World Bank’s #Blog4Dev Writing Competition: What Will it Take to End Child Marriage in Your Country?

Deadline: 20 November 2019
World Bank is seeking applications for its #Blog4Dev Competition which is an annual writing contest, inviting young people to weigh in on a topic critical to the country’s economic development.
The competition is a way to engage Africa’s youth and provide a platform to share their views—and solutions—about development topics that are important to them.
Topic
What will it take to end child marriage in your country?
Prizes
Winning authors are eligible for several prizes, including being invited to attend a dedicated program during the World Bank – IMF Spring Meetings 2020 in Washington DC, opportunities to represent Africa’s youth at high-level events, a chance to intern at a World Bank Africa country office, or an opportunity to have applicants blog published on the World Bank Africa blog Youth Transforming Africa.
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible for the #Blog4Dev competition, applicants must:

• Be a citizen of any of the 48 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa
• Be between the ages of 18 and 28 years of age on November 30, 2019.
• Currently reside in a Sub-Saharan African country

Selection Criteria
The winning submissions will be selected based on the following criteria:

• Originality
• Clarity in Writing and Presentation
• Practicality and Relevance
• Potential Impact on Development

How to Apply
Applicants can apply online via given website.
Eligible Countries: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo DR, Congo-Brazzaville, Cote d Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Reunion, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Western Sahara, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
For more information, please visit World Bank.

Ankara inspired High Neck Sleeveless Maxi Dress from Eric Dress

Hello beautiful people. welcome to my blog.
It's been a minute but I am here now to share a link to an amazing dress I got from Eric dress.

I did a post titled How Eric Dressed me about the brand last year click here to read it where I shared the pieces I got from them at that time and sizing details.

This maxi dress looks like ankara but it is not ankara but ankara inspired though. It is very breathable and easy breezy just the way I like my dresses plus it has two pockets. You know how I feel abut clothes with pockets....pure love.

You may need to go a size up to shop for this dress as I wear size Medium (UK 10 top and size UK 12 bottom) but I ordered this dress in size Large and it is a perfect fit.

Check out the back of the dress...it has belt sewn to the dress with the same fabric. You may not see the belt because I tied it loosely.

I got 6 pieces from the brand but will share the remaining 5 in a subsequent post.

I also threw a blazer on the dress to make it work appropriate

Dress - EricDress Click here to shop
Mini Bag - Send an email to opeyemisdiary@gmail. com if you want to buy
Box Bag - 21stCollections on instagram
Wig: - Remmyhairquarters on instagram
Hat and slip on - Oldie

How else do you think I can restyle the dress?

Thanks for stopping by:
XO

Denim Day out with Princess and Debzy

Hello beautiful people, welcome to my blog.
I am ashamed of apologizing since I went MIA again after promising to stop....I always fail to keep that promise so I am not doing that any more, as per when to expect a blog post.We see when we see. *covers face

Well I am here now but not here alone, I am here with my blogger babes Princess, whom you have met here  here  here and here when we did collaborations

and Debzy of Debswriteblog whom I met on the street of Instagram sometime last year and have never met in person till last Saturday when we met for this shoot.

We did a denim themed shoot and here we are:

I own quite a number of denim pieces, but I am not really a denim buff. This stems from the fact that I am at work most of my waking hours and I try not to do denim to work even though we don't have a dress code but the accountant in me will not let me and Friday is reserved for Ankara...lol

 I opted for a denim shirt with a denim button through skirt and accessorized with a belt bag in red and black snake print for that pop of colour and I paid homage to both the belt bag and my outfit with the choice of my shoes which is predominantly black but has colorful details which has red and finished it off with a black baker boy cap to match all the blacks on my outfit and accessories.

So much joy shooting with Princess and Debzy, please visit their blog www.princessaudu.com and www.debwritesblog.com to read their take on this collaboration.....the two of them unlike me can write! so trust me you will enjoy their blog post.

Whose style resonates more with you?

Thanks for stopping by:
XO.

How To Wear A Polka Dot Maxi Dress In 4 Ways

Hello beautiful people, welcome to my blog.
I got this polka dot maxi dress from Queenette Couture, a Nigerian Ready To Wear Brand.....wore another outfit from the brand last year Click Here to read that post.

We all have that "I don't know what to wear" moment from time to time, you can always restyle your maxi dresses to suit the occasion and give a different vibe. That was what I did with this Polka Dot Maxi dress which I styled in 4 ways.

1. I styled the dress with a neck piece which you can buy here and a straw bag for a casual look and outing.

2. A blazer over the dress for work

3. Added a straw hat to the blazer look for church or a day at the races when Meghan Markle finally gets that invite across *she is my best friend in my head...lol

4. The Dress over a black and white stripe shirt. This is my favourite of the 4. I will wear this for a family event, to hang out with the girls or for a date depending on where we are going.

There are still several ways to style this.......I am thinking the skirt over dress styling for fashion week.....if you are into that.....how else will you style it?

You can can place your order for this versatile dress on:
Instagram: @queenettecouture
WhatsApp or call: 08131096950

Which is your favourite look and where will you wear it to?

Thanks for stopping by:
Love and Light.

How To Wear One Ankara Culotte Jumpsuit In Six Ways

Hello beautiful people, welcome to my blog.
I got this beautiful ankara culotte jumpsuit from Fashion Junkie, a made in Nigeria ready to wear brand and did a look boo with it. I styled it in Six ways

1. You know me and my mixing prints prowess....I think I am pretty good at it, It is my style super power......argue with your keyboard...LOL.
I wore a stripped shirt under the jumpsuit to shake things up a bit. A wise fashion person said when mixing prints especially if you are a beginner....pick out unifying colours....I picked out white and red though there are other colours on the jumpsuit I could work with. I accessorized with red because of the red on the shirt and I love the outcome.
I would wear this to work as we don't have a dress code.Where will you wear this to?

2. I layered with a shirt again. In this case, a classic white shirt that came with a little drama on the sleeves and bishop collar. I threw on a red beret for that little oomph factor. I colour blocked with Green shoes, red beret and mustard bag as per the accessories.The colours are on the jumpsuit. I would wear this to work and to church.

3. Ankara overload.....I mixed prints here again with the ankara shoes, bag and head wrap which by the way is a kimono.....well.....why should I buy a head wrap when I have stuff made from ankara that would work, I am a cheapskate like that. I would wear this on a Friday #AnkaraFriday.

4. Casual slay.....A tee cinched at the waist with a belt over the jumpsuit for a casual day out that require me to be a bit dressy. I decided to work with black shoes and purse here to match the belt.
I would wear this to hang out with the girls and also for date Night.

5.  Another casual slay.....The jumpsuit with sneakers and fedora for a casual day out. I would go see a movie like this, hang out with friends, blogger meet ups etc

6. A red blazer over the jumpsuit and I accessorized with red too. This look will be perfect for work and church.

Fashion Junkie is a Nigerian brand that stocks fabulous pieces at affordable prices. You can reach them on:
Instagram @fashionjunkiecollections
Call/WhatsApp 08035985333

Which is your favourite out of the Six looks? where will you wear it to?

Thanks for stopping by:
XO

Not Just a Hashtag and Ankara Dresses

Hello beautiful people, welcome to my blog.

"Women supporting women" is a very popular hashtag in the world of social media with 3.1 million users on instagram alone as at when writing this post but do women actually really support women? This year for women's day, I saw a lot of captions with "collaboration over competition" on instagram but is that really the case with us?

As you find these beautiful hashtags and captions, you also find "you can't sit us" which is mostly used by women. you may say "that is just a social media slang" "it doesn't mean anything", in a world when even with how you dress, you pass a message, that is a message too. A written message at that.....a message and vibe you get from women when you are new to an industry that you are not really welcome and they will not support you or extend a welcoming hand to you even when it is obvious that you really need all the support and help you can get to navigate the murky waters of that field.

While nobody really owes anybody, but as women we already have enough against us, things like equality,stereotypes amongst other issues so coming together to support each other is something we really should embrace to make life easier. The Bible says "one will put one thousand to flight but two will put ten thousand to flight" which in my opinion means we can do and achieve more together.

But there are also women who are doing beautiful things and are supportive and uplifting of other women. women who know that we rise by lifting others and the sky is wide enough for all.Women who believe that one woman winning is a win for all and everybody's time will come. Women who know that collaboration is actually a competitive advantage. Women who know that we need each other to rule the world. Women who know the importance of network.

When I moved to my second job ever, I resumed and the organization gave me a supervisor who turned out to be a woman. I was sad and scared which was wrong actually because I had based my expectation on what I had heard about women bosses which is wrong but guess what , she turned out to be the best supervisor I have ever had and while we have both moved to other roles and jobs, we remain friends. I have met several other amazing women who are supportive and great......and then I met Princess on Instagram

Remember Princess Audu from this post Christmas Outfit with Princess Audu and this post How to transition your outfit from day to night  How to mix prints with Princess Audu? she has been really really really kind, supportive and helpful with this blogging thing. Well......obviously, since this is my Fourth collaboration with her and the only blogger I have collaborated with. This is partly my fault as I haven't tried reaching out to other bloggers too.

I started blogging last year and I was very skeptical about reaching out to other bloggers even though I really wanted to and I still want to but I hate being snubbed. "The blogging thing no do me like that abeg" I said .....lol.....so I just stayed on my own and was doing my thing, then Princess Audu followed and reached out to me and this is our third collaboration.....I should face my fear and just reach out to others, right? I will get some "NOs" and I will get a lot of "YESes" and I will also get snubbed.... but that is life. You are not everybody's cup of tea and it is okay. You are just a hashtag to some....lol

It is a celebration when we meet as you can see from the photos, we talk and talk and talk...laugh and laugh and laugh that at the end of the shoot we can barely get serious looking photos....lol
Princess and I met up to serve you these gorgeous ankara goodness from Mayrush. Visit her blog at www.princessaudu.com to read her interesting take on this collaboration. Click here

Mayrush is a brand that stocks affordable ready to wear ankara pieces in vibrant prints and gorgeous designs....get to shopping, save yourself tailor hassles and you will not regret it, I will drop their details below. These ankara dresses were beautifully done with quality fabrics as  it didn't run when I washed mine and the finishing is quite neat.

You can reach Mayrush on:
Instagram: @mayrushonline
WhatsApp:  08093556052

So is women supporting women just a hastag to you? What do you do to make a difference?
What do you think of this collaboration?

Thanks for stopping by:
XO