A K W I Y A H

This dress is one of the first five pieces of clothing I designed and uploaded on Instagram. That was almost 6 months ago. It was never my intention to start a fashion blog where I designed my own clothes. Everyone in Ghana takes their clothes to a seamstress or tailor to sew something for them. Starting my own blog and sharing my ideas on here gave me the excuse to explore and  create. It is as simple as that ... I just enjoy creating. Whether it is custom made or purchased from a retailer...I just love putting different ideas together.

In a short six months it has opened up a well of happiness and joy ... I'm allowed to wander fearlessly when it comes to my style.

And I appreciate every single view I get on here - It's amazing to see people from Israel, Canada, Italy, Kenya, Brazil, UK, Netherlands, etc...

To All of you -Hi - Thank you for the support! Every time I see views from a new country it honestly makes my heart smile. Please stick around because there are bigger and better things on the horizon.

So here's a cheers to taking a 'Plunge' into the deep ;) (Yes I'm Cheesy)

Follow me on Instagram at Akwiyah for constant updates!

Sometimes when things in life get hard I just want to throw in the towel. My passion for what I do on Akwiyah and the way I choose to do it is what keeps me going. I constantly remind myself: The bridge between reality and the dream is hard work - consistent, unrelenting hard work. I read the the words below and they struck are definitely words to live by. Nothing great comes easy. I will continue to strive even harder to make this blog better for myself and every single viewer that visits this little space of mine. 

“There is something in our culture that says your dream or the thing you’re pursuing has to happen immediately and all at once, and that is destructive to the creative spirit. I just embraced the idea that this was going to be a gradual exploration of the thing I was interested in...American Culture is the overnight success and "right now" mentality it's just destructive, and we should resist it and go our own way" -  Ava Duvernay

“A lot of times young girls are impatient and they want it to happen so quickly… 

They try it and if it’s not happening fast enough they move on to something else. But that something else that they move on to isn’t necessarily their passion. They couldn’t be patient anymore and obviously we all need money and you want something stable, but I always say ride it out because when you’re doing something that you actually love, you’re going to enjoy going to work every day.”

- Kahlana Barfield, InStyle Editor

xx Akwiyah

Designed by Akwiyah | Necklace purchased locally in Ghana |

No my legs are not wide, purple or blue - but my pants are! I told my seamstress to make them as wide and as long as possible - and she did not disappoint. I remember when I first put these on I made a mental note to chill with the wide pants for a while. I cannot promise that I will stick to this - but what I can promise is that I will not deny myself from indulging in wide leg heaven :)

 Wearing tennis shoes or in flats or in stilettos..Electro-, Sophisticated, Funky, lady- We the kind of girls who aint afraid to get down. Electric Ladies go and scream out loud! - Janelle Monae

Overalls - Forever 21 Old | Jeffrey Campbell Lester Plated Oxford Shoes - Nasty Gal | Necklace - Forever 21 (old) | Lips - Ruby Woo Mac

This post was absolutely inspired by Fisayo Longe's Ode to Ugly Shoes and Girls Who Wear Them.

When I wore these shoes in Boston I got stares. In Manhattan I got stares. In Ghana - the shoes are one thing but the exposed bra...it was way too much for my conservative country.

Sometimes I allow popular opinion in real life and on social media to get to me but with each post I strive to have the confidence to expose style that is true to me. My style cannot - and will never - be described in just one word. There are too many facets of me and my crazy weird self that exist in my head. And I refuse to hide any of them.

-Akwiyah