Category: Formal wear

Stories in Black and White

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Earlier this month I had the pleasure of attending VoWcon (Voices of Women Conference) as always to be expected from 4 Real Women International, INC. it was a wonderful and inspiring event with a diverse set of honored guests that included Award winning -journalist and Spectrum NY 1 News anchor, Cheryl Wills and Brandi Inez Sutton of the Metropolitan Opera. The theme for the conference this year was all about breaking barriers in all parts of your life and highlighted the need to share your story.

With 4RWI CFO, Angela Fletcher & 4RWI Founder, Norka Blackman-Richards

What made this VoWcon17 even more special was the fact that it was also the book launch of Real Women’s Stories – a powerful, inspiring collection of short stories by and about real women. I had been invited to submit a chapter for this book earlier in the year and it was approved to be included in the published text very soon after I sent my first draft. Ever since I was a kid I’ve had the goal to be a published author so the fact that my first published work is actually a chapter about a personal life experience is pretty surreal, nevertheless I can officially add “author” in my resume while also take pride in the fact that my words may help and inspire someone going through similar challenges to the ones I had.

The books!

As one of the authors of the anthology, I knew I would be expected to attend the conference so back in the summer I had already made plans for an outfit to the point that just needed to find the right shoes for it. However a little less than a week before the event, I was asked by my editor and the 4RWI team to wear white, which worried me because I can literally count on one hand the amount of white items in my closet. With no time to shop I put in my request for my Dia box and got this lovely dress from the new Nanette by Nanette Lepore collection.  Continue reading →

2017 FFFWeek Day 4 – White Party Cruise

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While I took the week off to attend many of the events at Full Figured Fashion Week  I did it knowing that I wouldn’t be able to afford to attend the two major signature events, one being the All White Party. Needless to say it was a pleasant surprise and an honor to be given the chance to attend the cruise for the very first time. (Major thanks to Lisa of Mustang Sally Two!)  The “Curves At Sea All White Party” is well known for being the hottest ticket on the FFFWeek event schedule with people even flying in from other countries just to attend.  Brooke and I were so excited we arrived at the pier no less than a full hour before the suggested early arrival time. It worked out for the best though since it gave us time to do a mini shoot by the pier before boarding the ship.

Only Brooke could look like a Goth Goddess in white.

Feeling cute in white summer lace and gold.

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Velvet Joy

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After a month full of nonstop work and holiday events I saved my favorite holiday look for Christmas Eve. I spent the day at church with the family which was followed by a late lunch by the East River before heading into Dyker Heights in Brooklyn to take in some of the gorgeous Christmas light displays.  It was a full day, but it was amazing because I got to spend it with my family. What made it even better was this Eloquii dress I purchased as a gift to myself.  This dress was everything that I could want for a holiday look — elegant, feminine and festive. 20161224_164529-4 Continue reading →

Tied with a Red Bow

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In my family dressing up is primarily reserved for two major holidays, Easter and Christmas day. Its a tradition that is easily traceable in the family albums and continues to this day. (Though thankfully my brother and I do not dress the same anymore…at least not on purpose.) Recently I turned to these albums to get me into the Christmas mood, but I ended up getting some holiday fashion inspiration from my younger self instead. So for this second holiday look, I aged up one of my favorite childhood holiday outfits.

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Christmas 1994

First I replaced the ruffled white blouse with this striped off the shoulder ribbed sweater.  My favorite things about this sweater is the fact that not only can it be dressed up or down, but  it is thick enough to keep you warm while yet also light enough that you won’t over heat while singing keyboard karaoke at your office party. What you can’t see too well in the above photo is the gold medallion on the toe of my Mary Janes, but I made sure to incorporate that into this look as well with a thin gold belt. I also traded up to my suede wedges that  gave me the height and sophistication that  I wanted. 20161213_095341

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Snowflake Ballerina Holiday Glam

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We’ve officially made it to December and that means its time for  holiday parties and gatherings. As someone who has a natural aversion to sequins (which tends to be very popular this time of year), I’m always looking for alternative holiday fashion. For the most part that means occasionally stepping out of the familiar seasonal fashion color spectrum of red, green, black and gold. For this look I shopped my closet for a blouse that would go well with this chiffon pleated skirt from Torrid that I managed to buy back in October for only $6! Even though both of these pieces are from spring collections, the ivory and turquoise palate simply said winter snow to me. 20161203_160731-2

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