I travel from Lagos to Osun to make my hair –Onoriode

Onoriode Odah Ovwurie, the Editor-in-Chief of Now 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.