ta fête

Grinch

Photo cred: Kamile Kvaukaite

It's Christmas Eve. Wow. The rate at which the years fly by is beyond me, so much so that it doesn't even feel like Christmas at all. This year's Autumn/Winter has genuinely been my busiest between balancing the art of blogging with maintaining high grades in college. You can pretty much say sleep was no longer a thing I had time for, nor was admiring beautiful Christmas decorations in the midst of Dublin. However, I can pretty much say that I've recovered now as all I have done in the last week is eat and sleep. I know this might sound strangely pathetic but I'm already so excited for Christmas to be over so I can stop eating chocolate for breakfast and sleeping for far too many hours a night. Can someone kill me now? That is literally the oddest thing I have ever said.

Not a fairytale

Little Red Dublin

Lookbook | Hello December

Hey darlings, 

How are we doing today? Can I start off this blog post by just gushing for a few seconds?! Like WOW. The response I received from my latest post on Diamants has been overwhelming. There are a  million things I could do or should be doing right now but on the top of that list is gratitude. I am so freaking grateful for your never ending support, encouragement and just over all friendliness. I receive the cutest messages on social media from some of you and they really do brighten up my day. They remind me that all I am giving up, all that I've given up for this blog will be worth it one day. However, there is no showing appreciation without giving thanks to my mother who funds all of my projects- there simply would not be a Diamants au chocolat without her. There wouldn't even be an Ayisha Ogbara ;) Haha! There would also be no Diamants without my best friend Kamile who takes all of my photos- isn't she freaking amazing? I feel like a lot of bloggers don't give enough thanks to the people who help them make their blogs what they are today. Some of you are naive to believe that It is a 'one man job' when in reality it is beyond that. But you know what? I feel like It's been a while since I told you a story and seeing as I'm in the writing mood tonight, why the hell not? 

New Era

Lookbook | Best of 2014

I could sit here and write about how horrible last week was for me or how much I hate focusing so much attention on things that shouldn't matter but I won't. Although what I was meant to be doing today and yesterday was studying, I decided to take it easy and just take a breather. After staying up all night, I settled for some YouTube videos and my warmest blanket. I sat by the fire this evening, picked out a book from my mum's collection and played 'Baby It's cold outside' on low key. For anybody who knows me well, I am a year round grinch. I'm not easily excited or easily amused but when it comes to Christmas, It's like the ice queen finally melts. I smile more, I talk more and as cringe as this sounds, I live more. So when I found myself in this horrible mood at the start of the weekend, listening to Christmas songs was the perfect anecdote. 

The Secret. That was the book I was reading, by Rhonda Byrnes. It's a book about positivity and how to bring positive energy into your life.

Lookbook | Plaid matters

Yes,  I'm back with my weekly rambles, although I was this close to not writing this article at all. Why? Stress. Stress. Stress. I didn't truly know what stress meant until second year of uni hit me like a ton of bricks. It feels like being thrown into the deep end of a very lengthy ocean that contains sharks and resides in the middle of nowhere. The administrators of my course are simply sniffing out the weaklings and if you can't swim? You better hope a lifeguard is coming to save your ass or you'll face the trauma of your own demise. I think you get the point now. University does not exactly leave me with any spare time to blog. Annnnnd I cannot believe I've just spoken about myself for the last 7.5 lines without once asking how you're doing- how lower class of me. I sincerely do hope your week started off much better than mine, life is too short to spend all of your time on your obligations and little time on your hobbies. Speaking of, that seems to be today's topic of conversation. 

You know what? This is refreshing, being able to come on here and talk to you about my wonders and woes, little life lessons I've picked up weekly, blunt fashion advice and a little bit of bitching is  always the cherry on top; it's like a little cocktail date... sans the cocktails. Let's get back to it shall we?

Lookbook | 50 shades of red

Photo cred: Kamile Kvaukaite

Hello loves,

How are we tonight? I've noticed that I usually write these posts well after 12am. It's a bad habit of mine but hey, I think I write more creatively when the sun goes down. I just got out of the shower and I feel so cosy and at peace with myself. A hot water bottle, fresh pyjamas, and lavender scents- what could be more blissful? My college schedule is so hectic right now so any type of downtime I get, I treasure. I'm not usually the type to feel stressed but when I'm trying to juggle college work, blogging  and volunteering, it often means no social life and no social life equals EW. Who ever said being a student was fun forgot to mention that that only applied to first year, where your grades don't actually count and your level of giving a shit was beyond low. 

Cosy frocks & Starbucks stops

Lookbook | Faux glamour

Hey beautiful people!

How are we today? I hope you enjoyed Hallowe'en as much as I did. This time of the year, leading up to Christmas is always my favourite. Everything seems more homely and the 'christmas spirit' surprisingly doesn't seem so fictional at all. I'm so ready for steaming hot baths, scented candles and cosy onesies. I went shopping today for the first time in a while and I must say, I (almost) forgot what it felt like to just spend all of your money on pretty clothes that make you feel good. Is it possible to get high off buying new clothes? I often find pieces that I like on days where I shop on impulse and today was no different. 

Self conscious. Do you ever feel like people are watching your every move?

Lookbook | Clouds full of dreams

Hey lovelies,

Long time no talk I know I know. Feel free to shoot me. It's been a long week all together from procrastinating college work to watching the X Factor and eating too much and then of course coming back up to college only to have a breakdown about the 157 things on my to do list. My week felt as long as that sentence. Speaking of, I'm actually supposed to be finishing an essay right now but I guess writing this blog is like enjoying a lovely cheat day in the middle of a super healthy week. 

So many thoughts enter and leave my mind every minute of the day so It's really nice to just take a break and enjoy some time writing it all out. 

So I keep thinking about how much I used to go out and the amazing social life I once had.

Lookbook | When simplicity and madness collide

 

Do you ever feel like a plastic bag the world is moving at such a rapid pace and you never really find the time to process things as they happen? Yep, that's pretty much the story of my life, which makes me question whether I'm really living in the moment or not. 

Lookbook | Serendipity

Photo credit: Kamile Kvaukaite

Hello beautiful people! It's good to see your face around here again. I hope all is well with you and you're enjoying your saturday as much as I am. AKA not enjoying it at all. I've just spent the day trying (and failing) to study for a huge Micro Economics exam on Monday. If you're studying Commerce in UCD, I know you feel my pain. Moving on, this week has been hectic for me in general, UCD has no sympathy. I'm afraid I won't be blogging as much as I'd like to next week but believe me when I say I have many things planned for the following week. Anyway here I am with another peculiar epiphany for you. It all began when my friends and I lunched in Starbucks on a rainy Friday afternoon. Being the strange people we are, a question came up and for the first time in my life, I actually did not have an answer for it. 

Lookbook | Sweet sacrifice

Photo cred: Kamile Kvaukaite

Hey lovely people! How are we all doing? I know I know, I've been MIA for the last few days but believe me when I say It was a mid-life crisis. So we're in week 6 of college and I figured out only last week that I have mid-term exams and essays to submit every single week from week 6 to week 10. Then my exams begin in week 12. Yep, organisation isn't a forté of mine. Right now, I'm supposed to be studying for my Economics exam next Monday but It's cold outside, eating healthy sucks and let's just say I need a pick me up hence why I've decided to write this article for you to enjoy whilst procrastinating whatever you're supposed to be doing. Today's article isn't so much a story but an epiphany that I reached over the summer. Yes It's about Kanye and no there's nothing sweet about it.

Lookbook | Octobre rouge

Don't be silly darling, everybody wants to be us.

And who are we? The kids who aren't afraid of fighting for what they believe in, the kids who smell danger and instead of running, chase it; The kids who aren't intimidated by risks or challenges, those who want to do better and be better. We're the kids who no one's expecting to rise from the ground, the dark horses who believe that the future has to have a place in it for us. More significantly, we snatch anything that's rightfully ours but with a smile and such charisma that will intimidate even the most important people. I once read a quote: We don't find ourselves, we create ourselves. So why don't you create something great?

Lookbook | Insight

Hey darlings,

How are we all doing today? I hope you've had a more productive Saturday than I have. There seems to be nothing I hate more than lack of productivity. It just makes me feel useless and totally out of sync. Putting that aside, I've got another little story to tell you. Some may feel writing a fashion blog should always consist of simply fashion but I prefer to mix business with personal. How else will you understand why I like the clothes I like? To me fashion is psychological. If you possess an interest in fashion, then you must dress a certain way for a certain reason. Therefore, your personal style can say a lot about you. For instance, I can read a person simply by the clothes they are wearing. Don't mix that up with pre-judging, I just know when we wake up in the morning and put on the clothes we prefer, there's a reason why we feel most comfortable in them. Some for a confidence boost, others to hide the things they don't like about themselves. 

Lookbook | Prowl Then Pounce

So I'm sitting in the study area in college trying to get inspired to write this blog post, with black coffee running through my veins, music in my ears and excitement gliding through my fingers. I still have no idea where this article is going but I guess that's the fun in blogging; It's unpredictable. So grab a cup of tea, a few cheeky biscuits- or celery- and get comfortable, this is going to be interesting.

Today Roberto Cavalli's son (of the same name) liked a picture of mine on Instagram, which brought me right back to reminiscing on who I was 3 years ago compared to who I am now. 

Lookbook | Buried in gold

Hey beautiful people!

So I listened to Taylor Swift's new song 'Shake if off' properly for the first time today and I'd like to shamelessly admit that It's been on replay ever since. I even got annoyed when I couldn't find a download link for my phone before my mother ushered me into the car this morning. Let me tell you a little story  that might explain to you why my obsession for this song isn't going anywhere. Believe it or not, I used to be a very anxious person; anything could have made me nervous from someone making fun of me to simply walking past people on the street. 15 years ago I moved from a rather large country in Africa called Nigeria. Although I do tend to lie to peculiar strangers on nights out. "Where you from?" "Libya" I say with a condescending smirk. None of them knew where that was and if I'm honest their confused faces were quite amusing.

Those humorous scenarios aside, throughout primary school I did not feel different from my peers at all, I was one of them and they pretty much accepted me even though I was the only foreign girl in my class. At this stage I felt Ireland was my home and often indulged in the Irish culture, learning the Irish language in school, playing traditional instruments such as the accordion and violin and entering several Irish competitions such as the Feis. Hell, I couldn't have been any more Irish. Until the year I advanced to secondary school when one girl decided to ask the teacher in the midst of religion class what I was doing here.

Lookbook | Kindred love

Hey beautiful people! 

I feel like this blog is becoming a little too monotone and if you know me, there's nothing I despise more than monotony. Being the girl who lives in such a mundane city, I find my creativity is stifled and if I want to find inspiration I must sift through the exclusive world of the internet. Let me start off with a little story of how uniformity is ruining the world I live in. It all started when I put pen to paper and filled in my CAO form; choosing Commerce as my number 1 preference. Like everybody else I waited with baited breath for the leaving cert offers to be released and to my (faux) surprise I was off to UCD to obtain a degree in Bachelor of Commerce. So I packed all of my things- everything from my collection of 20 blazers to a keychain I had no intentions of using- moved to the big city and jumped with excitement as I visited the UCD campus for the very first time. Being the fashion addict that I am, my heart raced at the thoughts of witnessing people's sense of style in college- I mean hello? Nothing rings the door bells of freedom more than having no uniforms. It was not long before I found out that the Lochlainn Quinn School of Business would be my home base and as I entered the opulent glass building, I knew I belonged. But oh boy was I wrong.  

Lookbook | Autumn Blues

Hey you! It's good to see your face around here once again. How are you guys doing? I hope you are well. YES I'm finally back with a new article for you. The last 2-3 weeks have been fairly hectic for me as I've just returned to University and I'm also currently busy organising my 4 month stay in Canada next Spring. I'd like to say my course modules this semester have captured my uninterrupted attention but that would be me perfecting my skills of lying to future employers. 40% of it is not interesting but I can't wait to be able to utilise it one day and hopefully create something good out of it. Anyway today we're going to discuss Autumn/ Winter trends such as floppy hats, how to rock body con skirts, outfit details as per usual and a little something about cheating life. 

College Essentials

Hey lovelies, 

How are you all on this dull Saturday evening?
First things first I'm a realist I'd like to congratulate each and every one of you who managed to get into college this year, kudos to you. I know it was a slightly stressful period for me last year and if I wasn't a fashion enthusiast I wouldn't have allocated any time for planning and shopping for college essentials. Coming straight out of secondary school uniforms and getting the freedom to wear whatever you want whenever you want is not an easy thing- even for 'fashion bloggers' like myself. I am ashamed to admit that for at least 50% of first year I looked like a complete hobo. I can make up all of the excuses in the world but the truth will remain the same, early mornings and me just did not sit well. However now that I'm a second year, I feel like I'm going to be so much more organised, also because of my upping Lookbook projects on this blog to three times a week every week starting september; yes I've already began outfit planning and I hope you guys are as excited as I am, eeep! 

Anyway back on topic, I decided to write this article to give some of you an outlet, dressing well and looking presentable every single day is not the easiest thing in the world but if you follow this list and arrange your autumn/winter wear accordingly, you'll always look effortlessly stylish- college or no college.  

Lookbook | Lost Flames

Hey beautiful people,
How are we today? So as most you know, I did something pretty drastic this summer- I dyed my hair copper! When I first looked in the mirror post hair dye, I did not recognise the Beyoncé girl in the mirror. I was bewildered at my new 'look' and also at myself; if you know me well, you would know that I am a bit of a 'conservative', I like my norms and I like my comfort up and I usually stay within that circle... up until this year. I've been taking risks with every aspect of my life, challenging myself to do things I would have never considered 1 year ago. Like I mentioned in my last article, being spontaneous is my new 'thing'. Anyway guys, tonight's article is going to be a reflection on my summer, future dreams and a little life lesson about making a change.

Lookbook | Strawberries & Champagne

Hey stranger! 

You know what? It's actually so awkward writing this blog post right now, having left you guys in the dark for so freaking long (for which, I am très desolèe) but what can I say? I have missed you all. Generally I've been living life- sleeping in, travelling Europe, reading books and catching up on Tv shows- what have you guys been up to? I have so much news for you guys I don't even know where to begin!

Lookbook | Late night blooms

Hey lovelies,

How are we all doing this evening? Oh God, I know It's been ages and I am super sorry but I took a little break from social media (It's draining) for a few days and decided to chill, catch up with some of my new favourite tv shows- Grey's Anatomy- and basically eat lots of food. Although I am indeed back to tumblring, tweeting and a new project that I can't tell you about for another few weeks. Anyhoo let's get back to the main topics of discussion: tonight we're going to be chatting about plaid and button downs as trends, outfit details for this look and simplicity.

Lookbook | More than Black

Hey guys,

How are we today? I hope you're all enjoying the unusually beautiful Irish weather that seems to be lasting more than 5 minutes. I would say I wish I was doing something more fun right now like diving into salty oceans but freezing cold water isn't really my thing. Anyway today we're talking about the trends that seem to be taking over the freaking world (leather and lace), outfit details and a little bit about embracing failure.

Lookbook | Embracing the madness

Hey lovelies,

How are we today? I hope you're feeling well and alive! I've been meaning to publish this article since I posted that little image tease on Facebook and Instagram the other night but what can I say? I love to tease haha..ha. Okay so back to the article sans my cringe worthy efforts to be funny. Today we are talking about modern style African fashion, my undying love for fashion in general and of course this beautiful outfit I threw together on thursday afternoon.

How To: Look effortlessly stylish

Hey guys,
How is your day going? I pretty much spent my day doing absolutely nothing. I lounged around and probably ate more food than I should have but all in all I was recovering from my tragic night out that was yesterday. Okay so It wasn't bad but do you know what was really irritating?

Your top 6 holiday essentials

Hey darlings,
I know many of you are going on sun holidays this summer so I've decided to write an article on what I know you will be needing to survive a hot holiday... with lots of gorgeous people everywhere. Now do interrupt me if I'm wrong but...

Lookbook | Parisian Paradise

Hey loveys,

Do you ever wake up one morning and wish you were french? There's something about the french that has always intrigued me. Is it me or are the french more elegant than 90% of the world? The language alone is so freaking sophisticated, not to talk of French fashion and French food. I stopped over in Paris...

Your perfect breakfast

Some of you are aware that I often like to take pictures of my food on snapchat (ayisha_o). For you fortunate beings who do not own the ridiculously addictive yet slightly pointless app, I've gathered a few screenshots of my breakfast from my phone. 

Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day (coming from a person who never ate breakfast a few years ago) and I don't mean to sound like your mother or anything but...

New York City dreams..

I've never really stopped playing dress up because I never considered it an activity meant just for kids with an over active mind and too much spare time. Most of you ask me where I'm wearing these 'more than casual' outfits to and the answer is absolutely no where. They are simply a reflection of my personal style. Nothing more, nothing less. Although I do wish...

How To: Have the best summer of your life

Hey loveys,

So today I've come up with a simple list of 30 things you could do to make sure you have the perfect summer. You might think that some of these things are just common knowledge and that they are, but we often forget to indulge in the simple things in life, which is really a shame. There will always be a time for travelling the world but don't forget that the inexpensive things in life can also be just as fun. Next summer I will be living in New York on a J1 so this summer I really want to appreciate the ordinary things in cold, boring Ireland. 

I hope you're having a wonderful and rewarding day.

Love

-Mizzmoi xo

Your Quick & Easy, Healthy Study Snacks that will curb your sweet tooth

Hey loveys,

How are we doing today? For those of you studying for your Leaving Cert, I hope you're not too stressed. When it comes to exams, stress is your enemy and affects your performance because your body is exhausted. The best way to get your energy up during those long study sessions...

Summer LookBook & some Chit Chat: featuring Forever 21, John Green, Gossip Girl & more.

Hey loveys,

So I'm finally back to completing my lookbooks because I now have more time and a cameraman to help me out (my brother, who begged for this shout out by the way). I woke up this morning at 5.30am for no apparent reason. Lying in bed with nothing else to do, I decided to...

The Ayi Diaries: Learn how to Build Your Self Confidence

Dear naïve self,

When you wake up in the morning the first thing you do is avoid the mirror. Your imperfect skin and chubby body irritates you. You want to be different...

The Ayi Diaries: Poor little black girl

A letter to the ignorant people out there,

It's hard to think that living in a country for 15 years would justify being treated the same as the residents of that country but that never appears to be the case. Being the poor little black girl who comes from the 'country' Africa can be very exhausting. For one I speak in approxiamtely 17 different accents because identity crisis- duh.

It's mind-blowing to think that the western culture is still not fully assimilated to all races. I live in Ireland and there seems to be this preconception that since I moved out of my home country- I must be poor, homeless and *insert* other tragic situations here. I must be smelly as I clearly resemble a monkey in shade and features. I must be illiterate and if not me, my parents definitely are. Wrong. There mustn't be a lot of money in my family heritage hence why I emigrated from my home town (also wrong) but the list goes on.

The problem with society is that you are curious but you don't know the right way of going about asking something so you presume. You make up scenarios in your head of what that poor little black girl must have been through based on what you see on commercial ads.

You think every single black person is from *insert popular African country here*. You think everyone in South Africa is white. You mix up Nelson Mandela with other black heroes. You say the word 'nigger' more often than you should, given the history that occurred. You use it as a level of leverage because you simply cannot think of anything more insulting than someone's skin colour and native origin.

You automatically assume that you are superior to the black fellow in every way, either in the condescending sense where you dash out pity or in the blunt sense where you just 'hate the blacks' and how they steal all of the irish jobs.

You forget that one time Irish people had to emigrate too. You presume that because I am black I would know everything there is to know about the history of every country in Africa. No, I am not aware of the factual details of the Civil War in the Congo.

Worst of all, you are shocked when you find a black girl to be particularly pretty and therefore have to flood her with compliments on how amazing her 'caramel' skin looks.

In reality you have no idea what it's like to be foreign and even if you do, you have no idea what it is like to be in the 'minority', to have to listen to people tell you that you're not really Irish (again presuming that I wanted to be Irish in the first place) but then again you were only born in Africa so what even are you?

If I'm honest, I don't want your sympathy, keep that for yourself. All I want is for you to Google a few things before you ask, visit a new continent and most importantly get out of your comfort zone, it's a lot harder to do than you think. Here's to 15 years of achieving that. 

Kudos to me.

Important!: If every one of you could say a little prayer for the 234 kids that went missing in Nigeria a few months ago, I'd be forever grateful! #BringBackOurGirls

Sometimes It's okay to think you're Beyoncé

Hey girlos,

So there's a story behind this lookbook. My brother kindly agreed to take the shots. We had loud rap music blaring inside the house (seeing as our parents are out of town for a little while) and as Miley would say I was 'feelin' myself'. Cringe, but I have to say it guys. Sometimes it's okay to think you're Beyoncé. So I finally decide that we've taken enough shots and I'm excited to go back into the house and start the selection process...except we locked ourselves out. How clever is that? Touché. Thankfully enough I don't have a scrawny strengthless boy as a brother and he was able to kick the door in and break one of the inner locks. Wish me luck on explaining that to mum.

Love

-Mizzmoi x

A few quick questions for you:

 1. Do you want me to continue doing lookbooks? 

2. Are my fitness posts helping you? If so, do you want me to post more food diaries?

3. Any specific advise you want me to give?

4. My next giveaway is starting up soon, what do you want me to giveaway?

5. What's your favourite summer snack?

***

You can answer them here. If you answer any of the above, thank you so much! Getting feedback from you makes me happy :)