They say height of spring is the perfect wedding weather and I couldn’t agree more. It must be that sweet spot between the last remnants of the winter cold and the scorching summer sun. That time of the year when nature itself comes out to play, petals start to blossom and the birds are chirping. It’s the perfect time to dust off those light coloured blazers and polish those penny loafers. Anyway before I get carried away, I better get back to talking about weddings or more precisely a wedding I witnessed a week ago.
Before i go any further, i just want to advise you in advance that this post is very personal. Thought i would take a little break from the usual and celebrate the success of my sister and model, Jennifer for not only completing her masters degree but also in outshining everyone in her course! This beauty and brains was able to do us all proud by completing, with distinction, which warranted a prize as she was the only student to achieve such a feat.
It was a beautiful moment for the entire family to hear her name called up on that stage and see her confidently walk across to collect her degree.
If there is one person that deserved a distinction, it would be Jennifer, she burned the midnight oil night after night persevering for her dream. If i am completely honest, this came as no surprise to the family as this young woman has a history of doing very well academically. However, one never gets used to that amazing feeling you get when you see your sister souring and reaching her full potential.
Anyway, let me not bore you with a lengthy article. Please help me in congratulating Jennifer on applying herself diligently with one of many gifts given to her by God.
Oh and please forgive me for the image quality. I struggled with the lens i used on that day.
Once again, well done Jennifer. Many congratulations to you and your friends!
Pre-graduation ceremony shotsPre-graduation ceremony shotsPre-graduation ceremony shots. #FamilyThis is what happiness looks likePre-graduation ceremony shots
Lymington. Ever heard of an English town called Lymington? If you have, I must say that you are better travelled and better informed than I am. If not then you are in good company and bear with me while I put this post together. But before delving into details about Lymington, let me make a little confession by saying that I seldom visit the English countryside. Not that I do not want to but because I was of the mind-set that there are hundreds of countries and cities around the world that i’d rather visit first before exploring places closer to home. I used the past indicative word “was” above as this is no longer the case after my visit to Lymington. Thanks to a friend Oliver who put together an amazing weekend to Lymington for 21 people for his 30th birthday, I can now honestly say my interest in exploring the English countryside has been rekindled.
Sitting in one of the passenger seats of a 4×4 vehicle driven by the birthday boy himself on a Friday afternoon felt like forever in the London traffic. For a minute, I thought to myself it would have been much better to travel by rail rather than snaking through the streets of London already packed with vehicles, who like us, were leaving for the weekend. Soon enough, the temptation to coax myself to sleep (with only 2 hours sleep the previous night) crept into my thoughts but of course this would have been rude to the three other friends I was sharing the vehicle with. As we hit the highway toward Heathrow airport, my mind drifted again and I started counting the European cities I could reach with the amount of time spent driving to Lymington.
Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Prague, Florence, Lisbon, St Pertersburg all came to mind. Ok not St Petersburg but you get the point. My mind was everywhere but Lymington. As vivid imagination of what my next holiday should be like engulf my mind, Oliver interrupted my day dreaming to introduced us to a version of Charades he called Donkey. Not sure if the game itself is actually called donkey or just his way of insulting the loser who will be called donkey. #Sideeye. This lightened up the mood as we drove past beautiful landscape on both sides of the highway.
As laughter and jokes from the game filled the vehicle I got excited and started to look forward to the weekend.
The cottage, Silverland, is located within the New forest national park which means there are plenty of activities to do during our stay. After getting lost for about 15 minutes, we were greeted by the landlord who was waiting outside the property and ushered us in through an opened electronic gate that revealed a beautiful black and white 19th century English country cottage seated on 4 acres of land.
Imagine our delight and excitement. As Londoners, this was a welcomed change to the usual hustle and bustle of the city life. The thatched roof, wooden beams, leaded windows, inglenook fire place all gave the cottage an authentic period look, while the outdoor heated pool, treehouse and massive garden gave the property a modern functional twist. As we walked through the dark wooden front door it then occurred to me that I have never before been in an English cottage. Standing in the hallway, I noticed the spacious living room with cosy sofas to the right and on the left a door leading to the study. To my immediate right was the stairway decorated with African art leading up to the bedrooms, and just ahead was a door which I figured later lead to the kitchen. The kitchen is very spacious with two bay windows leading out into the garden. The interior décor vary from one room to another revealing art and wall hangings from countries around the world. Stepping out into the garden with a sizable swimming pool felt like I was stepping into a completely different world. The deafening quietness of the woods combined with the greenery of the garden and nearby bushes providing a perfect oasis of tranquillity. I could easily get used to this I muttered underneath my breath.
Lymington itself is a Georgian town located between Southampton and Bournemouth known internationally as a sailing resort. It has three marinas with a population of over 15,000 people. This coastal town is truly beautiful with so many outdoor activities to keep any visitor busy. North of Lymington is the ancient woodlands of New forest and to the south is the Solent. The Solent is a body of water that separate the Isle of Wight from the mainland.
Oh and yes, did I mention our trip to the Isle of Wight yet?
Our weekend away included a day trip to the Isle of Wight, which turned out to be one of my personal highlights of the entire trip. Listen, if you ever visit Lymington, I urge you to set aside time to visit this beauty. Better yet, make a trip solely for the Isle of Wight so you can experience what I am talking about. Everything was magical from the ferry cross to the walk along the Western Yar. The Western Yar is one of two yars on the Isle of Wight and the closest to Yarmouth harbour. The yar is so beautiful and tranquil and continue to reveal its treasures in the form of wildlife and natural beauty on each side of the foot tracks as we walked from the Yarmouth Bridge towards freshwater bay. The estuary is approximately 3.8 miles long so put on some comfortable shoes if you intend to walk the entire stretch.
Upon returning from the Isle of Wight, the smell of the barbeque, games in and around the swimming pool, music blaring from a playlist I made the previous night and sounds of happy chatters all underneath the stars of the night, the cottage yet again reveals another facet of its allure.
Needless to say that everyone was tired the following morning as we slowly filed into vehicles parked outside the cottage. It was time to return to busy and fast paced London. The cottage life has somehow come to an end. An end that seem to have come way too early.
Family is a word that evokes so much feelings and emotions that cannot be summed up in words but rather shown through actions.
The oxford dictionary defines family as “a group consisting of two parents and their children living together” or more aptly “a group of people related by blood or marriage”. The term blood by itself (in the second definition) is enough to conjure a feeling of belonging and one of real connection. A connection even nature itself cannot undo.
Family is the most basic but yet most important unit of any society.
I personally think that family is God’s way of teaching us how to relate to him through service, accountability, challenging each other in love. Love which when nurtured properly within the family can be extended to people outside of it.
A happy celebrant!
As it happens, I was blessed with amazing sisters, one of whom was graduating after completing a degree in Criminology and Criminal justice.
I know right, you can imagine the excitement laced with feelings of accomplishment after all those sleepless nights burning the midnight oil.
Seeing my sister graduate was a moment of pride, joy and absolute pleasure for the entire family and celebrations were in order as we thank God for his mercies.
My Dad, Ed senior and my other sister Jennifer were both in attendance too. Knowing Jennifer, she might try to outshine everyone else in the ceremony including the celebrant. #sideeye
Jennifer trying to outshine her sister #Sideeye
Not that I was competing with them but I wasn’t going to look like a tramp in their midst. So for this reason, I was going to turn up in style.
As you would know by now, I love my suits and always look forward to wearing them at any given opportunity.
I personally think a suit adds an extra dimension to a man’s look no other garment does. A business suit or lounge suit is the most common of suits. Although this kind of suit is common, it doesn’t mean it has to be monotonous and boring.
So in this occasion my style idea was ‘simple with a twist’ or a ‘cool classic’.
I only wanted two colours, well strictly speaking, white does not count as a colour as it is not found on the colour wheel so midnight blue was my colour of choice for the occasion.
Midnight blue is one of those colours that go with almost everything. I say ‘almost’ loosely as from the top of my head I cannot think of any other colour that does not go with it. I think it’s so versatile that you can wear it all year round, day and night, summer or winter.
I recon it’s a good investment so if you do not have a blue suit (especially darker hues), I suggest you go out and get one now. You won’t regret it, ever!
Ok back to the look. As I said above, I was aiming for the ‘simple with a twist’ ‘cool classic’ look, which means one colour only.
With my white shirt providing layering for the suit, there was only going to be two accessories with this look, white pocket square and a watch. No necktie, bow tie, lapel pin or even collar tips.
Ok, in hindsight maybe I could have added a collar tip to give my collars a bit of character but that’s it, nothing else. With my shirt buttoned up and pocket square squared up my idea of simplicity is complete.
Now to add a little twist to the mix, I opted for a pair of white high top leather all-star converse. I could have gone for a pair of brown or black shoes with matching belts but that would make me look just like everyone else. With two folds on my trouser, I made sure the converse was in full view. The reason I chose converse over any other pair of white trainer is that converse in general carries that classic look and they are streamlined and fitted instead of being bulky. This I think goes well with my look. The converse on this occasion is the statement piece.
So next time you put one a suit, think of inventive ways of wearing it. Push fashion boundaries to make a statement.
The look:
Suit – FCUK
Shirt – TM lewin
Pocket Square – M & S
Trainers – Office by Converse
For daily updates on fashion and lifestyle tips, follow my instagram page @cutsforhim
