My first virtual sewing class launch and the tea about it.

WHAT I'VE BEEN UP TO THIS MONTH Hi all, Hope you're all well? Following on from my last post regarding Black History month, I mentioned I will be involved in a little something for this special month. Here's how it went... So I've been up to a little something this month which was great exposure and practice for me for when I'm ready to launch my collection. I was asked by John Lewis and Partners to show case my collection to partners of the store on Sunday 10th October. It got such a good reaction from the store partners that I was asked to come back the following weeks till the end of October month which I gladly accepted. Ever since the cruel murder of George Floyd as well as the 'Black lives matter' movement, John Lewis wanted to have inclusion for diversity for the BAME community and wanted to promote black businesses as of course they asked the best upcoming designer in the game for her input, hehe. I was more than happy to showcase my collection. I am no where near finished with the samples but I thought why not, this is an opportunity I didn't want to turn down so I put on my brave smiley face and got to work. MY MISSION WAS TO EDUCATE FIRST AND PROMOTE AFTER... LET ME EXPLAIN. The main reason for black history month is to educate people of the greatness that has been achieved from black people whom have made a change in the world or to purely inform them. So it was only right that I educated the partners so I wanted to showcase my African traditional wedding attire. This was because this was a highlight for me and I wanted to showcase the beautiful attire which was made for me by a talented tailor. For many African couples the ceremony of a traditional wedding is full of rich contemporary Nigerian music, scrumptious meals, lots of colour and it’s a chance for the couple to celebrate their heritage by wearing their best African attire which is usually bespoke and handmade for the couple in a colour of their choosing. The bride’s outfit is a reflection of what the female guests will wear to represent her side of the family. The outfit consists of a gale which is a head tie, the Buba tank top, and an Iro, which is a large ankle length piece of material tied round your waist. (This styling is what the older mature lady may wear). I choose to modernise my attire to be more figure hugging to my liking. The bride would also wear accessories like chains, beads, earrings and shoes to match. The groom could wear an Agbada, which is a two layered piece of material which is paired with trousers. Both outfit styles should compliment each other. We choose the colour blue for our traditional wear as blue is a key colour which represents my tribe so it was a good way to show the new unity of two tribes now becoming one. SNEAK PREVIEW OF UNIQUE ID FIT SAMPLES So first of all I was a bag of nerves. I was filled with all sorts of emotions from excitement, to nerves to being anxious all in one. This was because I haven't showcased my pre-fit collection to anyone yet let alone showcased it to a massive brand like John Lewis before. I didn't know how anyone would perceive it or react to it so I was pretty nervous. I came in early to the store on the Sunday morning to set up so I dressed the mannequins, organised my table and ensured my leaflets were easily accessible for people to take as they please. Then the staff members came in and the first comments I heard were 'wooow ' , 'isn't that colourful', 'can I buy that please?' and it was a lovely feeling. My main goal of the set up was educate people about my forth coming launch and let them know I'm selling facemasks on the website. I also realised that although my main business concept and selling concept is very bespoke orientated I quickly realised that I do need actually ready -made products and I need to think about a ready made capsule collection to sell in order to have a viable growing business. I plan to implement this into my start up journey and add this to my list of to-do of the other 110 other things I need to do.... I got work to do!!!. All in all, I'm happy I got a chance to showcase my pre- collection and get to test run how it will be for when I'm ready to present again in this big bad world. It gave me a bit of a kick up the bum as I had deadlines to meet in order to present my collection to John Lewis, My lasting wish is that I hope they give more opportunities to the BAME community and their business more throughout the year and not just the month of October. My fingers are crossed and I'm always hopeful so let's see shall we. INSPIRATION QUOTE I LIKE in relation to BOSSING UP... 'Always deliver more than expected' 'Everything you do now is for your future' 'We cannot become what we want by remaining who we are' 'Choose your dreams over your fears' FOLLOW ME AND MY SOCIAL ACCOUNTS... Just incase you have not done so, I would love for you to follow me on my socials to hear the latest of what I'm up to as I prepare for my launch and be sure to say 'HI'. SIGNING OUT... I hope my blog will inspire you to step out of your comfort zone and do something different today... I'm making a move on my new business venture. What are you up to... Let me know and good luck. Night-night you wonderful humans OR good-morning you early risers. Signing out, Love from Mrs Unique

Black history month Influential Boss ladies

Follow my journey as I go through the highs and lows of being a London based fashion designer trying to achieve her dream and carry out a mission worth keeping your ears and eyes peeled for....… I wanted a fashion brand that would disrupt the ‘standard’ fashion industry way of working and create my own rules so read on to know how and why I wanted to create this concept for you..