wear (African Fusion, as I like to call it. :D). Thank you for reading, and enjoy!

O N E

© Photo by Alexandra Genova

© Photo by Alexandra Genova

© Photo by Alexandra Genova

Dress: Anthropologie

Grey Purse (Clutch): Aldo

Grey Heels: Aldo

Emerald Earrings: Anthropologie

T W O

© Photo by Alexandra Genova

© Photo by Alexandra Genova

Stella Jean Dress: Matches Fashion (here)

Red Purse (Clutch): Aldo

Red Heels: Payless

T H R E E

© Photo by Alexandra Genova

© Photo by Alexandra Genova

White Cropped Top: ASOS (here)

Printed Scuba Skirt: ASOS (here)

Nude Heels: Aldo

Purse: Aldo

Stud Earrings: Aldo

Here's a link to the video I made about the project/shoot, in case you'd like to view how the outfits look worn, and all that jazz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkuVOmYr2RQ&feature=youtu.be

Model: Illy Ali

Photographer: Alexandra Genova

Stylist & Creative Director: Yours Truly - Onivie

Many thanks to Illy and Alexandra!!! Couldn't have done this without you two :)

Stay Smart, Stay Beautiful,

-Onivie

Minimal - A Day in the City (New Urban Outfitters)!

Inspired by these streets - "If you can dream it, you can be it." 

Salut mes beautés intelligentes! Hope everyone's summer has been great so far. I'm presently in New York City, and have been a little busy adjusting to this new place. There's so much to do, and I don't think I have ever been surrounded by this many people. Initially I felt quite overwhelmed (honestly, I still do haha) but I think the madness is starting to grow on me. If you have any recommendations on what to do in the city, please do tell! :D

The other day I decided to go exploring before class, and took a few pictures as I did. I was feeling a little under the weather and thus went for very comfortable pieces - ones that made me feel like I was in PJs, lol. Although, I've noticed that I am bit of a minimalist when it comes to design, art and of course, style.

 The best Strawberry Banana smoothie I've ever had. Anddd it had just strawberries, bananas and ice, which is hard to come by these days. Unless it's homemade of course :)

I stopped by a local garment store and immediately felt at home. It reminded me of the days I dreaded following my mom to the market as a teenager. The only stores I enjoyed visiting, however, were the garment stores and their laces looked just like these. I remember referring to materials that resembled the brown and gold bundle in the picture below as "Senegalese Lace",  I wonder if they're  globally called that.

Then.. I walked into the new Urban Outfitters and took a few pictures of some items I loved! I was unusually ecstatic to be in the store. Have you ever walked into a store and felt like it just understood you and catered to your EVERY need? Sigh. That's how I felt, lol.

 I loved that this had a bit of an Ethiopian influence to it. Actually, I think it IS Ethiopian! (Urban Outfitters)

 Urban Outfitters.

Their new store is amazing. It has a cafe, reading area, salon, makeup center etc.. I could have literally spent my entire day there lol.

 These suitcases are EVERYTHING - Urban Outfitters

 How CUTE are these? - Urban Outfitters

The Forest Feast - Thought it had a brilliant design for a vegan recipe book. No, still not going vegan just yet. :)

 And then my camera battery ran down..

Grey Blouse - Urban Outfitters

Black Joggers - H & M

Black Purse - H & M (old)

Brown Oxfords (stolen from my sis :D) - Payless 

Beaded Necklace and Earrings - Made in Nigeria

Stay Smart; Stay Beautiful,

-Onivie

The Printed Gather Dress

Salut mes beautés intelligentes! 

The other day I went out to dinner and a movie. It was basically a dine-in theater, the best movie-watching experience I could ask for, lol. I wore this printed gather dress I picked up from Zara. I don't shop at Zara very often, even though I completely adore their collections. However, when I do, I go for pieces that are easy to style - like this one. I see myself wearing this in the Fall (with a blazer or a leather jacket) and it's perfect for the summer as well! Score :D

Pictures taken with my iPhone 5  

Printed Gather Dress - Zara

Head Piece - Local Boutique

Earrings - Aldo

Nude Flats - Payless

Black Purse - H & M (also seen here)

Always,

-Onivie