STYLE CONTRIBUTOR

The month of Ramadaan has just passed us and I feel like I've used it to my fullest. Well, I always feel that here and there I could probably improve. After a three week holiday from work, I feel absolutely refreshed and rejuvenated to start the ride and grind process again. 

I think that every profession should go on a three week holiday. It does wonders for the soul! Even though I am back at work I still feel the need to spend hours on sites like GroupOn  for local inexpensive holidays! My feet are always itchy for travelling, I am telling you the road trip had something to do with that. 

Well, back to what I wanted to talk about, I am the newest Style Contributor for Style Africa Fashion Network and I am so stoked because once a week I get to post a fashion mood board on anything that's trending at the moment. And for those of you who Follow Me on Instagram would see that a few months ago I started compiling work wear mood boards for those of you who needed a little bit of style inspiration for work. 

I started this because I recently got a ton of emails of folks asking me some tips on how to dress for work, and of course I thought it to be a great opportunity for me to kind of fill the niche in the market. I think that the only thing that I'm so bad at is to keep this on a regular. And sure, I don't want to be one of those people who promise you things and I don't deliver. (Laughs) Nur always comments by saying that I am often too hard on myself when it comes to producing work. I tend to check and re check every detail before I press the PUBLISH button! 

Do let me know what you think, your comments make my day!

Subscribe to Style Africa above for your daily Fashion fix! 

Love, 

Iptishaam 

 

 

LIFESTYLE | 5 SURVIVAL TIPS FOR WINTER

By Iptishaam Davids

I actually don't recall when IT happened. One day I was asking the learners to open the windows in my class because it was sweltering hot. I practically had to teach with a fan and had to put it on its coolest in my class. The next moment I found myself wearing a tights underneath my pants and invested in a heater for my classroom.Yes, the IT just happened. Winter has arrived. 

Here are 5 easy tips to survive the 'coolest' season around: 

You would find that in winter everyone commutes to work with their car due to convenience and mostly because of the weather. This makes the roads almost unbearable especially if you're traveling to the CBD. Leaving earlier, relieves the stress of traffic and keeps your time-keeper at work happy. 

I know that when you come from a long day at work you cannot wait to snuggle up with your electric blanket and Pj's... but you need to think long term. When winter leaves us you will be thinking about getting your body in shape. So why don't start now? My advice would be is to pack your gym bag the night before and place it in the boot of your car, at the end of your shift, remove your work attire and put on your gym clothing. This gives you more motivation to actually go to the gym. 

It's rainy and cold outside so take this time to spend time with the Le Familia indoors! Organize game night at your place. The games that you could enjoy are games like scrabble, 30 seconds and twister. Alternatively, you could have a cook-off whereby each person brings their ingredients to your home and cooks it at your place. This way you learn a new recipe and you enjoy the company of your loved ones!

Due to the increase of colder weather you will find that your hair will so start to become dry and brittle. Opt for a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner and apply a treatment mask to hair every second week to prevent damage.In addition, try as often as possible to wear some form of head covering to prevent any further damage. Similarly for your skin, according to research, your skin dries out faster in winter due to the evaporation of the air and your skin doesn't produce as much oils as oppose to the other seasons. Therefore, try and look for a moisturizer that suits your skin type and apply this moisturizer in the morning and evening. In addition to this routine, also try and exfoliate every second week. 

People often use this season as a time of complaints and a reason to be negative. The fact is that you cannot change the weather to suit you. So to be frank, just deal with it. Alter your daily routines so that you can enjoy the season and become a happier person in your work place and your family. 

I hope these tips were helpful!

What are some of your tips on surviving the chill?

I'd love to hear, 

Love, 

Iptishaam 

HOW TO MAKE DEVINE DATE BALLS

Hi Everyone!

Ramadaan Kareem!

Dates are essential at iftaar (time to break ones fast), having the same 'ol dates might be somewhat mundane. That's why I've decided to spice it up a little by trying out this really awesome date ball recipe. Blended with sugar and rich butter with a added pinch of vanilla essence and smothered in coarse coconut, its surely a ball of deliciousness you should try. The following will show you how.

Ingredients:

A large sauce pan 
250g butter
250g sugar
1 cup nibbed dates
1 egg
Teaspoon vanilla essence
1 cup of Rice Krispies
1 packet Marie biscuits (crushed)
Coconut for coating

KNITTED

Jersey & Scarf // China Town, Shirt,Jeans, necklace // Mr P, Boots// Foschini

Bag //Luella and Watch // Guess

 

Hi There!

I am sure that you're enjoying the winter chills as much as I am. I mean, it gives everyone a chance to dress up. Although I know some wouldn't agree that winter is that going out / dressing up season.  Trends like the blanket cape , aztec making a come back, gorg cut out boots and really dark berry lips, who WOULDN'T look for an opportunity to dress up and go out to flaunt the amazing trends which are out there.

Speaking of trends, one of the coziest trends out there are knits. I love them so much (see Instagram)  that I purchased them in each color from China Town. The outfit that I am wearing here is a fairly cost effective outfit where the most expensive thing I'm wearing are my boots and bag: what I always say is never compromise on the price of your shoes as they take you from really cold to really wet weather and for me it's important that ones shoes can stand the elements that we currently experiencing in Cape Town .

I hardly wear my turban any other way besides 'the back with a large bun look' but last week and Sunday I felt I needed a change. So there I was on a Sunday morning, on Youtube, looking up "How to style a Turban" and for sure the turban lady herself, Dina Torkia, demonstrated how to style this turban. I love this style because it's not difficult to knot and it's not something that I need to worry about like whether it'll slip off the whole time (you know how annoying that could be right?) .

The month of June you can expect me to have a cool (excuse the pun) AWwinter15 competition running on my blog & Facebook Page so you ladies need to enter and continue spreading the word about this blog! You are awesome. And also I am hoping to spread my creative wings a little by teaming up with one of SA's style/creative companies. I am really excited about such a venture as sometimes teaching can make me feel a little 'boxed-in'.

Thank you to Kauthar for taking these really fun shots and to Rasheeqoh from Capturing Concepts Photography for Editing! Both of you are a complete life saver! Thank you boo!

What do you think about this look?

Happy Youth Day!

PS: Check out the rest of this look after the jump.

Iptishaam

  

 

 

 

WRAP SKIRT | TWO WAYS

Hi  everyone. 

While I'm typing this I have a crazy Monday-week ahead - with parent meetings and assignment due dates  I don't know how I am going to survive! But yet, I still find the little time to squeeze in a little blog post here and there. I do this just so that I can feel normal through all the craziness. Lately, I've just been procrastinating to a huge level which makes me wanna write up a post on how not to procrastinate (laughs). 

I've been searching for a cross-over skirt like this one for the longest time now so when I randomly popped into Ackermans the other day ( like when last? ) I saw this skirt on sale and I knew it was meant for me. 

I like the fact that I can wear this outfit up and down. Dressed up with my fav Woolies heels for a date night look or dressed down with my DC's for a Sunday afternoon out with the Hubz! Either way, I like it both ways. 

Thank you to Miskaa from Iridescence Photography for always shooting such great pics for my blog! Follow her for bookings. 

Oh! and don't forget to follow me on Instagram and to Like my Facebook page. 

Check out the cool pics after the jump 

Have a awesome week ahead! 

Love, 

Iptishaam 

TRENDS | THE OVER-SIZED COAT

Hi there! I hope you're having  a great week thus far, I am on a well-deserved school holiday. So yay me!

Do you feel that? Yes, that's Summer saying goodbye and Autumn knocking on our doors. It's time to replace your open toe sandals with laced-up brogues and your thin throw overs with something a little bit thicker for those days when you find yourself still out after four. 

Today's post is something that I feel is trending at the moment and that's THE OVER-SIZED COAT. A few weekends ago I attended the Bokehh Fashion Film Festival and couldn't help but notice that what was trending on the red carpet were coats worn by the biggest names in the fashion biz. The way it was worn wasn't your typical fitted, strapped on Robocop look but rather chic and elegantly just thrown on over the shoulders. Gone are the days when coats were your boring and mundane shades of grays, browns and blacks and HELLO to all the shades of the Rainbow. 

So easily do we allow the weather to control what we wear but one thing we should remember is never to let the weather affect your sense of style and mood as it is so easy to drown in a whirlwind of browns and grays. Remember a true fashionista always keeps it classy! 

After the break I've added some amazing style inspiration on how to wear coats for Autumn. 

PS. Myself and Nur will be leaving tomorrow for the West Coast for a well-deserved break so catch me on Instagram to keep up with me!

Thank you for reading today! 

Love 

Iptishaam 

THREE WAYS TO STYLE A SCARF / NO PINS, NO FUSS!

Hi ladies, just thought that I'd share some of my favourite scarf styles! No pins, No fuss! Happy Monday! 

Would you like to see more tutorials? Drop me a comment below and don't forget to subscribe on the right! 

Love

Iptishaam 

       #1 The Side Braid 

                 #2 The Front Bun 

                                                                                                                         #3 The Front Twist 

Photo Credit  

Capturing Concepts Photography

The End

BLOOMING

Dress, Forever 21// Shoes, Gifted// Infinity Rings, 4flavour at YDE// Gold Arm candy, The Ramp Store // Earrings, Fashion Express 

My morning routine usually starts with jumping up at 7 'o clock the morning, rushing in the shower, quickly packing my lunch, eating breakfast whilst driving and with the last few minutes I have left,slither to my seat in the staff room before the principal walks in for his morning briefing. This is a Everyday occurrence without any alterations. I am sure that from my morning routine there are one or two things you can relate to. Right? 

In any case, the day when I had a little extra time on my hands, I had an epiphany: I am truly happy with where I am in my life. 

Regardless of the morning rush, I wake up and I think about all the things that I am grateful for like my health, the ability to think, my caring and supportive husband, the beautiful friendships that I have gained through the years as well as the fact that I am FINALLY starting to love my job! Yes, being a teacher is my true calling. I am bursting to tell you about my experience but let me do that in another blog post? 

As my life is blooming, so is my outfit! 

With its dark floral print and fitted ribbing piece in the center I knew that this dress would be the perfect dress that I would be able to wear to various occasions. Whether its for Eid (with a beautiful styled turban) or a comfortable yet classy date night look (as I've done here), this dress screamed all kinds of WOW for me. I complimented it with my favorite cork inspired heel, minimal make-up and accessories from 4Flavour and The Ramp store. 

How pretty are these images though? I always have so much fun with style photographer, Miskaa Price behind Iridescence Photgraphy. She made my dreams a reality because for the longest time now, I wanted to shoot a bohemian look! Yay! Follow to have your life captured through her lens! 

What are your mornings like?

See you soon

Love, 

Iptishaam 

Review | Wet n Wild THINK PINK

Image Captured BY Capturing Concepts photography 

Hey Everyone! This is my first ever beauty review! I'm not really a beauty review kind of person but I LOVE reading them and I actually do go out and purchase and try a certain product when I really wanna try something that works. I think product reviews are a great way for the consumer to decide whether they would like to purchase a product before spending hundreds of rands. For the longest time now, I wanted to try a new lip colour like this one but a more nude shade I suppose?. I always tend to play it safe when selecting a colour. 

When I purchased this particular shade at Clicks I was so excited to get home to try it out (Yikes). And there I was, jabbing a thick amount of pale pink lipstick to my lips. To my embarrassment, I realised that the colour didn't suit me well- AT ALL. I showed my husband and he said HELL NO. The following day, when I did this particular look post, I decided to dab just a little bit on the top and bottom lip to give a slight pink. Then it started to look humanly appropriate. (Thank Goodness). 

And now I'm loving it. 

The texture is matte and easy to apply and does dry out your lips as long as you apply every two hours. Make sure you dab a small amount on both lips before you end up looking like Nicki Minaj on a bad day. 

Thank you for reading today. 

Have you tried the Wet n Wild range from Clicks ? 

Love, 

Iptishaam 

POOFY SLEEVES

Dress Shirt and Hat, MrPrice// Shoes, Fashion Express// Jeggings, Sissy Boy
Hey Everyone!  

 I trust that your work week hasn't been too hectic thus far. I started work on a few Mondays and I've met my new bunch of grade 8's. So I'm still in the memorizing of names phase (which I've become pretty good at since teaching). 

Anyway, when I got in touch with Miskaa Price from Iridescence Design I was quite thrilled when she agreed to do a few shots for the blog. The things that I look for in photographers are those who can give a good sense of direction, one who can make me feel comfortable when taking pics and especially the ones who love pictures to have that natural feel to it. Tip to new bloggers : when taking pics, relax your shoulders and do not be stiff. I think it shows on camera. Yeah, I might be pretty guilty of that too (Laughs). 

 

Lets talk a little about this look. When I spotted this dress at MrPrice a few months back I loved the dress but unfortunately the store didn't have my size. So I was stuck between the letting the dress 'go' emotionally and try to move on and forget about it. Sounds dramatic eh? Then to my luck when I returned last week I saw the same dress shirt (I say 'dress shirt because one can wear it either or) and scored it for a whopping R50! 

The few aspects I adore about the dress shirt is that I love this shade of orange. It gives me such a cool tanned look. The material is slightly sheer and that's why I opted to pair it with my old faithful white Sissy Boy jeggings. What is more eye catching about this shirt dress are the sleeves. I've always loved poofy sleeves but not those huge ugly ones, but the soft delicate ones that can add just enough 'oomph' to an outfit. I love the fact that I feel so 'girly' in this item. The shoes are so so comfortable and versatile and I scored them for under R200 at Fashion Express. 

Want your images to be captured By Iridescence Design? Follow them on Instagram or Email for quotes and packages. 

Have you scored any great purchases lately? I'd love to hear, so drop me a comment below. 

Thank you for reading today

Love, 

Iptishaam 

A Prelude

Skirt, Top, Moustache Ring, Sunnies Mr Price // Bag YDE // Shoes DC // Lips Think Pink By Wet n Wild // Make a wish necklace by The Ramp online store 

Hi everyone! finally back at work and back to blogging! Oh, and a Happy New Year to you and your loved ones. 

The year 2014 has honestly been the toughest and often the most academically exhausting year as well as an emotional roller coaster. 2014 has seen me graduate and become a qualified high school teacher and pursue my honours in Educational Psychology. There were times when I used to give up internally and just end up crying because studying and working at the same time used to be really really difficult. When I look back, it is all worth it. 

On the flip side, 2014 couldn't have ended on a more beautiful note: I tied the knot with someone who makes me extraordinary happy by just being in the same room as me. (wink!) 

Now 2015 is here, and those are memories that I shall treasure but I have this huge urge to want to expand. So this look post is a prelude (hence the title) to that urge.  So from here on you can expect things to be a little more- for a lack of a better term- 'professional looking'. 

  In case you haven't noticed: this page looks slightly different doesn't it? 

YUP! that's me starting fresh. 

In the year 2015 I hope to grow as a unique individual, work harder at building a visually appealing blog as well a blog with great content. I hope to make time to look after myself (changed my hair a little) and my body and be accountable for the way it looks at the end of the day. I also aim to be the best that I can be to my husband as well as my family. On a business note, I recently sold beautiful kimonos on the side, this was just to spread my creative juices and they turned out to be a KILLER success (algamdulielah)! 
It is for this reason that I am looking in the direction of selling them again, perhaps in different styles, prints and textures so that it can appeal to everyone. 

This look was taken by the Amazing couple behind Capturing Concepts Photography. I love working with photographers especially Rasheeqoh and Abdul-Wahab. While Rasheeqoh was  taming my hair from the wind, Abdul was busy rolling on the grass depicting how I should lie to get 'the perfect pic'. Amazingly creative and super friendly, this is definitely a couple you would enjoy working with. You can Like them on Facebook and Follow them on Instagram .  

What would you like to see more of on the blog? 

Love, 

Iptishaam 

LOOK POST | The Midi-Skirt

Skirt, shoes MrP // Embellished top, Jet // bag, YDE// watch, Guess

When I popped into MrP the other day with absolutely no intention of buying anything, I knew that I was fooling myself. So seeing the RED sticker (you know what I'm talking about?) On one of my LUST haves being on SALE, I knew it was fate telling me to buy it (laughs). 

There's really something about midi skirts that makes me feel pretty. It's definitely the cut of the midi that gives a breath of elegance to any woman and those with any body shape.  I love that the length is just below the knee because there's something about showing your knees at formal events which are just wrong! (my opinion). 

This was perfect for the wedding I attended last week Saturday. The beautiful reception was held at Meerdam Plaas close to Kraaifontein. A little bit of a mission to find, we actually ended up at another wedding. (Laughs). 

On a personal note, it's two weeks until my big day. I am very excited to start this new journey with my soon to be husband and new family. 

Oh, in my previous post I said that this would be my last as a single woman, I guess THIS is my last... (or maybe I shouldn't speak too soon?)

Thank you for reading today! 

Love,  

Iptishaam