Who said fashionable people don’t read? Truth of the matter is that we read more than your average ‘book worm’. We only choose to read things presented in a ‘fashionable’ manner. . . 

The personality questionnaire made famous by Marcel Proust has been a favorite lure for information since the nineteenth century. Now, in a thoroughly modern revisiting, Assouline has created a series of inquiries geared toward deciphering the stylistic predilections of the responders and has corralled 21 designers (from Alber Elbaz to Valentino) into giving their answers. The wildly varying ripostes of these fashion insiders are collected in the publisher’s simply titled volume, “Fashion Questionnaire.”

The replies range from witty and clever to vehement and earnest, and they make for an interesting look at the tastes of an elite group of influencers. You can also pick up a copy of the book ($34.95, Assouline.com), which includes blank questionnaires for you and your fellow trend-setters to fill out. 

Some of the questions and answers from some Fashion Designers featured: 

Your favorite color

The color caught in sparkling eyes [John Galliano] 

The most creative designer

GOD—she was such an efficient innovator [Isabel Toledo] 

What is your present state of mind?

Flying…as always [Roberto Cavalli] 

Your symbol of high fashion

Russian sable bathrobe coat [Michael Kors] 

The “look” you prefer in a man

Good manners! [Karl Lagerfeld] 

Your historical muse or icon

Eve [Oscar de la Renta] 

Your fashion motto

“The superfluous is always such a necessity”—Voltaire [Carolina Herrera] .

We are holding on to one of FashionAfrica.com’s favorite designer, Alber Elbaz questions and answers, but here’s a cheeky picture that introduces his questions: 

Other Good Reads:

[Show as slideshow]

Have a lovely weekend, and I hope you have been inspired by the previous blog posts by Gavin Rajah. Please spread the word and do your part. I believe the least we can all do is join the drive and sent gently used winter wear to his office.

- Wadami. 

She has worked at all the main cosmetics counters in Selfridges, Harrods, and Harvey Nichols. Joined the Estee Lauder Bureau, which is their in house team of consultants. The Lauder Group of companies includes Clinique, MAC and Bobby Brown. An okay timeline for an adult, a more than impressive one for the then teenage aspiring makeup artist. By the time she was 18, she was offered the chance to launch Iman Cosmetics in the UK as one of their main makeup artists on their flagship counter. In her free time, she was working non-stop as a freelance agent on the side on countless photoshoots, catwalk shows, music videos, beauty pageants and also did some print/editorial work. 8 years later, Sacred City was birthed- a one-stop agency for makeup artists, hairdressers, photographers and stylists. Today, FashionAfrica.com meets its creator, Lola Maja - self confessed bad driver; average scrabble player; accomplished make-up artist and holistic therapist; a true African pioneer.

‘AS WE FALL IN LOVE WITH OURSELVES AGAIN’

‘I owe it all to my mother. I grew up in a family full of women but I was a real tomboy. On my 13^th birthday she sat me down and told me I was now old enough to wear makeup. I’ve never looked back!  I’ve always been in love with art; I studied fine painting, photography and digital editing. Makeup was just something that has always come naturally to me. I started working while I was about 15, while I was still at school and worked for beauty agencies throughout college and when I started University. I’ve taken several specialist courses but the majority of my learning has come from hands on experience. I’ve worked with a lot of people who have spent a lot of time and money training to become professional makeup artists, and while it is important to understand the technical side of makeup, the health and safety aspects and good practice skills, no one can teach you how to be artistic. 

Working in store gave me a good grounding in the industry. I was trained by several different companies constantly dealing face to face with clients, and whether they were Black, White, Oriental, Asian, Male or Female I learnt to perform makeup on them all.

After about 8 years I decided to establish Sacred, which gave me a chance to allow new makeup artists to get experience in the industry by training and also give them the chance to shadow me on jobs as I didn’t have these opportunities when I was starting out.’

Fashion Africa: Do you ever plan on having your own make up line?

Lola Maja: A lot of people have asked me this question over the years. It’s become very popular for a makeup artist to have their own brand.  I’ve considered this option and it’s not something that I’ll ever rule entirely out but I’ve been blessed to be sponsored and named Head Makeup Artist by a professional brand of cosmetics called Pr1mero (Pr1), which is so far only available to makeup artists.

They specialize in custom blend makeup for all skin tones as well as having a full range of products, which are suitable for humid climates. They also carry a line of mineral makeup as well as fair trade natural products.   I am however planning on having my own line under the Pr1 brand name. The range will soon be on general release to the public. So watch this space.

A lot of time and money goes into researching and producing top quality cosmetics. I would rather put my name on products which have been made by dedicated specialists. Products which I have worked with, are tried and tested and have been put through stringent certification procedures to make sure that they are of the highest quality. 

I’m currently developing a range of professional makeup artist brushes and accessories. I’ve been frustrated over the years with the cost of good brushes, especially considering many of the top name brands aren’t even 100% natural yet they carry a premium price tag just for the label.’

FA: What should we expect from Sacred-City in the near future?

LM: ‘We’re going to be traveling a lot more in the next year or so. Expanding further into the African market not just in makeup but also to promote Holistic Therapy for everyone, male, female, adults and children. We as Africans need to understand how our lifestyles and the food that we consume affect us as a whole.

I’m working with a Pharmacist to develop a range of organic custom blended skin care to target specific individual’s skin conditions. The range will only be available after one to one consultations with a qualified therapist to ensure each product is truly personalised.

I want to bring a fresh approach to the way we see makeup in our every day lives, for weddings and also in fashion in general. Helping to train Makeup Artists and Holistic Beauty Therapists.

After all… Beauty is Sacred’

FA: How do you see the make up industry in Africa?

LM: ‘Africans love makeup. Unfortunately there just simply isn’t a wide enough choice of products. In America brand name cosmetics have now realized what we’ve known for a long time, that there is big business in cosmetics for ethnic skin tones, and they are now developing colours and starting to incorporate darker shades into their lines. However this hasn’t quite crossed over the Atlantic. The problem is that there is so much variety in darker skin, it’s not as easy to develop foundations, powders or highly pigmented eye/lip shades which will stay on and compliment our skin tones. Base products either end up too red or without enough depth leaving the skin looking ashy/grey.

Even in Europe you’re hard pressed to find a vast range of cosmetics for non Caucasian skins. If you need to buy a base product you’re restricted in your choice of brands which are available on the market, but luckily for other items such as shadows, lipsticks and glosses the choices are nearly endless. The fact that a lot of the major brands are simply not interested in expanding to Africa in general means that we simply don’t have the choice of products that we should.  The African market is a totally different entity. We need cosmetics that 1) compliment us and 2) stay on in the heat.  This is where the trouble lies and people end up applying too much to compensate.

It’s not just makeup as such but cosmetics and skin care in general.   As Africans we have to change our view of and relationship with the beauty industry. But this can only be done through education.  We need more products available in stores with trained professionals who can work with you to explore and create different looks. Makeup is not a one shade suits all type of thing. It’s very personal to each individual.  You can change your whole image to suit the occasion whether it’s a corporate look, daytime casual or evening. We don’t always have to use the same colours in the same way.  Experiment and have fun. After all, if it’s not working for you, you can always take it off!

There has been quite an uphill struggle to get the industry regulated and professionally recognized. In the past, working as a makeup artist in general wasn’t considered to be a real profession; thankfully times are changing with several well known artists now being highly respected. But we still have quite a way to go.

Beauty and Fashion are so closely linked in the media. Africa as a whole is expanding and new magazines like Haute and cosmetics houses are being launched bringing in an influx of fresh ideas, reflecting modern women and the way we view ourselves. Photographers such as SubySinem and modeling agencies like Confidence Models are dedicated to the same principles.  We have beautiful women who can compete on the international stage and designers such as Deola Sagoe and Oswald Boateng who can stand side by side with top names. We can show who we really are as Africans, sophisticated and imaginative. As we fall in love with ourselves again the world will follow suit.’

Lola is now an accredited member of the Perfume Studio - they create hand made personalised custom blended fragrances. Working with you to create a unique and individual scent which will then also be named by you. No two people will ever create the same blend. 

View some of Lola’s Beauty Tips and discuss in “Forums” on FashionAfrica.com

- Wadami.

Its Tuesday evening and I am beyond exhausted mentally. It has, as usual, been too much to take in on this trip. Each child has a story to tell and each one sad and each one filled with the most utmost belief that someone or something will help change their lives. Speaking to kids who have endured some kind of hardship or violence is not easy. Its not easy because you sit in disbelief wondering how kids this young are able to cope with such adversity and at the same time still be kids  - wanting to live a life that is sheltered from all the hardship that life presents to them. I spoke to kids today that have been victims of sexual abuse today. It was hard watching and listening to these poor souls and trying to fathom what chance they even stood in terms of defending themselves from those who inflicted such terrible physical and mental anguish on them. Interesting to note that most of these perpetrators are known to children or their families. . .

There are a few interesting statistics that have been compiled by UNICEF which might send a chill down your spine:    .      Of the 55,114  reported rape cases in South Africa in 2005, 40% of them were against children below age of 14 (SAPS).    .      Today in South Africa 273 HIV positive babies will be born.    .      Today in South Africa 95 children will be raped or suffer some form of sexual abuse.    .      Across the globe 25% of girls and 8% of boys have been subjected to some form of sexual abuse (WHO).    .      South Africa has a 7% conviction rate for all rapes reported to police, whether child or an adult.    .      Every child has the right to be protected from physical or mental abuse.    .      It is estimated that there are 1.5 million maternal orphans in SA.    .      Neglect and ill treatment of children for 2005/6 increased by 82.3%  over 2001/2 (SAPS).    .      By the end of this evening 86 children would have been violently assaulted throughout South Africa.    .      By the end of a fashion week (4 days) almost 2000 children will be orphaned and 600 children would have died from a preventable disease. 

The Convention of the Rights of Child seems a farce when one sees what children have to endure in present day South Africa. Don’t get me wrong there are amazing people out there who are doing all they can to enforce the rights of children and bring offenders to book but on the whole its not enough! I urge people to speak out and not remain apathetic. Quite often we witness violence against women and children and more often than not people walk away thinking ‘I can’t get involved, its not my place’. This has to end for as long as we feel it not necessary to intervene people will think they can get away with doing the things they do.

I sit here wondering what prompts people to do the things they do? My mind boggles and is at a complete loss for finding answers. In fact I am just completely astounded at the level of violence and abuse that in some way I feel disillusioned. It seems the more one does to try and minimise these crimes against children the more one uncovers. The one thing I hope is that I, like many other people out there, will give a voice to children who suffer in silence and have no voice to defend themselves. If you would like to be involved please send me an email to gavin@gavinrajah.com and I will be able to point you in the right direction or alternatively if you would like to make donations this may be done by filling the appropriate forms so that the funds will be channelled to UNICEF in South Africa towards programmes that go towards child related programmes.

I wish I could show you the amazing pictures of the children that I met with but this would a serious invasion of their privacy and possibly undermine their security. The one thing though I learnt today was that we must learn to be more grateful for the things that we have and for the peace of mind that we have. Children who are hurt may take a life time to over come the emotional scarring and some continue to live their lives as adults forever tortured by a past that they had no choice in. This is such a sad fact and we need to make sure that as able and privileged members of the human race that we do something to stop this pain.

Start by doing small things. Research local groups who support children’s causes, use your profile/business to raise the issues of children’s rights or get people in your work environment to be more sensitive about these issues. Whatever it is you do - just do something no matter how small and give thanks for all the things that you are blessed with in your life. Start by doing small things. Research local groups who support children’s causes, use your profile/business to raise the issues of children’s rights or get people in your work environment to be more sensitive about these issues. Whatever it is you do - just do something no matter how small and give thanks for all the things that you are blessed with in your life. 

I am starting a drive to collect children’s clothing and winter blankets and would be most grateful if you have anything to offer if you could contact my office or myself on 021 424 7842/9 - you can speak to Mornique Mellem or email her on Mornique@grconcept.com. We are in for a pretty severe winter and I am hoping that we are able to keep kids warm . . . raincoats, umbrellas, hats, socks, jerseys, scarves. ETC. are the kind of things that I am looking to collect. The Kids are between 4 - 12 years old and are male and female. 

- Gavin.

Gavin Rajah - A South African designer, who shows in Paris and South African Fashion Week. He has made several appearances on Americas Next Top Model (As Himself, and Clothes), and worked on projects with Nike, just to name a few of his accomplishments. His most philanthropic accomplishment we believe was when UNICEF in August 2007 appointed him as a UNICEF Goodwill ambassador. In his work with UNICEF, Rajah champions child protection, focusing on the care and protection of orphans and other vulnerable children like those in child-headed households, and for their right to grow up in healthy, safe environments, free from the scourge of violence in South Africa.  

Gavin Rajah himself will be blogging on FashionAfrica.com to virtually take us on his 3day UNICEF field trip in hopes to inspire us to always give a lending hand whenever we get a chance. So strap on those seatbelts and BE INSPIRED!

- Wadami. 

Preamble from Gavin Rajah:

Travelling South Africa is inspiring and more often than not your heart will be warmed by smiling faces in the midst of adversity. You don’t travel South Africa; it travels you and penetrates the very fiber of your being. Tomorrow is the start of my travel in South Africa to visit children in need of help and as usual it will end up like my other field trips that are forever imprinted in my mind. Reading my briefing kit prepared by the UN office is often depressing as it is peppered with latest statistics relating to children in our country. Sadly not the statistics one wants to hear. My trip this time is visiting kids that are in ‘vulnerable’ areas and who are facing some harsh realities prompted by abuse, HIV/AIDS and a host of other social evils. Not really Sunday type winding down stuff? On these trips we use the word ‘vulnerable’ loads – it’s a blanket word used to describe a multitude of things affecting kids. Poverty, health issues and education are three predominant categories that are covered by that one word. These kids remain vulnerable to all the attendant negative influences that these three aspects have on their lives. It’s a far cry from dealing with my regular work day which is adorned with smartly dressed and well heeled people buying beautiful garments; their only vulnerability is having too much of everything and not being able to be grateful for what they do have! So my mind does stray whilst trying to get through my briefing document… 

South Africa is made up of such a diverse community of people and given their history I really find it difficult to understand how very little people care. The very fact that we are human is reason enough that we should care or show compassion at the very least to those less fortunate then us. What we have at the moment is a whole load of armchair compassionate people who talk but really do nothing. Our continent has been severely criticized for always needing outside help and not doing much for ourselves. If anything South African history should have taught us is that we need to be more compassionate and learn from our past. I look at kids around and wonder if they are being taught about responsibility or what it means to be a ‘vulnerable’ individual in the world? Do parents actually take the time to teach their kids about sharing, charity or compassion? Are we breeding another generation that will focus on themselves and exclude those who are in need? Don’t get me wrong I do think that there are many young adults and children that do have a sense of the reality that many South Africans face each day but generally most have no idea what goes on outside their comfortable bubble. Do they even know what a child headed household is? 

Anyway be that as it may, I remain positive and must say that I am finding these field trips rather rewarding and in some way it makes all the other things in my life pale in comparison. Fashion can often make you look at the world with rose tinted lenses, making everything exceptionally bright and pretty when the reality is far more harsher. Tomorrow I am visiting schools in really impoverished areas. These schools have child feeding schemes (most of these kids only have one meal a day and its at school) and I am hoping that a huge SA corporate will be able to see the benefit of supporting these schemes. Other things which I want to follow up from my last visit are kids who have been orphaned by parents who have HIV/AIDS and who are now left to fend for themselves. Think a young girl of thirteen having to raise and look after her siblings of 4 years and 6 years old…………whilst still having to go to school! Not sure what this world is coming to but I suddenly remember why I am declining most offers to dine out at expensive places………I just cannot bear the thought of such excess when people are starving out there. It tends to hit home harder when one sees this for oneself. Don’t get me wrong I still love the fine things in life - its just that they have not become as important to me as they perhaps once were. So tomorrow is the start of another field trip which will leave me sad maybe but overall far more fulfilled in knowing that I am trying to do something for kids so that they may create the change we all want to see in the future. I hope that wherever you are that you will take the time and do something, it does not matter how small, for a child that is less fortunate than you are and who may be in need of your help.

Try it - it will do wonders for your soul…………and maybe make those Gucci shoes you wearing a lot more comfortable. 

- Gavin.

FashionAfrica.com & HauTe Magazine are proud sponsors of New designer, Qetura which will be making it’s debut at Symbiosis: Art meets Fashion in Texas, USA on the 27th April 2008.

So, come out and watch the debut of this star on the rise. - Wadami. 

Don’t you love it?!>..

- Wadami.

MIAMI, FL – Art enthusiasts, community writers and various artists came together on Saturday, April 12 to celebrate the opening of the weeklong art exhibition in Miami. Adeave studios and Icy Public Relations, the producers of this yearly Art Exhibition, hosted 6 artists in this exclusive art event opening called Visual Collaborative. The event took place at Undercurrent Arts, 2563 North Miami Avenue Miami, FL. With over 350 people in attendance throughout the night, the event was a great success.

The Artists for the 2008 Visual Collaborative Art Exhibition were Ade Olufeko- New York, Dawn Okoro – Texas, Jens Karlsson – New York, Linda Zacks – New York, Miko Simmons – Minnesota, Tiphanie Brooke – Arizona. Miko Simmons’ provocative art was the highlight of the evening.

Visual Collaborative is an annual group exhibition/networking event focused on creative professionals and visual artists from all around the country, showcasing a rich blend of media work. These works include New Media Design, Abstract Art, Interactive Design, Oil Paintings and Traditional Painting styles.

This year Visual Collaborative adopted a new community outreach program that will enable the team to give the proceeds to charity to help build the bridge between the community and the arts. The charity of choice this year was the Voices for Children Miami- Dade - a Children Foundation that raises funds to ensure that every abused and neglected child in Miami-Dade County has a court-appointed Guardian Ad Litem and that financial assistance and other resources are available for their accompanying health, educational and social needs.To See pictures from the Visual Collaborative check out the Events section. 

FashionAfrica.com & HauTe Magazine will be sponsoring ‘Cherry Blossoms at The Delancey’ - A Fashion + Music show, showcasing the best of the urban youth in New York City.

It’s hosted by No1sDoneItRight. A Non - Profit organization creating opportunities for the less fortunate, while raising awareness on issues that plague overlooked communities via alliances with various charity foundations.

If you are in the New York area, you are encouraged to drop by, and party for a cause!

Current Alliances:
F.L.O Humanity Foundation
New York Youth At Risk

See you there!

- Wadami.

I have often referred to this boutique to various people that have asked as the ‘pet project’ I am working on while I get used to the Nigerian corporate environment.

The truth of the matter is that ‘Leila Fowler’ is an idea that was born since I was a little girl playing with glamorous Barbie dolls and watching the beautiful women in my family go about their daily routines. - Funke Fowler.

Funke Fowler: Very well thank you.

FA: Please give us a brief introduction about yourself.

FF:  My name is Leila Olufunke Fowler. I was named Leila after my paternal grandmother. I have been told that the name Leila is originally of Arabic descent, although now commonly used in the English language to mean ‘oriental beauty’. In Arabic it means ‘night’ or ‘dark beauty’. I am in my mid-twenties and have a BA in Economics from the University of Nottingham and an MBA from AIU.

FA: How did the idea of Leila Fowler manifest, what was your A-Ha! Moment?

FF: That’s not a simple question to answer. I have had the idea to open a boutique for the last 16 years at least. I have always loved fashion and have grown up around very glamorous women. My aunt owned a boutique in Liberia before she passed on and I remember writing in my diary when I was 10 that I was going to grow up and own a boutique just like she did. The A-ha moment I would say, came more for me while I was trying to decide the name of the store. I contemplated between various names and decided on ‘Leila Fowler’ as I wanted the boutique to be very personal and for my clients to feel like they were shopping in my own personal space. Baring in mind also what ‘Leila’ means, what better name than to just call it mine…   

FA: Can you virtually walk us through Leila Fowler, What do we see? What should we expect?

FF: I think I will leave the look of the store for clients to find out on their own, but fashion and style wise one should expect to see unique hand selected pieces from various local and international designers. The store also stocks an extensive designer jewelry collection with the highest quality in sterling silver, precious and semi-precious stones and gold filled pieces.

FA:  How are the brands picked to be in Leila Fowler, and how exclusive should we expect the brands in the boutique to be? Is it also concentrated on just designers of African descent? It’s a very wide variety?

FF: I work with various international suppliers and go through their current collections and pick out the pieces that I think would work best with the overall look and feel of the store. Not forgetting the various needs that Nigerian women may have style, size and culture wise. And yes, I also carry items created by African designers. I am an overall fashion junkie and do not have a particular preference on designers or the cost of an item. I wanted a very eclectic mix of designs in the boutique to satisfy different styles and price ranges. Which to me is what makes a boutique different from just being an ordinary clothing store, the individuality of the pieces in the store. So it was definitely important for me to carry a wide range of designs. I do not usually stock more than a couple of a particular item which helps to keep the uniqueness most women might be looking for style wise.

FA: What is the price range in the store?

FF: That is a question I do not usually answer, but I will say that there is something in the store that meets most price points.

FA: Who is your favorite Fashion Designer? Should we expect to see them in Leila Fowler?

FF: hmm… that is another hard one to answer. I do not have a favorite designer period and am just a fan of beautiful things.  

FA: Any plans of Leila Fowler becoming a department store, with boutiques all over the globe? What city or country should we expect this dose fabulousness next?

FF: I pray that one day ‘Leila Fowler’ would be a chain of exclusive boutiques around Africa, because I believe that there is a great need for that here. But more importantly I want the store to always have the personal hands on feel it has at the moment.   

FA: Fabulous! For aspiring boutique owners out there, would you like to give a brief process on how you got to this point? Anything they should be aware of?

FF: This boutique has been a very personal project for me and one that a lot of time and effort has gone into. I think that for everyone that is in the process of opening a new business especially one so personal, they will find as I did, that a lot of hard work, patience and attention to detail is very important. Once all of that is in place, everything with the grace of God will fall into place.

FA: Well, Funke, we have no doubt you are a pioneer when it comes to blessing the City of Lagos with a fresh and Luxurious experience when it comes to boutiques, we wish you the best, any gifts you want to leave our readers?.. like discounts?!>.. :).. HAHA! Take care!

FF: Thank you very much for wanting to talk about the store and we look forward to helping your readers find that special item. Discounts? Hmm… that’s something we just might be able to arrange.

See pictures of the opening of Leila Fowler in the events section on FashionAfrica.com

- Wadami.

Guess who we saw? Your Favorite Sex & The City (SATC) Character; Carrie Bradshaw hit the red carpet donning Yves Saint Laurent at ‘Point Honours the Art” where fellow SATC star Cynthia Nixon was a Point Courage & Inspiration Honoree.

Point Honours the Arts was an event held at the Capitale in New York City (NYC) by The Point Foundation - a Foundation that provides scholarships, mentorship, leadership training and hope for students of merit who have been marginalized due to sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.