this is my godsister ivana. she's been invited to a grease-themed party and her mummy reached out to my mummy for some help with a cute outfit for her to wear.  after years of buying different outfits for themed parties that never get worn again, she's decided she wants to get some non-costume pieces that ivana can wear again and again outside the house! as ever, mummy was ready for the assignment! she loves to shop - whether it's for herself or someone else!

Ivana, my other godsister Carmen & I at the end of my 4th birthday party

character-wise, there are no black girls in the original movie. however in january this year, FOX released Grease:LIVE which was broadcast live in the US to much acclaim. in this version, we see keke palmer take on the role of marty, the ‘beauty’ of the Pink Ladies. marty is pretty, looks older than the other girls, but betrays her real age when she opens her mouth. she tries to act sophisticated.
this sounds a little like ivana :)

so what are we looking for with this character? well, all the girls wear the "pink ladies" jacket, which is an iconic element of the movie's costumes along with the leather jackets the boys wear.  the jacket was always teamed with a neckerchief. for marty we'd then have to source a pretty yellow top & blue skirt and we're done.





1. Jacket - New Look 
2. neckerchief - asos 
3. yellow top - river island 
4. blue skirt - river island
5. shoes - monsoon



another character to go for would be sandy, the main girl.
a look that screams "grease!" is the black fitted jumpsuit that sandy wears in her transformation scene. obviously, worn as is, it could be a little too sexy for an 8yr old. one could take elements and create a cute outfit.




Sandy's pre-transformation outfits are definitely more likely to easily translate to an 8yr old girls wardrobe. they have a very "park avenue princess" feel to them. key elements of sandy's style: flared skirts, feminine blouses (think ruffle details / lace / pearly buttons), dresses with flared skirts, gingham checks, cute ballet flats & ofcourse the cardi thrown over the shoulders. she also always wears a ribbon alice band!




1. blouse - la redoute
2. prom dress - river island 
3. white cardi - zara
4. white belt - zara
5.silver ballet pumps - la redoute
6. skirt - la redoute
7.blue cardi - zara




hopefully ivana and her mummy love some of the suggestions mummy has made. we'll share pics with you once we hear from them!

we love hearing from you! if you would like help with achieving a particular look or have any other style queries, please contact us: tanaka@whatmummywore.com.



 **marty character synopsis source

I am perfectly fine everyday, in my house. I love the way I look. I appreciate my efforts with my make-up and think I pull myself together quite well. Then I leave the house. And see someone I feel is better. Then suddenly I too begin to question the point of my existence. Suddenly everyone else looks so much better, has nicer houses, better jobs, better hair and teeth and lives. Woe is me.

In the past few months I've been noticing just how much Morayo-Hope is like me and it scares me senseless. I don't want her to be like me. At least not the traits of me I see in her. Which begs the question, if I don't want her to be like that, why am I settling for being that way?
She is merely reflecting what she sees in me.




It's easy to get caught up in the hype of flowers, lunches and spas when we speak of Mother's day. We do deserve it! Haha! Motherhood is no easy job. Parenting is no easy job.  Recently I got to thinking about what we, as mothers, have been charged with in this journey called motherhood.
We are entrusted with these fragile lives that are our responsibility to nurture into adults. Adults whom we hope can make a positive contribution to our world. It is both a frightening and humbling responsibility.







** the images posted here are from a 2014 shoot titled "An African Princess in Windsor". The photographer was Nimz . She's currently showcasing her portraits on motherhood here. Be sure to follow her page!**

No, it's not a typo. This is my week. Today is my birthday. And Sunday is my day too.....because in the UK, it's Mother's Day!  I mean honestly, when God smiles on me, he literally rains glitter on my head!! So...people, listen up. I have heard your cries from on high.....the "I don't know what to buy Tanaka, she has such specific tastes etc etc"ones.

earlier this year, mummy was tasked with finding a cake maker for her friend's baby shower. she found someone she loves and agreed on a cake. unfortunately a week to the shower, mummy found out there had been a miscommunication which meant she now had to find a new cake maker. she couldn't find anyone at such short notice! she had to make the cake. enter Youtube! Mummy watched every video on how to make ruffle cakes and bought the necessary gadgets. By the day of the shower, a zombie-mode mummy clutched her handiwork and delivered it in one piece to the venue. she had never been so proud of herself!







having triumphed at ruffles, mummy now felt invincible. she decided to bake my birthday cake! as it was a fairy party, it was only fitting that she should bake a fairy princess cake! back to youtube university she went and with some keen guidance & on-the-day help from my aunty Tsungi, (herself a baker), this was the cake she made!







having begun to garner a neat little reputation for herself from sharing the above cakes enthusiastically on her facebook profile, mummy was asked to bake another baby shower cake. she couldn't say no to this request! she already had very clear ideas of the kind of cake she wanted to make. her inspiration was as below:



 




on the day, all the cakes were baked & ready to be iced & decorated. it was a blissfully hot day and mummy hummed away to herself as she rolled out the fondant icing. she placed the icing onto the cake the way a seasoned professional would & began to smooth it. the fondant was having none of it & began to....wrinkle up.... for lack of a better word. mummy removed it & started again. same thing happened. then she thought, ok - it has to be ruffles then. happily she rolled out the fondant and cut out her strips. she stuck them on and they flopped about - a bit like an orangutan's boobs. she knew what to do & held them up with cocktail sticks. but soon, the cake resembled a hedgehog & as she removed the sticks, visible holes remained. back to square one. mummy finally cottoned on to the fact that fondant & heat are lifelong enemies and a fan was brought in. she started again and finally the cake below was the result of that steep learning curve!






the good thing is that no deaths were reported as a result of anyone eating these cakes. mummy feels she's well on her way to martha stewart status (minus jail term) - and is now attempting an even more challenging 4th bake! we are looking forward to seeing how this goes. it'll be fondant iced, lets hope this indian summer doesn't last till christmas!

**images of the 3 inspiration cakes are from pinterest & google searches. the work is not my mummy's own.**

All new parents are ever eager to hear their child talk / see them walk / watch them run for the first time. I am yet to meet a parent who eagerly anticipates the day their child will disturb them mid long awaited steak dinner to announce "I need a poo poo." But this is the one thing our little princes and princesses are ever eager to do. Morayo-Hope is surely top of the leader board on that front. I feel like she has some kind of chip that activates as soon as I settle to any meal I've been eagerly anticipating. It doesn't matter the time of day or night. Doesn't matter if she's just successfully completed a session accompanied by her dad. I must still be invited to partake of my daily torture.