Grounded Narratives

For most of my teen years, I had troublesome skin. I tried a lot of products and treatments, chemical and natural, that promised me smooth, clear, acne-free skin. But this didn't do much to help the situation. (I talked about this and the products I ended up using in more details in this post ). After a number of years of continuous struggle, my face cleared up all by itself. For a long time I enjoyed having glowing acne-free skin with very little effort and expense. Come this time last year all that started to change. It started with a huge breakout on my forehead which refused to respond to any of the treatments I tried. Then it started spreading to the rest of my face eventually reaching my neck. To say that I was horrified is an understatement. As my face went from bad to worse, my confidence fell in equal proportions. That's when I delved into the makeup world full force. I watched YouTube videos and learned how to apply makeup. I researched and experimented as I l...

As with my personal style as pertains my preferred mode of dressing, I have come to prefer certain protective hairstyles, which I tend to rotate year in year out. While there have been countless options made available these days, I find myself always turning to these hairstyles mostly because of their affordability and also because of the various options available as regards styling. 1. Human Hair Weave This was the first weave that I ever willingly agreed to put on my head. I have always had a fear of weaves. I always imagine I will feel terribly hot under the Nairobi sun or that as it ages it will end up looking like a bird's nest. I can also never convince myself that it will not start smelling after a week or two. But with human hair weaves, I can go for a wash whenever I feel like it and I don't have to worry about the bird's nest because the weave is very easy to manage. I didn't buy this particular weave, it was gifted to me. It's Indian Remy Hair...

When my face first started acting up, I used to think my breakouts were caused by a hormonal imbalance. With time I discovered that this wasn't entirely true. Breakouts can be caused by any number of factors from a hormonal imbalance to a lack of sleep and dietary factors. What is face mapping? Over the last month or so, I have been paying close attention to my face because I noticed a lot of breakouts that my daily routine didn't seem to be managing very well (you can read about how I care for my face here ). I noticed that my forehead had a lot of pimples which at some point made that area of my face quite sore. I also developed a pimple on my nose that wouldn't go away and I had recurring pimples on my cheeks. From time to time, I would develop a pimple on my chin. Armed with this information, I decided to find out why I was unable to get rid of these pimples as easily as I used to. That is when I started looking into face mapping so I could better determine how ...

From the moment puberty hit, my skin has been giving me problems. Up until 5 years ago, I tried everything I came across that promised to clear my skin in an effort to manage the acne on my face: masks, cleansers, creams, soaps and washes, the list goes on and on. It was so depressing every time a new product failed to manage the acne. Nevertheless, the experimenting finally paid off and I found products that were not only affordable but also worked wonders on my face. I still get breakouts from time to time especially after binging on junk food and towards the time of the month but for the most part, my face has cleared quite noticeably. I've listed what has worked for me below. I'm looking to add a few more products like day and night creams and an anti-aging cream. Once I do, I will be sure to update you on what has worked for me. Washing It wasn't until I came across Himalaya Neem Face Wash that I started seeing progress.  Neem has antibacterial, anti-inflamma...

When it comes to hair care, nothing is more important to me than maintaining a full, healthy hairline. One of the factors I consider whenever I style my hair or put on a protective hairstyle is its impact on my hairline. I won't just let anyone plait me and when it comes to styling, I try not to pull the hair too tight. Quick Fix For A Damaged Hairline My simplest trick for repairing a damaged hairline is to leave the hair unplaited for some time. That is, avoid plaits of any sort even protective hairstyles. In other words no braids, cornrows, weaves, etc. I usually do this for at least a month. In this period of time, I try to up my hair care regimen by first and foremost keeping my body healthy (eating healthy and drinking plenty of water) and keeping my hair moisturized constantly (a task I need to perfect). The next step is to ensure that your newly repaired hairline stays that way even when you decide to plait your hair. What I do is I pay close attention when ...

I have always feared being in a work situation that restricts me in the wardrobe department. Being limited to wearing only suits or clothes of a certain style, say skirts and dresses only, feels like it could be the worst form of torture. But, there is no escaping wardrobe rules. I think that no matter who you work for, be they in the creative industry or a bank, you will be subjected to some wardrobe scrutiny. You might be told you can wear anything, but we all know that there are some things that if you put on to go to work, you can be given a nudge, be it big or small, in a more appreciated direction. After a lot of thought and observation of the working masses, I thought I would revive the 'How To' posts by beginning with this interesting but sometimes difficult topic. So how do you add personality to your office wardrobe? 1. Colour This can come in the form of a single piece or an entire outfit. If you can opt for suits in a variety of colours not j...

I have mentioned here on the blog how I love the challenge of coming up with new and exciting hairstyles. I am a self-diagnosed Pinterest addict and can you believe in spite of spending so much time pinning away, as I gather ideas, I have never created a board dedicated solely to hairstyles, until recently. You can take a look at my board here , and see some of the other hairstyles that I have been eyeing. This is my most recent find. I wanted something that would get finished quickly, wouldn't take an eternity to undo and would be a good protective style. So I opted for Ghanaian lines which I could tie into a high bun a la Janelle Monae. They are basically lines that go to the centre of my head and a few braids (rastas) at the front. I used three and a half packets of Abuja long, number one. I wanted another colour but I couldn't find any in my hurry. Anyway, there's always next time. Since I LOVE turbans, you can imagine my excitement at being able to ke...

As I posted here , I’m super excited about the holiday season that for me began on December 1 st . And with the holidays, there’s a lot of preparation for parties and other festive season related activities. Apart from getting the perfect outfits and accessories, make-up will also be an integral part of your overall party look. I’m not new to the whole make-up application process. However, I’m not an expert. This means that any time I’m in doubt about how to apply something say mascara or eyeliner (I’m terrified of getting one of these in my eyes) I turn to YouTube. Also the fact that I’ve been wearing glasses for as long as I can remember gave me an excuse to pay less attention to mascara and eyeliner, but as I've recently learnt from another blogger, Keiko Lynn , it’s possible to put on eye make-up even when I’m using my glasses. But what I’ve always known how to do are my eyebrows. I tweeze my own eyebrows and at one point in my life, I don’t quite recall when, I learnt ho...

I don't like having short nails. I think they make my fingers look fat!!!! (Not that that's a bad thing) But I have a thing for long nails, not talons like Cruella Deville in 101 Dalmations!! And I'm also not a big fun of anything gold. I find gold jewellery too flashy and having grown up in Nairobi I fear wearing anything that looks like gold cause it could be snatched from me (as has happened to many people). Anyway some time back I bought this gold nail polish to fix a pair of shoes that had experienced an Indian summer and were suffering from the consequences of the heat and humidity. And after I was done I started wondering what else I could do with my still full gold nail polish. Having recently acquired contacts, I've been instructed to keep my nails short so that I don't scratch the lens when putting on and removing the contacts. There I was stuck with short nails and gold nail polish. So in a bid to make my nails more interesting, I decided to paint the...