It has been a while since I ventured into the ‘Blogosphere’ – over a year in fact. And whilst I had many reasons surrounding the abandonment of my blog, just like an aged boy band or Kerry Katona’s coke habit I now feel the time is nigh to bring it back. Some view blogging as an ideal platform for narcissists to indulge in a bit of self love. But for me, it was much more of a cathartic experience… blogging allowed me to release, to reflect and in some ways to escape. For those of you with blogs/ tumblers of your own I’m sure you would have felt the relief that blogging can sometimes give you once you’ve poured out your joys, angst, heartaches etc. And whilst this is not an online therapy group, it was nice to be able to share and interact with you guys. Hopefully we can pick up where we left off…

… And so, in an effort to do just that, I thought it would be great to summarise what I have been doing in our time apart. Having realised that my last post was easily 18 months ago or more – I quickly reneged the idea of thorough update. I have travelled (Dubai, New York, Kenya, Jamaica, Ireland, Canada), I have moved home, got new ink, purchased a new set of wheels (well, now old set of wheels lol), interviewed Diddy (a personal highlight) I have partied, I have loved, and I have grown. But with a new year comes a new focus and new energy. Like Jay and Kanye, I am in my zone – 2012 is going to be a good one!

Most of you will be aware that I have a fashion site, Champagne + Stiletto’s (if you don’t know how handy is it that I have made this into a link for you? x). Those of you who have journeyed with me from it’s inception over at UrbanWorld would have seen how it has grown and flourished. We have been working with amazing designers such as Lulu Guiness, Zadig + Voltaire and Hugo Boss and this has largely contributed to my lengthy absenteeism from blogging. The C+S team are working on the 3.0 version which will be more interactive and user friendly. Thanks to everyone who has signed up to our bi-monthly glamazine. Our subscriber list is now 17k strong and growing. Please feel free to get in touch with any feedback for the site during this redevelopment process…

This website has also had a bit of a face lift! I am always embracing change and whilst I miss the old site – I think this one is so much better. Very happy with how it has turned out. Thanks to the amazing Kaizen Designs for all their hard work. It has been a labour of love but we got there in the end!

I have also been busy with a (not so) new project that will be ready to launch May of this year. Whilst I cant speak much about it just yet, all will be revealed in the coming weeks via this blog so stay tuned.

Yesterday I attended the UEL (University of East London) end of year graduate fashion show at Ministry of Sound. I was there to support a long time friend and designer Annilia Glanville (pictured above) who was showcasing her work. A massive well done to all of the graduates – the show was amazing and the work so impressive!

To check out some of my favourite pieces from the show click HERE. It was the perfect way to amp me up for Fashion Week which is literally just around the corner!

Well I guess this wraps up my comeback post… until the next time…

TB x

In the event of Guru’s untimely death at the hands of Cancer it got me to thinking about the Legends I have loved and lost in my 24 years. Unlike my younger cousins and even younger God-children who are being reared on Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Jedward and other manufactured trash, I had the good fortune of being exposed to good music with soul and real substance. Michael Jackson’s BAD album cover was the first poster on my wall. I remember him before the ridicule, the allegations and the unfortunate descent into madness and obsessive cosmetic surgery. It saddens me that my youngest God-daughter who is 2 this summer will not experience his legacy first hand. This is the same for other Greats of my time whose legacy I have been blessed to witness such as Luther Vandross, Tupac, Aaliyah and more.

Although we currently have superstars in our midst- aside from Mariah, Jay Z and not forgetting his wife (Oh and Whitney of course who already has one foot in the grave) are there any current artists who have real potential to leave a true musical legacy after death?

There are a lot of great artists out there – I could name a dozen from Lauryn Hill to Enya but will we ever see a true Icon such as Michael again in our lifetime? He is quite possibly the biggest artist and icon we have ever known. Will we ever have a pioneering artist lead a musical revolution such as Guru? The music industry today is full of clones and tribute bands who instead of creating something original choose to imitate the greats that paved the way before them. From Nicki Minaj’s 2010 reincarnation of Lil Kim to Lady Gaga’s daring swagger jacking of Grace Jones (who by the way refused to do a collaboration with her for this precise reason). Beyonce was heavily channelling Tina Turner a few years back and even Ne-Yo has been accused of mimicking the late, great MJ (although I can’t think of a single male R&B artist who doesnt). We all have idols and role models who inspire us creatively – but who do we look to now for originality?

They say that you should never throw old clothes out of your wardrobe because fashion always comes back full circle. So if this addage is true, I wonder, can the same be applied to music?

I was lucky enough to meet and interview both Guru and his sidekick Solar (who is a grouchy little man) this time last year. Guru was incredible. Like the Oracle he was full of knowledge and wisdom and his innate love for Hip Hop was evident and as strong as ever. It was an honour to have him share a piece of his history with me. We spoke for almost an hour about many things and I reckon we could’ve spoken for hours more had management not kicked me out. Infact, he reminded me of an Uncle I had who would not stop talking if you got him started on a topic he loved (namely Jamaica or Cricket or a fusion of both – the West Indies cricket team ). I remember leaving the interview thinking that that was one of the experiences in my life I would never forget.

Never.

RIP Guru.

TB xx

Yes that is my leg!

My beautiful 34 inch prized possessions were mauled in a car accident over Easter. I have barely had the will or the energy to write let alone do much else but my friends suggested I blog about the event in a cathartic attempt to find the silver lining in my (mini) tragedy.

I don’t remember much about the accident as I fell unconscious shortly after the collision but I was later told that it took 45 minutes to cut me out of the car and that the police had been called to the scene in fear of a fatality. Can you imagine? To think I escaped with a busted ankle is truly a blessing!  My clothes had to be cut off of me (including a new pair of knee high riding boots which I was particularly distraught over)

- even my cutest lace La Perla set was snipped in two! *Nana Berry always warned me as a child to wear clean matching underwear to save embarrassment should I be rushed unexpectedly to hospital and so luckily I was well prepared in the advent of this disaster.*

Of course these things are insignificant in comparison to the bigger picture and can be replaced but still…

a loss is still a loss… no matter how trivial

Whilst in hospital I spent the majority of my days in a sleep induced limbo (courtesy of prescribed codeine and 6 other types of medication that I must take at 8 hour intervals daily). I had no phones and no internet (which aside from the food was the absolute worst thing about being in hospital). I was plagued by thoughts of backlogged emails, scarred legs that may never heal, ingenious ways in which to disguise my black eye and bodily bruises, and of course pending work that just won’t do itself. I stressed about the obvious setbacks of being immobile for an exasperating amount of time (my GP reckons 6-8 weeks before I can walk again without aid), I fretted about being sidelined professionally (albeit temporarily) and I cried over the painful realisation that some of the people I thought I could count on in my greatest hour of need could not be counted on at all. 

Funny how life works out sometimes…

Hugs kisses and Bio oil,