Handbags and Shopping Styles

I am feeling particularly exhilarated today. After months of procrastination, I finally knuckled down and made some handbags. And even if I say so myself, they were/are gorgeous!

We were invited to a BBQ on Sunday and just on a whim I decided to take the bags with me to get a feel of what the feedback will be. I needn’t have worried at all. They had barely landed on the ground before they were all snapped up – all six of them, plus I left with orders for more!! I was absolutely beside myself. It was a really heady feeling having people admire my stuff and most importantly, more than happy to fork out money for them!

It’s a pity though that  I didn’t take any photos of them to post on the blog I have set up for my stuff (www.olivegirlthings.blogspot.com – it’s up but not running yet) as I didn’t realise I would be coming home without them in tow. So as soon as I finish the next batch of orders, that’s the first thing I will do.

But I noticed something curious in shopping style between non-Nigerians and Nigerians. All my non- Nigerian friends and acquaintances look at the bags, pick out the ones they like and pay. On the other hand, all my Nigerian friends look at the bags, pick out the ones they like and immediately say ‘Ah, you have to give me a discount oh!’ I cannot tell you how much this pisses me off. I’m like heck why? Do you know how much I’ve spent on the materials to produce these bags? Do you know how many hours, and hours of gruelling and painstaking detail has gone into the sewing of them? I just don’t get why our people always want things a) for free and b) for next to nothing. It takes all the strength I have not to tell them where to get off. I am beginning to think I shall stay clear of this target market.

5 things

5 things in my…

Fridge

Bottle of whole cream milk
2 courgettes
Jar of homemade hummus
Moin-moin mix (homemade as well)
Big tub of yoghurt

Closet

Knee length leather boots
Too many clothes
Numerous bottles of perfume
Can of odour eater spray
Unopened pack of 3 pairs of insoles

Car

The A – Z
Car seat
Barbie bicycle ( in the boot)
Badminton set (in the boot)
Yellow tea towel (for cleaning misty windows)

Handbag

Make up bag
iPod
Cell phone
Wallet
‘Business ideas’ pocket notebook

What are your five things?

Ever wondered?

Ever wondered how come everyone else seems to be living a more exciting life than you? I am wondering that right now!

Memory Lane...Couldn't resist sharing this!!

THE LETTER

** ROLL DOWN TOU YOU ** KISS BEFORE YOU READ **P D N F please do no fold **


sweetiepie Babe!

Time and ability plus double capacity has forced my pen to dance automatically on this benedicted sheet of paper. Why! this miraculous thing happened is because papie I love you spontaneously and as I stand horizontal to the wall and perpendicular to the ground I only think of you, since you are a fantastic and fabulous guy.

Papie, please Stop haranguing with the feelings in my heart because I love you more than a snake loves rat. To me each day starts by thinking of you and ends by dreaming of you. Each time I see you my metabolism suddenly stops and my peristalysis goes in reverse gear. My medular-oblandata also stops functioning.

Crazy crazy crazy you may say but this is true. If only you knew what is going on in my encephalon you would understand. That's why I need to see you face to face with you, soon. I think I have to pen-off hear because I still haven't finished studying electrolysis and polymerization. Catch you pa- later. Sleep tight and don't let those bed bugs ever bite you coz you are too sweet a thing for them.

Yourz Ever, Sugar tapi tapi


THE REPLY

** ROLL DOWN TOU YOU ** KISS BEFORE YOU READ ** " P D N F"--- please do no fold

My Love, My Sugar,

i was exasperated with pride to have received one from you, the lungs in my body flapped with joy when i have been reading your letter. Anyway by now you have reached the realisations to why i am jotting this small letter to you, yes it is to see if you are keeping with the sands of time. How is everything on that other side of yours? Well here everything is just half lemon half sugar to makeit schweppes. How is your schooling? How are you pulling the wagons of life? I am just pulling the schooling thing like a donkey pulling a cart.

My honie, i am missing you very much right now, my heart is perambulating with every word that i write, if it was not for these oceans that decided to flow between us then i would get on the next bus to come and see you, but until then i know that i will not hesitate to put this blue blood on this paper and write to you.

I remember that day lovie, that one sweet day as Maria Curry sanged it, you know that it is my favorites song honie, the one day that we were boarding the combies and you escorted me to my home, walking with you just brought sweet dreams to me for the rest of my life honie. If words of love could ride a bicycle I would be competing against Diego Maradona.

Anyways, i will not stop you from reading the books that give you life and education so I will stop here for today. Please always writing to me because I am missing you like sugar misses tea.
You can see my foto below

My dedications to you are :

Maria Curry - One Sweet Day.
Boys to Main - And of the Rod

Keep well my mop of my heart,

Yours in flesh and in blood, Ruise Sugar Baby

P.S. Sorry about my english, I did not learn anymore


* thanks for the laughs J!

Look what Summer's brought out of the Woodwork

Summer is upon us (well sort of) and the mood that settles on the general populace has lifted with a collective sigh. Summer brings with it many wonderful things -  the great outdoors, parks, pretty flowers, sunshine, butterflies and barbeques. It also seems to bring out the friendlier side of people – I don’t know if it’s just me or are people more ready to give you a smile when the sun is out.

But apart from the lovely offerings of the summer months, there are also the horrors that come out of the wood work. Skimpy shorts, bum high minis’ and tiny mid-riff showing vests. Now, not that these things are summer fashion faux pas, however when you see them on a 20 stone, 5 foot tall, thunder thigh-ed and cellulite ridden woman, it is not a pretty sight.

Summer leaves me wondering just how many people actually have mirrors in their homes or more importantly, friends who are willing to tell them the truth. Each time I go into the city or to the park, I see dozens of women I am just itching to go up to and say ‘Sweetheart that is sooooooooooo not a good look.’ But I don’t for fear of having some GBH inflicted on me. So I just sit and watch and thank God that I have mirrors and good honest friends!

Big Mistake!

A few things that scream ‘BIG MISTAKE’ but I do anyway…

Log on to my blog as soon as I get into work in the morning. This must be the NUMBER ONE big mistake. I always intend to just look at my comments, if I have any, but then I say ‘Oh, let me just have a look and see if so - and - so has blogged today’ and I do, then I read the comments left or I leave a comment, then I move onto the next link on my list and so on. Three hours later I am still at it. In the meantime, expense claims are crying out to be processed, emails begging to be replied and letters waiting to be written.

Walking away from an item in the shops promising yourself you’ll come back later and get it. BIG, BIG MISTAKE!!! Especially if that item is in the sale. If you see it and like it, get it!! It’s not going to sit there waiting for you to come back and get it.

Saying you’re only going to window shop – armed with your debit, credit and store card??? Who’re you kidding?

No, no, no. Cheap will never equal Quality. Those £5 jeans will rip the moment you sit down, and those £8 shoes will lose their soles as soon as you step into a puddle of water. Sad but true, you do get what you pay for.

Putting IT on the credit card. IT mostly being a major purchase that you shouldn't really be making.

Don’t throw that black sock in amongst the whites when you load up your washing machine. Just trust me on this one, okay?

This is an old one and dates back to my days in university…
… Telling yourself that you’ll wake up at 2 am to study for your exam the next day, but first you’ll just have a quick nap. Yeah, right. Hey, was that the rising sun and crowing cock that just woke you up?? (And no amount of kola, coffee or cold showers did the trick either.)

Crazy Busy, Pet Projects and my Business!

Wow! What a crazy busy ten days this has been and I cannot believe I have been away for this long!!! Sometimes things just get so overwhelmingly hectic there’s nothing you can do.

First off thanks to everyone who participated in the dream job challenge. It was great to read about your dream jobs – and my goodness, were they diverse! Now the next thing guys, is to print off your dream job write up, make a list of the goals and the steps you intend to take towards achieving it and put this list up somewhere VISIBLE – on your bathroom mirror, fridge, as a screen saver perhaps? Just anywhere you get to see it often and keep it in your minds eye.

I finally kicked myself in the bum to get moving with setting up my business. I am really fed up with this 9 – 5 malarkey and working for someone else. I believe very strongly that you’re not going to get rich working for someone else. And when I say rich, I don’t necessarily mean in monetary terms – I mean rich in time (don’t get me wrong working for yourself mostly means loooooooonnnnnnnggggggg hours but at least you know it’s for YOU at the end of the day), being fulfilled, having the satisfaction of watching your (business) baby grow and so on. I know I have gone on about this my business for a while and now it’s time for the revelation… read my ‘Dream Job’ post and it will tell you exactly what I am  setting up. Yes, I make handbags! And I intend to turn this hobby of mine into a booming business. I have spent the better part of the last ten days cutting out patterns and sewing, sewing, sewing. I have spent HOURS hunched up over my sewing machine churning out handbag after handbag. And I am quite impressed with the outcome, even if I say so myself.

I think I also spread myself a little thin by signing up to various projects  which caught my interest and thought I would have lots of time to fit in. But things have changed so much over the last couple of months. And last week I was in desperate danger of not meeting the various deadlines!! This really got me worried as I pride myself on being organized and keeping my promises. But it’s a good thing in a way because I have been forced to take a long hard look at all the groups and projects I have signed up for and made the decision to stick with just a few which I enjoy or will develop me in some way  and most importantly , I will have time for . It’s a pity because there are so many interesting things going on in the great WWW like the group of bloggers who have started a book club! I stumbled on it yesterday and my first thought was ‘I’ve gotta join this’ but then I gave it a bit more thought and to be honest, I barely have the time to read a glossy so what time am I going to have to read a book??

Which brings me onto the next thing … I am not one to recommend books but I will this time. I am currently reading the book ‘The Best Year of Your Life’ by Debbie Ford. Personally, I have found it very motivational and it has spurred me on towards finally oiling the wheels of change in my life.

So have a great week everyone and I hope I am not away for too long this time.

My Dream Job

...my DREAM JOB
financial FREEDOM
creativity fullfillment sense of
achievement...

I am a morning person so the day will start early for me. I wake up, have my hour of power, shower and dress up. I wear only classic timeless clothes. I do not follow fashion. I have my own signature style. Today I have on a pair of wide cut linen mix trousers, a beautifully cut chocolate coloured silk tee, a dark brown pair of exquisite leather sandals. I have on simple silver earrings, a silver watch and the last piece of accessory is a chocolate brown and white silk scarf around my neck. My perfume is light and fresh and my make up is barely there. My hair is close cropped. The whole look is understated, casual smart but reeks ‘expensive’.

Breakfast, which has been prepared by my cook, awaits me on the table. It is a slice of smoked salmon, a croissant and a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice.

I drive myself to work in my silver Mercedes Benz convertible, with the top down. It’s a gorgeous day – sunny but not too hot and there is a nice fresh breeze blowing as I drive past the beach. My studio/office is located on one of the high brow commercial streets in the city.

I own my own business and I am the creative director. My company makes unique and beautifully crafted lifestyle accessories for the higher end of the market. Our main products are handbags, jewelry and household accessories. I count Oprah and the Branson family amongst my many clients. Every item is made to order - from scratch. I do not have a separate shop from which my products are sold. Clients view products on my website and place orders or come into my studio. Only a select few shops carry my products. We are a small but powerful operation.

My core tasks are vetting designs, sourcing new and exciting fabrics and accessories worldwide to use in my work, doing the actual creating and sewing alongside my workers, keeping the clients happy, negotiating new business and so forth. I have a PA who deals with everything else. I guard my rolodex with my life! My order books are full, the phone is ringing off the hook and my inbox is bursting with requests.

My team is small but efficient and each person brings a unique but practical skill to the business. We all sew.

The décor of my studio/office is very simple, minimalist but functional. It is open plan with high ceilings, a very pale shade of yellow on the walls and wooden white washed floors. It has huge windows which let in tons of light. Standing on one window sill is a vase with enormous sunflowers in it. Light background music plays and the hidden air coolers are humming silently away. The whole of two walls are covered from ceiling to floor in row after row of shelves and drawers which house the tools of my trade – fabrics, threads, beads, sequins, buttons, felt and so forth. There are sewing machines, patterns, drawings, fashion magazines, pin boards covered with designs every where. It is all organized chaos. The atmosphere is charged and relaxed at the same time.

My turnover will be in excess of £3,000,000 a year.

My success will be measured by the fulfillment I derive from running my own business – the sense of achievement and pride when I look at what I have been able to build up from scratch, becoming a sought after household name and recognized label, financial security, having the means at my disposal to be able to help people and give back to society.

My perks would include fabulous properties dotted around the globe, first class travel, financial security, not having to deal with the trivialities of life i.e housework!, going on wonderful holidays with my family and living life to the full! Oh, and being my own boss of course.

To read about other bloggers dream jobs, click on the links

1. Ore's notes
2. Nneka's world
3. Londonbuki
4. TaureanMinx
5. everchange
6. biodun
7. olawunmi
8. monef
9. afroblog
10. onada
11. naijadude

Lagos, dream jobs and glorious summer!

Hubby’s back from his two week long ‘holiday’ to Nigeria. He came back suitcases heaving with all my favourites: ogbono, egusi, suya pepper, crayfish …. you get the picture.  It takes very little to please me. He also returned armed, at my request, with the latest copies of True Love and Genevieve magazines plus loads of back copies as well. These are the only two (Nigerian) magazines I feel are worth spending any money on. But then that’s just my opinion.

From what he tells me, there is so much untapped potential in Nigeria (business-wise) it’s unbelievable. Lagos seems to be as vibrant and bubbly as ever and a fun place to be -  if you’ve got the cash. That’s just it isn’t it? If you’ve got the cash - cash being the operative word. Which leads me nicely onto the next thing.

I am VERY pleased with all the interest shown in the new challenge My Dream Job (see previous post for details. If you want to be a part of it just leave a comment so I know. Remember, stealing isn’t nice.) and I can’t tell you how much I am looking forward to reading about everyone’s dream job. I have a feeling I have unearthed a can of worms with this one. Hehehe!

Summer glorious summer has FINALLY arrived. Dragged a skirt out of my wardrobe today and surprise, surprise it still fits – with room to spare! My detox did work, ha! And when the sun starts to smile on us here, it usually indicates that it’s time for a wardrobe reshuffle – the jumpers, boots and coats go into hiding and out come the tank tops, skirts and lather sandals. I am beside myself with joy!!

So the mood is light, the heart is happy (I’ve got my husband back again) and the future is bright!