Heels and Bowties

First let me give you a glimpse of my last couple of weeks where I seem to have dropped off the face of the earth or at least the blogging part of it as I just have not written anything in quite some time. It has been quite a strenuous couple of weeks of tests for me with the last one culminating to five tests in one week and I know to the adult world a test is just some joke that doesn’t stand up to actual jobs and paying bills and all those tiring things you keep warning us of but for a tired and emotionally strained 18 year old it can end up being quite stressful and time consuming. Something I battled with was focussing and I didn’t want to even give myself the temptation of writing a blog when I was so far away from completing my studies. Along with this I also went through some (more) personal and emotional issues which rocked me a little more than expected and for the most part I became an empty unenthusiastic and stressed shell of a person and I threw aside my personality not willing to deal with myself and how I felt for the most part.

But after giving myself a weekend to sleep, recuperate and improve my happiness I have finally felt the enthusiasm to once again blog. How exciting!

Before the test season we, my fellow engineering-wannabes and I, had one last bash. It was hosted by the Capetonian in our midst at his house (when your life revolves around residence rooms, their rules and tiny size an actual House is a rare and exciting phenomenon). The theme was formal which posed a slight challenge for me as I had not bought a mass supply on fancy clothing down to Cape Town with me. Plus it was cold. I only had black stockings which didn’t go with my dresses or my shoes so that was a no go. I wanted to wear pants and a smart shirt to almost mimic a man’s typical formal outfit as a joke to my mainly male dominated engineering friends but sadly the fanciest pants I have are jeans and that seemed a bit of a let-down and I wouldn’t have been able to look better than the suit-clad-bowtie-wearing boys, so it would have pointless. So after a frantic call to my friend, and fellow fashionista, I managed to score myself her black midi skirt which comes more to knee length than midi on me as she is tiny but none the less I felt retro and classy. I paired it with a loose formal white button-up shirt leaving my outfit vaguely reminiscent of my previous idea. I wore (the only high heels I had in cape town – so not much of a choice but I love them regardless so it didn’t matter too much) my turquoise wedges which are still my favourite pair of heels and have seen me through many a fancy event. I threw over my new black coat. I bought it at the end of last winter choosing, on a meagre student budget, to look in the end-of-season-sale for the new item in my coat collection. It is a large structured black coat with striking zip detail and a dramatic collar and I always feel like I could walk into my job as a head of a Highstreet clothing brand wearing the thing. I matched my turquoise clutch with the shoes. The clutch never disappoints with its silver hardware and pleather feel and I am always looking for an opportunity to use it. I then added my classic Jemma twist. This time it was adding my favourite necklace. The traditional orange beaded accessory clashed both in colour and style yet bought the outfit together and made it stand out.

Closer view of the coat detail

Close up of my favourite beads (better then any bowtie)

Background part is in full swing

Fifi (the skirt-loaning friend) fittingly and unknowingly also wore black and white with her added piece of African ‘bling’. Her outfit was classy and simple with a straight black dress and classic white heels but with an oversized denim jacket to add some character to the look. You can check out her thought provoking discussion of it and its connections to her role and being as a black woman in fashion and South Africa at http://www.allzuri.blogspot.com/ .

It was a fun evening filled with Champaign (for my friends) and orange juice (for sober me) and the classic formal feast of pizza (the biggest pizza’s I’ve ever seen). Vinyl’s were played (briefly) then other less retro sounds, alcohol infused board games were competed in and for a brief moment we all pretended we didn’t have engineering homework due on the Monday.

I liked having an excuse to dress up and can’t wait for round two.

A Cape Town post

Hi all.

I have this ever growing list of adventures that I’ve been on and new things I have learnt that I want to share with you but sadly I have this little thing called school which is taking up a lot of my time and I am still trying to find balance (it is debatable that I will ever find balance although I will continue to try). So look out for some cool Cape Town inspired posts coming up but for now I would like to show you the first outfit post that I have put together since coming to Cape Town.

This look…

There are quite a few important elements to it. Yes I do know the mostly black thing is becoming a bit of a trend with me and honestly speaking I think it is going quite well. As you can see one of the major transformations Cape Town has had on my style is that I now wear shorts. Hmm… My dismissive regard for the item of clothing has not really changed but for the practicality that the weather here demands I have been forced to invest in such clothing. See in Cape Town it gets hot, very very VERY hot. Ordinarily I would deal with this by digging out my skirts and dresses but alas the next hurdle which this city has is the wind and so unless I am in the mood for sharing my underwear colour with all my peers I have to resort to shorts. Now these aren’t too bad, they are well made, black (an important feature these days), they aren’t short shorts and they aren’t too tight on my legs to make me feel self-conscious about it. I may just go back and buy this style in every colour.

But alas there is more. See Cape Town weather also has the flaw of being particularly indecisive. So on almost everyday so far I have encountered temperatures of all the seasons. So jerseys have become my best (and worst) friend. I always have one with me so that when the cold hits I will be prepared but it is so annoying that I have another item which I must carry around with me all day and make sure I don’t lose (by the way let’s give three cheers because I haven’t lost anything yet). This cardigan was one I grabbed from Cotton On and the only clothing item I have bought in Cape Town so far. I love the layered effect and the change in length as well as the hood. I think it gives both the jersey and any outfit it is worn with, more character. The jersey goes with pretty much everything so it accompanies me to university almost every day.

I must put in a quick word for the accessories of that day. I don’t know if you have noticed but I like watches and this one is often on my wrist. It is a very cool, antique/steam-punk styled watch that my cousin sent me from Japan. It is hand made and so completely original which I love. The necklace is a beautiful present from a friend and I love it. I love the chunky metal combined with the delicate idea of flowers and it too has this remarkable ability to add that extra touch to any outfit. Also and probably most importantly is the glasses. I GOT NEW GLASSES, and this is the first time you are probably seeing them. They are very retro looking and I can not get over how unusual they are. Many people have stopped and asked me about them, or asked me about myself and then acknowledged that they approached me because of the glasses so lets admit that they are a win.

I must admit that this was’t my most interesting of looks but it did hold some crucial bits of information. It’s a comfortable, practical and doesn’t look to bad so I will keep it around for a while still.

I hope you enjoyed.

x J

(I am trying to make my blogs more personal so I am going to try sign off like this every time)

Grunge?

So I love jeans. I don’t know when the love started but it exists. I find jeans comfortable and when in doubt I can always turn to my trusty pair of jeans (correction – one of my trusty pairs). I did have a pair of black jeans but they have always been too big for me and are not solid black and so tend to end up looking grey and baggy. So I decided that I would start the year on a search for a new pair of black, and I mean black, skin tight jeans and after, I must admit, a rather short search I found them. They were a distressed pair that fit me well and make my legs look and feel amazing and they didn’t break the bank at all coming to a total of only R160 from, what is quickly becoming one of my favourite shops for stunning single buys, Mr Price Clothing. They are easy to move in yet they pull me in at all the right places and also I can finally go for that grunge look that is inspiring me at the moment (possibly influenced by the rocker-wannabe-style my sister is into).

Note how these jeans make my legs look… hence I am in love

There is just something about that shirt.

I may be a little too attached to that bag

Also I am obsessed with that purple lipstick… and doesn’t it go so well!

I was feeling Vogue

I feel like this is a tumblr post

The distressed look

Me trying to be creative

Today I styled them with my purple plaid shirt for tea with my friend. I got this shirt a few years ago in a sale and on a whim and I wasn’t sure it was the best decision for a long time but now I am thanking my past self. I am a lover of the buttoned up look with collared shirts. Yes it may be stereotypical and look like I am trying to hard to be a hipster but honestly I think it just looks classy and cool. I added my black bag from Woolworths which I call my adult bag because I feel like it is far more serious and mature than my usual handbags. I wore my black ankle boots because I have basically no other black shoes (I am on the look out for others… that aren’t the over worn fully black All Stars). I also added my hoop earrings because I haven’t worn them in forever and I am always looking for an excuse plus it gave that unexpected twist that I am always looking for. An added note: I am also enjoying wearing layers of black. I used to be against black as I was scared that it would wash me out as I am so pale but now I think that is actually quite sexy…

Merry Christmas?

My feelings on Christmas are not actually that merry in fact I have been labelled the Grinch on various occasions because for the most part I don’t even like Christmas. I know it may seem impossible for one not to be taken in by the red and white two and a half month-long movement of joy and consumerism that comes with Christmas but I find the whole thing a bit over the top and honestly a waste.

Part of the problem is that in South Africa Halloween isn’t really celebrated so the stores don’t go crazy and scarify themselves in October so where other countries wait till after the ghost celebrations to be over before turning to Santa, we go into the Christmas themes from about mid-September. This in my opinion is over kill. I mean couldn’t we put a month aside to celebrate the environment and maybe then a couple of weeks to acknowledge gender inequality and then possible focus on helping improve education instead of spending so much time and energy vomiting out red, gold and green.

Also I hate seeing reindeer everywhere. They have nothing to do with South Africa. Can’t we at least have the creativity to put a red nose on a fake springbok instead?

The worst part is the waste and the environmental impact. Let’s just look at wrapping paper (something which I really think should be abolished). I wonder how much is produced, bought and then thrown away at Christmas time. I pledge from this day forward never to use wrapping paper again, from now on all presents from me will be wrapped in newspaper. Then there are the stupid fake green trees. Now I know in some parts of the world people buy real trees for Christmas which I still feel kind of uncomfortable with because it is sort of abusing nature but this is much better than the disgusting plastic green things which do not deserve to be classified as trees which get drawn out and dusted off at this time of year. Not only is the traditional tree distinctly unSouth African but that plastic makes my heart ache. It’s probably releasing some brain killing chemicals as you sleep. What I suggest to all South African Christmas celebrators is that you go to the nearest street beader or wire-worker near you and commission a small tree to be made with or without beads. This will support your local community and give your Christmas a local element especially if you go for a baobab instead of the usual fir.

I think that Christmas also breads consumerism. The main focus of the celebrations has become gift giving and yes an element comes from the joy of putting a smile on another’s face and I must admit my favourite part is seeing my friends and family’s reactions as they open their gifts but part of me feels uncomfortable about how much energy is placed into giving things. If we didn’t give presents on Christmas at all and rather the day simply symbolised family time alone surely it would mean more. We could focus on each other rather than new clothes and the latest tablet.

The family part of Christmas seems to be the most pure (other than of course the religious element which I am not going to comment on as I am not religious –which yes is a reason that I don’t want to celebrate Christmas). I know the time of year represents good memories for people, a day they will always associated with that funny uncle, granny’s famous biscuits, seeing their favourite cousins and so forth and often the day is the only time of year, other than weddings and funerals, where the entire family comes together. But if I have to be honest I wish that my extended family would be and act like a family all year round. I wish and I hope that we can have random days of the year that we decide to spend together because we are a family and families love each other. There shouldn’t have to be some worldwide date to make us acknowledge the people in our lives. A family filled with love should be a family all the time not just on Christmas.

Princess for a night

In South Africa, in the last year of school, one of the highlights of the year is the Matric Dance. It is a night similar to the American prom night (I think) and allows one all the excuses to dress up as fancy as one can go. We spend weeks picking the right dress, the right accessories and of course the right date. Mine was quite early in the year but I was fortunate enough to be invited by two of my friends to go to their dances quite recently.

The first was on the 20th of September (right in the middle of my exams) and it was the St Johns dance. I went with a friend of mine who spoilt me with a beautiful bunch of flowers which I wish could have lasted forever. The evening was beautiful and as it belonged to one of the top schools in the country it had a budget beyond our dreams so every detail from the table settings to the lighting was out of this world. It had a winter wonderland theme and the room was a wash of soft white shapes with silver and blue bits completing it. They even had an ice sculpture on the way in (a bit of a waste of money especially since it got brutally hailed on but still made my mouth open with awe). We were lucky enough to arrive before the rain started (yes it rained – this is a bit of a tradition for St Johns dances) so it didn’t dampen our evening although it did soak some people. I witnessed girls trying to dry their dresses and hair in the bathroom hand dryers because they were so wet, but even those girls had smiles on their faces because the evening was incredible. It was peaceful and memorizing. The boy who was my date for the evening was sweet and polite (the kind of polite that verges on sexism) and he took good care of me. For what ever reason the girls at my school are very closely linked with the St Johns boys so there were lots of people who I knew there. My best friend even sat next to me for dinner. I didn’t end up going to the after party as I had an exam on the monday but I don’t know how much I missed considering that it was a roof top party and it had poured with hail and rain only a couple of hours earlier.

Obviously the most exciting part of the evening for me was getting to dress up. I didn’t buy a dress but because I have a class of 111 girls all of whom got dressed for our dance, I had a huge selection to choose from. It is an unofficial agreement int he school girl code to share dresses and so I had my pick of the beautiful gowns but I knew exactly which one I wanted. When I first saw it, I fell in love. When my friend said hello to me at our dance dressed like she was out of a fairytale, the picture of perfection I knew I had to wear it. She designed the dress herself and it is a beautiful soft blue and white dress that has a full skirt and comes in at the waist. It is modest and simple yet elegant. I had to obviously give my twist to it which is why I matched it with clashing coral clutch and due to a slight height difference I couldn’t wear heels so I ended up in matching coral sandals. I felt beautiful, I felt comfortable and i had a wonderful evening.

The second dance was with an old family friend of mine. He goes to Parktown Boys High. This is a government school in Johannesburg. This dance was completely different. The people, the budget, the setting and the atmosphere were worlds apart from the St John’s one but still enjoyable. Both the boys and the girls were more relaxed as it wasn’t as hyped up as the previous one. Sadly there weren’t many girls that I knew there. I did make friends with some of the girls at our table but it would have been nice to have some friendly faces around however my date was there and he was more than sufficient. His friends were I think it’s safe to say, insane but they were friendly and nice and extremely entertaining. Because my date is a prefect we had to open the dance with a waltz. I can’t waltz but neither could anyone else so we just looked like a clump of chaos but it was fun and light-hearted so no one minded. This time I did go to the after party. It was at Manhattans and so a few of my school friends came. It was just like any other time clubbing except I forgot to pack flats to I spent the entire night in my wedges. My feet still havent forgiven me.

To this dance I borrowed another girls dress. This one was completely different. It was a grey navy with a low sweet heart type neckline. It went in at my waste, emphasising it (and making me feel super skinny which was nice). It was ever so slightly to big for me and not quite as comfortable as the previous one but I still enjoyed wearing it and I liked dabbling in the more daring make up and hair that went with it and of course I got to wear heels. I also enjoyed this dance and I found that noting the vast differences between the dances was entertaining and eye-opening.

A night with the girls

As is the general slightly stereotypical trend for girls, I have a group, a clique, a posse,a jolly band of brothers sisters. It is just a small group, only 6 of us. We don’t have a name except maybe ‘the onesie crew’ but that is a story for another day. I do have other friends but we have individual relationships between just the two of us but in this group we have one 6 sided relationship (yes it can get a bit chaotic). They are my group of girlfriends but we aren’t like a lot of other girlfriend groups I’ve noticed. A lot of the groups around me were formed out of necessity. They consist of girls who dress the same, play the same sport, have the same culture or class orientated lifestyles but we aren’t like that. It is a wonder that 6 people so different in personality could come together and stay together as best friends. We like different movies, food, music, clothing, past time activities, school activities. We have different philosophical, political and religious views and yet we manage to work as a coherent, functioning, totally mad group of girls.

Due to our uncountable differences we rarely manage to go out with all of us in one go. It does happen but it is hard to organise. Now currently we are on school holiday which we, because we are in our final year of school, are expected to spend studying. I do realise that this blog may make it look like I am having the best of times dressing up and going out but most of my days have been spent at my desk learning everything from advanced calculus to PW Botha’s repressions and reforms. I did, inevitably, start to get cabin fever. I wanted to see my friends. Getting a day where we were all available was about as easy as giving a donkey a belly ring but eventually we settle on a day. Today. We met up at JB Corners in Sandton (this is like our spot now) and we ate good food and laughed all evening. It was great to see them. The nice thing about us all being so different is that we always have things to talk about and always make each other laugh. I was tired before I got there, exhausted, it was probably from my brain being over worked but after spending only a couple of hours with my friends I felt rejuvenated.

I know every girl/woman probably says their girlfriends are the best girlfirends but honestly (and totally unbiasedly) my girlfriends are the best girlfriends.

Birthday Blog

Happy, happy birthday to me!

On Monday it was my 18^th birthday (finally) and surprisingly I do feel quite grown up. I feel terrified about the future but also huge excitement because now everything is truly at my finger tips.

 

I guess the big question is… what did I do to celebrate?

I didn’t go out and get drunk but rather on Saturday I had a lunch with all my girl friends (I go to an all girls school so I have more girl friends than guy friends). I personally feel that a lunch is far more intimate and celebratory than watching 100 of your closest fake friends get drunk and vomit on your carpet. I don’t see how a) this is fun, b) this celebrates the host’s birthday or c) is any different from a regular house party. Plus I think that neither my parents nor my house would have survived a hectic party anyway.

 

I was born in winter but I always wanted to be a spring baby, there always seemed to be something elitist about the title, and so the theme for my lunch was spring. Luckily the cold days stayed away on Saturday and although it wasn’t as warm as spring the sun was shining and we could wear bright floral patterned dresses.

As soon as people found out about my theme they wanted to help which I was really grateful for. We borrowed chairs and tables from my neighbours and my family and a woman who had done a similar theme for her daughter’s birthday gave us table cloths and rows and rows of buntings which we hung around our house and completely transformed the place. I have found a new love for buntings. I’m not sure why I think rows of triangle shaped pieces of fabric are so beautiful but I do.

For other decorations my sister and I collected jars (mostly coffee and mayonnaise jars – don’t worry we don’t eat these two things together but w do go through a lot of both) out our glass recycling bin and my mother filled them with beautiful flowers while others were filled with colourful sweets.

For food we decided on bread and coronation chicken as well as lots of different types of salads and quiches (thanks mommy for all your hard work making these). I found a great (and easy) Martha Stewart recipe for pink lemonade which I made and surprisingly it tasted pretty good – I say surprising not because I have little faith in Ms Stewart but rather in myself. We also made fruit infused water which just tasted like lemon and mint in the end but was still good.

I was also spoilt rotten by a dear friend of mine who made me a cake but I didn’t know what it looked like till she arrived at my doorstep with an incredible two tiered cake covered in meringue icing (yes this exists and you have to taste it) and homemade macaroons which tasted amazing.

The beauty of the theme, the colours and the flowers started the day off with an amazing positive atmosphere and all my friends were happy which made the day even more pleasant for me. I had an incredible day and I would lik to thank everyone who was involved.

May the next year be a good one for me and you.