Style Watch - Denim Lace Up Open Toe Strappy Sandals

I'm in love with my new Women's Blue Denim Strappy Sandals from FSJ Shoes. My closet is full of shoes that are black, brown and neutral colors.  This one of my only shoes that offer a boost of color and bling to my wardrobe.  Which is much needed!  

FSJ Shoes (Funny She Jill) "is a shoe brand, synchronized with international fashion, taking super fashion design as well as an attractive price. FSJ means extremely “ Innovation “ or " Adventurous ", which symbolizes the modern women's life characteristics of pursuit for fashion and vitality. We aim to help women realize their dream of fashion and pursuit of quality. FSJshoes is a worldwide women's shoe brand, all of our shoes are handmade, and we also customize shoes for women, you can check our website here: www.fsjshoes.com."

Afro Funk & the Inspired Fashion

Afro Funk has always inspired some creative and coforful fashions.  Some looks that I have always loved, but have never been cool enough to pull off!  😂

"Afro funk - also known as Afro Beat, is a music genre which developed in the 1970s out of a combination of West African musical styles, such as Fuji music and highlife with American jazz, with a focus on chanted vocals and percussion. The genre features chants, call-and-response vocals, and complex, interacting rhythms. The man to coin this term also known as the father of afrobeat is Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Fela Kuti who popularised the style both within and outside Nigeria. It was partially borne out of an attempt to distinguish Kuti's music from the "soul music" of American artists such as James Brown." - Wikipedia.  To see more about the history of Afro Beat, go to - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afrobeat.

Love your style!

Love this haircut! Great look and style from Yvoire de Rosen, at the The Most Marvelous Manes From The 2017 Natural Hair Academy Conference. To see more, click this link.

Blue Planet Eyewear

I am loving my new sunglasses from Blue Planet Eyewear! Blue Planet Eyewear is a small business based out of Santa Barbara, CA. Their glasses are eco-friendly (made from recycled and reclaimed materials) and socially responsible (with our “Buy a Pair = Give a Pair” program, they donate one pair of glasses for each one they sell). To date, they have donated over 150 thousand glasses to those in need all over the world.

The cute glasses that I have from the company are the Gloss Onxy Beverly Sunglasses. They are super comfortable and too cute! For anyone interested in purchasing a pair of eyewear from Blue Planet, you can get 20% off using the coupon code: Karen20. To learn more, check them out on Facebook and Twitter.

Style Equation Magazines 2nd Anniversary

I want to give a special congratulations to Style Equation Magazine. They celebrated their two year anniversary on September 25, 2015. The magazine is full of beautiful fashion spreads, articles about artist, emerging designers, trendsetters, the latest fashion, makeup tips, highlights of edgy & talented musicians and more.  The Creator & Chief, Savona, is a savvy business woman, very fashionable and an absolute sweetheart. 




"Sa​vòna Charissè has been involved in the fashion industry for many years. After receiving her MFA in Fashion Merchandising from the Academy of Art University in San Fran, CA,  she began her career as a Wardrobe Stylist. She is the Creator & Chief of Style Equation Magazine, which is currently celebrating their, anniversary, with the release of their, "2nd Anniversary," issue this month.

 

Style Equation Magazine launched in 2013 and is offered 6x a year in both digital and print.

Style Equation Magazine is the point at which concept and inspiration intersect and approaches the world of fashion from an avant-garde perspective with a global outlook.

 

 

 

 

Our mission: “to inspire our readers to explore the boundless possibilities, by understanding the concept of fashion as an art form in which personal expression is celebrated through individual sense of style. Our motto is:  "Concept + Inspiration = STYLE."  To preview our current issue visit our website @ www.stylequationmagazine.com or visit us on facebook.

Also, find us on all our social media sites @stylequationmag."

 

To purchase an issue of the magazine, go to Style Equation on MagCloud.

 

 

 

Lupita Nyong’o's Second VOGUE Cover

 

 

Lupita wows on this gorgeous cover for Vogue.  She also talks about some life experiences that has brought her to this day -

"Her first memory of fashion was at age five, wearing her “very eighties red cord miniskirt with suspender straps. Presentation is extremely important in Kenya. You dress formally. You can’t just wear flip-flops. My mother always had her own style. She wore A-line, tea-length flowery dresses, very well fitting. Her nails were always perfectly done.” As a girl in Nairobi, Lupita recalls, “salons were a big feature in my life. We would go every two weeks to get our hair braided, washed, or treated. That’s where I read American, British, and a few African magazines.Then I would design my own clothes. In Kenya it’s much cheaper to get clothes made than to buy them. We would have everything run up by a tailor, or my aunt Kitty, who is very creative, would sew things for me.”

It may seem an unlikely combination, but politics were as ever-present in the Nyong’o household as style. Lupita’s father, Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o, now a senator, was for a long period an opposition politician under the repressive Moi regime. He spent three years in self-imposed exile with his family in Mexico, where Lupita was born.

The Nyong’os returned to Nairobi when Lupita was one. The following years she remembers as “scary, but I was at an age where you couldn’t fully understand what was happening.” Her father was at times detained in jail, once for an entire month, and the family “had to destroy a lot of his documents. I wasn’t allowed to go to school. We were basically locked up in the house. The curtains were shut all the time, and we were just burning papers.” She says the experience made her resilient. “I was definitely exposed to some extreme situations. Tragedy is something that I have known and that I have tried to accept as part of life. But I don’t dwell on it. . . . ”   Read the full article here.

Style Photographer - Latrenia Bryant

"Fashion/Style should be fun. I love when clothes make statements and I think personal style is really cool. Personal style shouldn't be a hobby, make it your way of life. Live out loud." - Latrenia Bryant

I have admired Latrenia for quite a while.  She is a talented photographer, great at finding gorgeous styles at a bargain price and she is also a great model of her fashion finds.  Here are some of my favorite looks from her -

 

To learn more about Latrenia, you can check out her websites - Latrenia Photographer,  Twitter & Youtube. 

Doll Giveaway!! NGU for Bold & Fearless Magazine

Check out my interview on Bold & Fearless magazine online. At the bottom of the interview, you can enter the contest for a chance to win this doll. You must enter the contest on the Bold and Fearless website. To see more dolls like this for sale, go to Natural Girls United.

Mimi G Style Blog

Just spotted a cute blog called Mimi G Style. It is a fashion and sewing tutorial blog.  Check it out, follow and start sewing!

Gorgeous Shoes from Dionne Gooding

I was introduced to a gorgeous brand of shoes by London based designer, Dionne Gooding, earlier this year, and I am in love! The shoes have bright bold prints that are inspired by African patterns and also have a fashionable bohemian feel.  I have always had a hard time finding flats that are cute… and then came Keisha! The shoes of my dreams… lol.  But seriously, I love my new shoes because of the rich colors, and cute print.  And it can be work with shorts, capris, skirts and more.  I can’t wait to rock my Dionne Gooding Flats! 

"In 2008 textile graduate, Dionne Gooding established Dionne Gooding, with a vision to create women’s footwear and accessories, exuding show-stopping individuality and feminine glamour. Dionne Gooding’s distinctive collections are designed to make a dazzling impact. Her signature themes of pieces in vibrant, eye-catching prints or embellished with jewels, studs and Swarovski crystals, augmenting the style of the women who wear them. From killer heels to ballerina pumps, it’s all about the attitude. In addition to her collections, Dionne Gooding offers a Custom Made Service for clients looking to express a personal flourish in their footwear. From home to the office and from the office to the nightclub, Dionne Gooding designs shoes for all occasions which complement even the simplest outfit with a dash of high gloss glamour."

 For more information, go to: Dionne Gooding, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram & Blog
 International Shipping available...

Dream Jewelry

I just received my gorgeous bracelets from Dream Jewelry! I love the vibrant colors and embellishments. My Harmony Red bracelet has a great message of spirit, peace, love and joy.  And my Tranquility bracelet is a beautiful blue bracelet with a jeweled accessory added.

About the designer:

"Having had a passion for jewelry all of her adult life it was only a matter of time before Caroline Thomas Favors would find a way to allow her passion to become a money making dream fulfilled but it wasn’t until her desire and need to help her mother (whom suffers from mental illness) financially that DREAM Jewelry was born. Lover of all things natural, Caroline handcrafts gorgeous bracelets from natural gemstones and precious metals. Having been featured in various media Caroline has begun to receive requests from around the country for her one of a kind pieces. This wife and mother has turned her love of pretty baubles into a “dream” come true and inspires others to dream and step into their destiny. Look for more to come as Dream Jewelry is sure to become a mainstay of the fashion industry."  - Dream Jewelry

Check out Caroline's website for more information and to see her jewelry. You can also find her on Facebook.

So So Natural Apparel!!

I am in love with my new t-shirt from So So Natural! The shirt has a beautiful profile image of a natural women and it reads Shaped Beautifully Like My Hair.  I asked Paula how she got started with creating this great t-shirts, and here is what she had to say - "I started this business was because I searched for Natural Hair tees for weeks and couldn't find any for less than $28. I made it a personal mission to figure out how I could produce affordable t-shirts for every budget. I then started producing totes because who doesn't want to rock their "fav" shirt with a cute tote? That's it in a nutshell. I am someone who embraced their natural beauty and wanted to "wear and share" at the same time...lol."

Wonderful Paula! To see this t-shirt, go here. And to learn more about So So Natural, go to their website for more information.

Special Edition BCA 'Neg Maron' Tee

I recently received a wonderful T-Shirt from Black Cotton Apparel called Neg Maron Haiti 1804 - 2010.  Besides the amazing graphic and being a good quality T, there is a good message behind the design -  "This Special Edition BCA 'Neg Maron' tee is a reminder of the resilience of the Haitian people. After the January 2010 earthquake, many historic important landmarks in the capital city, Port-au-Prince, were destroyed, but one crucial monument still remains 100% intact. The brilliant display of the 'Neg Maron' statue symbolizes that the Haitian spirit is forever strong and will not be broken."  To learn more about this design and others, go to Black Cotton Apparel.

Designer Sergio Wonder

Sergio Wonder is a New York based Fashion Designer. I friend-ed Sergio through Facebook years ago, and have since then admired his amazing style and creativity. He is multi-talented and his pictures always amaze me. "In 2007, Sergio Wonder received his degree in Fashion Marketing and Design from the American Intercontinental University of London. In 2009, after moving to NYC from his home in Miami, FL, the 24-year-old brought high hopes, superior craftsmanship, and keen ambition on becoming a Fashion Designer to the city and works tirelessly to make his dreams a wonderful reality. Though his background and experience are at home in women’s wear, Wonder has found new love in menswear, as seen in his impeccable manner of personal dress and spectacular design capabilities." - Source 

To learn more about Sergio, go to SergioJames.com. 

  

Cool Style!

Great photo found on Pinterest!

Link of the day! Katherine Millinery

Cute fascinator hats (aka -small hats)!  Designed by Katherine Elizabeth Millinery.

Source: Katherine Elizabeth, Hairspiration & Arise Magazine

Boxing Kitten Fashion

Great looks from BoxingKitten. Click on the following links to see their different collections: Summer 2011, Fall 2011, Resort 2010 , Fall 2009 & Spring 2009.  Source: Boxing Kitten & Fashion Bomb Daily