Magazine, talks fashion with Ademola Olonilua
Which would you rather wear, your natural hair or
weave?
Well, if I had very good hair texture then I would have rocked
my natural hair and do all crazy styles of weave with it but
unfortunately, that's not the case. I alternate with other
options, thank God for weave-ons and attachments.
How much does it cost you to make your hair and how
long does it take?
To be very honest, there is no price tag to my hair. I can
spend a lot on it as long as I like it and it suits me. I am really
crazy when it comes to my hair styles because most of the
time, I create my own styles which are always very unique,
crazy, and very colourful. I love playing with colours on my
hair. The least number of colours you can find on my hair is
three. The duration of my hair styles depends on how well it
fits me or how well I like it. I get tired of a particular look,
easily. So I can take it off any time I get bored with the look
irrespective of how much I spent on it. Well, the truth is, the
lady that does my hair stays in Ile-Ife in Osun State. She
comes down whenever I have to make my hair, I am sure that
sounds crazy. Sometimes if she dosen't come, I go over there.
So transport plus her services is about N10,000 minus
whatever weave-on or style I decide to do. On an average I
spend like N15,000-N20,000. That is if I'm not fixing
Brazilian, Indian or Paloma weave-on and of course, you
know how much those weave-ons cost.
What's your favourite hairstyle?
I really don't have a favourite. Whatever I decide to do has to
be crazy and colourful but in a decent way. It takes guts and
attitude for some ladies to wear some of the kind of hair styles
I create. For instance the hair style I had on my wedding was
out of this world that people spent more time looking at the
hair than me.
Would you rather buy a Nigerian designer's dress or a
foreign designer's?
I wear both foreign and Nigerian made attires as long as they
look nice on me. When it comes to fashion, I don't really go
for names as such. I wear whatever looks good on me,
irrespective of who the designer is. I wear a lot of Nigerian
fabric clothes because I find them very beautiful and easy to
play around with when it comes to designing. Our fabrics
come in lots of colours and different designs that when you
blend them together, they come out fine. I design for lots of
people even though I am not a fashion designer. I have a flair
for these things because I am a very stylish person and I also
deal in fabrics.
Do you patronise Nigerian designers at all?
I patronise Nigerian designers but they may not be known
names. Even though they are not really popular, they sew very
fantastic clothes, even better than some known names. I
admire the designs of Yomi Casual. He is a very talented
young man. I see a lot of prospect in his work.
What influences your fashion style?
A lot of things influence my fashion style. From my mood,
state of mind, to the environment; a whole lot. You can't
predict my fashion sense because I don't really follow fashion
trends as such. I hate wearing what everybody is wearing. I
will rather wait for the trend to phase off before I decide to
wear mine. People tend to appreciate it better then because it
will be worn with a difference. If I am forced to go with the
trend, I will definitely wear mine with a difference.
What is that fashion item you can't leave home without
and how did you come about it?
In as much as I am a fashionable person, I am very simple.
Sometimes I go out without make-up. Often times, people tell
me I look prettier without make-up. So I wouldn't say there is
a particular fashion item I can't leave home without. I believe
simplicity does it.
What's the most expensive item you own and how much
did it cost?
I have a lot of expensive items. I can't really put a hand on
which is more expensive because I didn't get them all at the
same time. So I may not remember some of their price tags.
Some I even bought with foreign currency and really did not
remember how much it cost when converted to naira.
Best gift your spouse has ever got for you?
The best gift my husband ever gave me was and still is his
love for me, which is priceless. All other things are
secondary.
What is your fashion weakness; is it perfumes, shoes,
bracelets, etc?
I have a lot of fashion weaknesses but on top of the list is
shoes. I own over a hundred pairs of shoes. I remember one of
my birthdays when my husband surprised me by taking me on
a trip to a place where only shoes were sold and he told me to
pick any shoes of my choice, not minding how much was on
the price tag. Funny enough, we were not even married then.
He blew my mind because he knew that was one of my
weaknesses. I also love perfumes too. For clothes, I really
can't count the number of boxes I have.
Would you say you were fashionable as a kid while
growing up?
Yes I was. I remember taking part in a lot of beauty pageants,
both in my primary and secondary school days. Way back, my
folks used to call me mai-gayu. It's an Hausa word that means
'someone that likes to pose'. I always won the award for the
neatest and best dressed student in secondary school. As
young as I was then, I knew how to dress to match. That was
how I got that nick name.
When stepping out for an occasion, what do you consider?
Basically, I dress to look good and not impress anybody. I
always like to stand out. I may dress simple but in a very
unique way. I always try to make a fashion statement when
stepping out for any occasion. But one thing that always
speaks volume when I step out, is my hair style.
What are some common fashion errors you have seen that
made you to irk?
One fashion error I see is when people wear costumes that
are meant to be worn on stage either for a performing act or
for concerts. Out of ignorance, some people imitate what
celebrities wear on stage as outdoor wears. If you check out
the lives of these celebrities, you won't catch them wearing
what they wear on stage to normal outings like dinners, clubs
or even red carpet events. But in Nigeria, you see very funny
dresses that are inappropriate for certain occasions.
What is your take on cleavage exposure and women
wearing skimpy dresses?
Well to be truthful, there are certain ways you can wear some
dresses or tops that will expose just a bit of cleavage in a very
decent manner. Sometimes it depends on the design or the cut
of the neckline of the blouse or gown the person is wearing.
There are some dresses that have very low neckline cuts that
may expose a lot of your cleavage and if you really like to
wear the dress, all you have to do is cover it up a bit by
pinning a matching broach to it. By doing this, it will not
expose too much for people to see and it makes you look
more decent. Yes, sometimes, ladies like to feel and look sexy
which is why they wear some of these dresses. But they
shouldn't forget the way they dress is how they will be
addressed. About skimpy wears? Honestly, some ladies
overdo things there and end up being harassed or insulted. For
Christ's sake, why would you wear what you ought to wear to
a club in broad daylight and not expect to be harassed? The
funny part is that most of the ladies that dress like that don't
even have cars. So you can imagine a lady wearing a very
skimpy dress standing at the bus-stop in daytime. That's crazy
if you asked me. Even if you have a car, there are some places
that are not appropriate for you to wear skimpy dresses to
because you may not be taken seriously. Whatever you do, do
it in moderation.
Via: Punch
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