Never let your mood have a negative impact on your fashion statement

Every right-minded person loves to look good. At least you want to be seen as someone

who has a good dress sense. The way you dress says a lot about you (we all know that) and everyone has a fashion statement. Whether you follow fashion trends or not, you have an appearance which speaks before you speak. That which your appearance reveals about you before you utter a word is your fashion statement.


What is your fashion statement? Or let me rephrase, what impression does your appearance give? Stylish, cool, rich, simple, flashy, mature, tomboyish, rock, scruffy, youthful, edgy,  old-fashioned, sexy, clean, boring, corporate? Name it!

You might be someone who loves flashy colours and wants to be seen as fun and cheerful. A splash of orange here, a touch of red there, a hint of yellow, a little pink (not all at once though) but you know, some bright colours that would enliven your look. Some are known for their picture-perfect makeup. The pink, red, or purple lip colour; the non-glittering eye shadow; the artistically carved eyebrows; the perfect blush, the flawlessly applied foundation and other cosmetics all accentuating their face. For some, their hairstyles could make them pass for celebs. Whether natural, fixed, or braided, whatever style...after applying their hair products and doing the necessary finishing touches, they look so awemazing that they are worth Celeb-Rating. 

What about guys who are skilled at sweeping ladies off their feet with their well-cut and shaped hair, sideburns or sometimes beard. They look so sharp that you just blush when they say hi. For some, it is their shoes, always neat and always looking new (like they clean them every 20mins. I know a guy who carries an extra hanky in his pocket for cleaning his shoes). While for some their well-groomed feet is a beauty to behold (I know another guy whose feet make me trip). 

As we all know, looking good requires effort and costs money (no matter how little). From the 'effort requiring' standpoint, there are some days when you just don't feel like going the extra mile to look good. Not like you look bad and trashy but you are not just your usual dressed up self. It's like 'what the heck sef, I no fit!' 'Who cares? Abeg I am tired, I am OK like this'. It could be one of those lazy Saturdays when you just have to dash across the street to buy something and you have your hair net on, no make up/just-waking up-face...in the case of a guy, you have don't brush your hair (some coco waves), you know, that rugged look you guys have when you haven't touched up. Is anyone feeling me here? I am sure you guys understand what I mean. 

Imagine you have been following the rules or the right procedures while you watch your counterparts break them without fear and remorse and go scot-free. However, the day decide to bend the rule just a little or bypass a procedure because you feel you have eaten a teeny-weeny piece of liver...Bam! (In my American accent, slamming my right fist against my left palm) You are caught! 'Ouch!' You say. 'Painful and pathetic!' I say. You would feel like screaming the f word with all the energy you could ever muster. The aforementioned can be likened to the day you go out without 'wearing your fashion sense' and you come across someone you never expected to meet, especially someone who you wish would see you in your best. It could be your rival from back in the day, a friend you wanna impress, your ex, an old schoolmate, a crush, a toaster, or someone whose help you need, etc.

Let me share my experience.
It was a Monday, not my favourite my day of the week, and I was experiencing the I-am-not-in-the-mood feeling which affected my dress sense. I wore the grey shirt I had told myself a couple of times I wouldn't wear again and a black pants, no makeup not even lip gloss. I didn't make my hair that weekend, I just did it up in a ponytail. I was looking kinda tired but I didn't give a damn. I just wanted the day to be over as soon as possible. Unfortunately for me, that was the day, a friend of mine from secondary school decided to show up at my place of work. She was looking all made up and hot and after the usual ahhh! Oh my Gawd! I can't believe this! and so on...She said, "you haven't changed!" What! I did a quick flash back to the boarding house days when I was wearing a low cut, no make-up, and when I was over-skinny...What! How dear she? That was 11yrs ago and I haven't changed!  My guilty conscious tormented me, "you shouldn't have worn this shirt, it's dull, you should have worn the pink jacket, it is the makeup-less face, you should have used a lip colour at least....you shouldn't have this, you should have that..." Finally I spoke out, "don't mine me dear, I was a little down this morning so I decided to dress down." Then I did a quick change of topic, "so what brought you here?"


Or what about the day I went to get recharge card from my next door neighbour. It was a lazy Saturday, I wore my 'mary amaka' gown which I wear strictly indoors when I need air space between my body and my clothes, a hair net on my pretty hair (I fixed a long wavy light brown weave-on that complimented my complexion), and I wore a bathroom slippers. I was like it just my neighbour here, who will see me in this area? So I went out hoping to buy the recharge card and run back into the house. Unfortunately, my nieghbour didn't have any, so I had to walk a little bit further, close to the main road. Thank God no one was passing by. I got my credit and smiled.

As I walked home (thanking God in my mind for not wasting my time touching up), a male voice calling my name plastered my face with a puzzled look. Who the hell was that shouting my name when I didn't want to be seen? I looked behind me and saw a tall, fair, handsome young man smiling as he ran towards to me. It was one of my JAMB lesson toasters. Meeehhnnn I wasn't pleased to see him, not looking like that. I formed the best phoney I could because that was my only weapon at that point. Annoyingly, he was all baffed up. We tried to catch up as fast as we could from JAMB days to that moment (then I was serving). He actually came to visit his friend in my area and recognised me from across the road. 

Those are just two out of the many experiences I have had. After the last experience (the Monday's experience), I vowed that no matter how I felt, unless I was ill, I would never allow my mood have a negative impact on your fashion statement. My fashion sense will always be intact. My looks are sophisticated, rich, rock or sometimes tomboyish. I love lip colours, sometimes nude lip gloss, blush, eye shadows with no glitters, eye liners, and blue or black mascara. I love jewels too! Anyway, no matter my mood, I must maintain my fashion statement. I can see some heads nodding in agreement. Same applies to you reading this because you never know...

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