I was very pleasantly surprised when we happened upon this amazing little shop as we got out of the train at Putten Station. This is the kind of shop that my sister Carmen and I would LOVE to have. Lunch room come art gallery come treasure trove of vintage gems. Hosts Benjamin and Margee are the owners, an interesting and artistic couple. I have left some of my jewelry designs here to sell :-)
Best shop in town: Het Station Putten - Perron 127 I was very pleasantly surprised when we happened upon this amazing little shop as we got out of the train at Putten Station. This is the kind of shop that my sister Carmen and I would LOVE to have. Lunch room come art gallery come treasure trove of vintage gems. Hosts Benjamin and Margee are the owners, an interesting and artistic couple. I have left some of my jewelry designs here to sell :-)
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I happened upon the World Wide Runway website recently, and my first emotion was one of utter envy. You know, the green kind? Why didn’t I think of a concept like this first!? Not that I have any spare time or anything, but imagine the pride the founder Diane Wright must be feeling to see her fabulous concept coming to fruition. World Wide Runway is a new initiative, focused on providing young fashion designers with an opportunity to make their talents known to the local and even international fashion world. This is how Diane describes her phenomenal initiative:
“With limited access to fashion shows and soaring rentals being a stumbling block for most young designers, the new World Wide Runway website gives our young talent a possible solution to their problems. World Wide Runway provides young, up and coming designers of fashion, clothing, jewellery, shoes, handbags and accessories a platform to showcase their collections to both our local and the international market”. “Shoppers can source unique trends and products from this creative portfolio launch pad. The classified section on the World Wide Runway website offers access to fabric stores, model agencies, seamstresses, pattern cutters, fashion houses, distributors and any other industry related supplier. Online advertising for retailers and wholesalers is available. Newsletters will be emailed to members updating them on current fashion events and a professional image and styling consultancy service is also available”. Their website is as good as up and running. If you come across any glitches however, know that your patience will be hugely rewarded! An inspirational hub for all things fashion, check out their website here: www.worldwiderunway.com Saturday 4th February, a beautiful morning in downtown Johannesburg. A perfect day for the Fashion Widower* photo shoot. Hlony Senokoane, founder of the Fashion Widower* online fashion hub whom I met for the first time in June last year, planned this shoot for his brand spanking new, hot of the press website which is launching today, and to do a collaboration with Studio Cocoa Moon Art Jewellery. When I arrived at Hlony's apartment I was introduced to the models Tshidi, Hloniphile and Rich, and photographer Angel. The initial plan was to shoot at different locations in town but due to time constraints we decided to do the shoot on the roof top of Hlony's apartment building. The view from there was so breathtaking that my fear of heights quickly faded into the background. At some point, after having exhausted all the options on the rooftop, we took the crew to a location in Newtown. Hlony had this very clear picture in his mind of how he wanted this part of the shoot to be done. There was some or other steel art installation which hundreds of pigeons had made their chill area. The models were not particularly excited about the prospect of these birds flying all around them. But besides looking gorgeous and glamorous, being a model often means having to step out of your comfort zone. Each time the pigeons flew up, the girls screamed and nearly died of stress. It was amazing to see that, despite their 'fear', they did exceptionally well and the photos came out brilliantly. It was hilarious to see to see all this traffic coming almost to a complete standstill while driving past us. We turned each and every head, not exaggerated. Passengers as well as drivers hung out the windows to get a glimpse of all the interesting stuff that was happening. This curiosity caused quite a few almost collisions. Just as we were taking the last shots, the clouds started looking rather angry. Fortunately we managed to get everybody and everything back in the car before it came pouring down. It was phenomenal to work with Hlony, he is a dynamic young creative, a very inspiring and amazing guy. The designers who made their garments available for the shoot were Urban Zulu, Abia Mahlase and 2Souls. And oh my, the Urban Zulu label is definitely one to keep a close eye on! Check out the slide show of the entire shoot here! *THE BIRTH OF FASHION WIDOWER Many will agree that Fashion Widower is a rather unusual name, it evokes all kinds of interesting thoughts and makes you want to know more about the brand, the driving force behind the brand, and especially, the reason for choosing this name. I asked Hlony about it and this is what he told me: "It all started at SAFW. I was with a number of young designers I knew from the CBD. This was in 2008. We were all hyped up, ready to be blown away by big game players in the industry, learn a thing or two from them, get inspired, stay longer in the fashion world and starving for showcasing on that runway. With all these expectations and the fantastic atmosphere I felt like a huge part of me was being castrated through each and every appalling garment that was showcased that evening. I remember being anxious and anticipating what Carducci and Ephimol had to offer. But they destroyed all the hope I had left for that evening. At that moment I became disillusioned and lost my faith in the fashion industry. But strangely, at the same time this event was also the moment that Fashion Widower was born. From then onward I made a point of being dressed to the nines. I found that it should be an important aspect of every day life. Very interesting to experience that a disappointment can actually start a whole new chapter in one's life." FASHION WIDOWER - THE ONLINE FASHION HUB Fashion Widower is a prestigious, elegant and unconventional fashion brand aiming at being the social hub for fashion and beauty enthusiasts. Fashion Widowers’ online platform allows readers to interact and share views and various multi-media content, i.e. pictures, videos, events etc. All content will be approved by the Fashion Widower’s administrator and fresh content will be published frequently. We also have a team of esteemed local and international professionals contributing new content and insight about fashion and beauty trends all over the world. Fashion Widower is an exclusive fashion website, designed for today’s innovative and fashion conscience individuals. Our website will be a home to all trend seekers and fashion lovers, also serving as an online directory promoting small and medium fashion and beauty related businesses. Click here to check out the website! Finally.... spring is in the air! And as we slowly pack away our winter goodies, it’s time to start thinking about showing more skin. Hitting the gym and shopping for new spring must-haves are all on the agenda, but how about making a change to your accessory style too? Now that we will be wearing less clothing, bright and bold jewellery is coming out of hibernation! It is the perfect time to add a little spring sparkle and spoil yourself with a gorgeous necklace!
Here are some of my latest designs :-) NOMUZI I was introduced to Hannah Young, co-producer of Jozi's Next Super Model reality tv show by make-up artist Lethabo Kgadima and asked to supply jewellery for two of the tv show's challenges. Of course I could not let such a fabulous opportunity pass me by. Here's how it all went down... 13th February: The African Challenge It was a glorious summer day, absolutely perfect for the ‘African Challenge’ shoot at the Thaba YaBatswana Eco Lodge at the Kliprieviersberg Nature Reserve. When I arrived I was introduced to the models and the production team. What a great and beautiful bunch of girls! They were all very young, students mainly. Some already had some experience with modelling, others were just starting their modelling careers. From the start of the competition they had developed true friendships and they looked like a very happy crowd, there was none of the bitchiness or jealousy or arrogance that I had expected, and it was great to see how nicely they interacted with my kids - yes I dragged them along :-) JUST BEFORE THE START OF THE 'AFRICAN CHALLENGE' While the ladies were being styled and dressed, we chose the necklaces that would best match and enhance the designer's clothes they would be wearing. What I didn’t know was that, besides making my jewellery available to them, I would be interviewed by ETV presenter Kriya Gangiah to talk about my work as a jewellery designer. When they literally put me on the spot, in front of the camera, it wasn’t actually so bad. I really enjoyed talking about my designing process, the materials I use, and why it is so different and exclusive compared to the mass produced accessories from China that we see in each and every shop. Of course the ‘green’ focus of my designs was highlighted as well. FIONNA At mid-morning, all the girls styled and looking gorgeous and fabulous, we went down to the location of the shoot, where the girls were briefed on that day’s challenge. The aim was to portray the fashion designers garments as well as the jewellery in such a way that the designs, not the models themselves, took centre stage. As one of the Wella hair stylists said: “Let me put things in perspective: you girls are nothing more than glorified, albeit gorgeous, clothing hangers”. Ouch ouch ouch...! Being a member of the jury (yes, I was roped into that as well) I had to look at things like the models’ initiative, how they used their environment to their advantage, whether they initiated using ‘props’, how they worked with the photographers, how well they followed instructions etcetera. LAUREN After careful deliberation (accompanied by some beverages of the alcoholic kind) in the ‘dark room’, having gone through all the footage of that morning’s shoot, the photographers, show producer and the jury members had a pretty good idea in which direction the competition was heading. Some tentative decisions about who was to be eliminated that evening, were made. At the end of the day we had the ‘elimination’, where the jury (yes, yours truly as well) commented on the models’ performance that day, highlighting their strengths and pointing out their weaknesses. Of course one of the ladies had to leave... FIONNA 20th February: The Reptile Challenge The location for this particular challenge was at the reptile centre at the Johannesburg Zoo. The theme of the shoot was ‘glamour / high fashion’. What the girls did not know is that they would have to use iguanas, tarantulas, snakes and other reptiles as their ‘props’! After the styling had been done and the glamorous outfits and jewellery had been chosen, the models were briefed. Some of the girls were fine with the animals they had to work with, while others were absolutely mortified. And that is a gross understatement! I personally would have died a thousand deaths with the knowledge that a tarantula was within a kilometre radius, let alone crawling ON me! CARMEN The girls were very brave and doing unbelievably well. Most of them retained their required professional composure and even performed beyond expectation. This was definitely one of the most difficult challenges so far! The jury (myself included, once again) gave scores for similar aspects of their ‘performance’ and once more, after we had all put in our two cents worth at the end of the day, one unlucky contestant was asked to leave... NOMUZI These two days were an amazing experience for me. The models were a pleasure to work with, and the production team, the photographers, camera men and the stylists were all awesome people to get to know! Have a look at the trailer of Jozi's Next Top Model on YouTube! The models: Nomuzi, Carmen, Lauren, De'lene, Fionna, Odette At 20-something, Indian beauty Kriya Gangiah from Pretoria is a serious powerhouse. I had the pleasure of meeting her and working with her on several occasions on the set of ‘Jozi’s next Top Model’, where I sponsored the models with my jewelry, and where Kriya was the presenter.She is a versatile lady with experience in a wide variety of industries such as production management, information technology, modelling and the entertainment industry.She was a radio presenter at Tuks FM at the University of Pretoria, and then she landed the sought-after position of host on the popular TV program Craz-E as well as the position of presenter on the hugely successful tv shows Sistahood and Shiz Niz. I met her again a week or three ago, when I was working on a nude gold photoshoot with photographer Ernie Pretorius, and model 'Face of Studio Cocoa Moon' Andronnicah, partly for an international book publication of his, and partly for my jewelry portfolio. (The sizzling pics will be up soon – watch this space!) She was there to do a shoot in a traditional Indian sari for her modelling portfolio (I never realised what a mission it is to get a sari on properly, it took us quite some time to get it right!) She did a couple of ‘gold’ photo’s with my earrings too! Tuesday 28th June 16h00, it is a beautiful sunny winter afternoon at Doppio Zero in Rosebank, and I am soaking up the last rays of the day. It is the perfect setting for my meeting with Times Live celebrity journalist Gabi Ndebele. I was very excited to meet her and had brought a selection of my very best jewellery designs. She arrived casually dressed in a black top and leggings and a long charcoal cardigan. She ordered a hot chocolate and in no time we were chatting away. I really enjoyed her easy-going bubbly personality. She asked me about my design process, where my studio is and where I find my inspiration. She was excited about the ‘green’, eco-friendly concept of my jewellery. She loved the designs I showed her and after careful deliberation she made a selection of three of my most gorgeous pieces for the July. The lady’s got good taste! One of them she wanted to buy but I decided to give it to her as a token of my appreciation for helping me to get more exposure. Of course I had to take some pictures of us! My day couldn’t have ended any better. I am dying to see all the photo’s of Gabi in her gorgeous outfits, adorned with my jewellery. It will be a long wait until after the weekend... sigh. Thanks to Saint-Francis of United Creative Lab for putting Gabi and me in touch. Gabi will be wearing this necklace to the Durban July Gabi will be wearing this necklace to the Durban July This necklace was given to Gabi as a gift from Studio Cocoa Moon Andronnicah Legoabe, affectionately known as MsFabulous, is an eloquent lady who was born in Limpopo (formerly known as Pietersburg) on the 30th July. Later on she moved to Gauteng. She has held various positions in different industries, which bears proof of her diverse nature. She held positions as hostess and administrator at the Michaelangelo Hotel in Sandton, Johannesburg, and she was a help desk operator at Vodacom. She currently holds a creditors function at the financial department at Tiger Brands in Midrand.
I spoke to MsFabulous about her experience with Studio Cocoa Moon and this is what she had to say: “The first photoshoot for the Studio Cocoa Moon branding effort was like a dream come true, it was very professional, and the jewelry made me feel like a million dollars. The photoshoot opportunity opened up a lot of other doors for me. Shortly after the shoot I was asked to participate in the DFS (Design For Style) Fashion Launch as a ramp model, then thereafter I featured in a full 5 page fashion spread in the Trend Frenzy magazine. The most recent and very interesting experience was a ‘body-paint’ photoshoot for an international photobook publication. There are quite a few other ‘gigs’ in the pipeline such as another fashion show in Mpumalanga and a photo shoot for a calendar”. Andronnicah’s vision for the future is to become a household brand, to own her own Fashion House and consequently empower up and coming models. “When I don’t work, I spend a lot of time at the gym. I enjoy travelling and site seeing. My recent trip to Mozambique was an adventure of note!” My first blog post! I am very excited and hope that you will enjoy my stories and updates. I am a mother of two and am originally from the Netherlands. I came to South Africa in the early nineties, when this country was still in the iron grip of Apartheid. It is inspiring to see how far we have come since then, and despite the problems we have here it is one of the greatest countries to live in. I especially love the cultural diversity and the openness of the people, their warmth and willingness to make it all work. Hosting the Soccer World Cup last year was truly spectacular and there was an enormous sense of togetherness and renewed hope for the future of this country. I am also particularly happy with the fact that there is a lot of support and encouragement for (small) entrepreneurs like myself to facilitate job creation which has made it possible for me to start my jewelry design business!
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About meI am an art jewellery designer, interior decorator, copywriter and translator. I am based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Welcome to my blog! Archives
October 2013
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