Lydia's Weekly Lifestyle blog is for today's African girl, so no subject is taboo. My purpose is to share things that may interest today's African girl.

This week's contributors: Lydia, Pépé Pépinière, Titi. This week's subjects: A practical Accra-chic flair: 5 Ways to Wear Ankara to Work Without Breaking the Dress Code, She's a single mother, Wear the right slip, and Like Cakes

A practical Accra-chic flair: 5 Ways to Wear Ankara to Work Without Breaking the Dress Code. Because culture and corporate can absolutely coexist. Let’s be honest — the Accra corporate scene is evolving, and so is the wardrobe. Gone are the days when African prints were reserved for Fridays or special occasions. The modern Accra girl knows how to weave her culture into her career — and still keep it classy. If you’ve ever wondered how to rock Ankara at the office without raising eyebrows from HR, here’s your stylish cheat sheet. The Ankara Blazer — Your Power Move When in doubt, start with a blazer. A tailored Ankara jacket over a white blouse and neutral trousers instantly says “I mean business — but make it Ghana.” Go for prints with muted tones or geometric patterns that feel sophisticated. Think navy, maroon, olive, or soft gold. Pair with nude pumps or loafers, and you’re boardroom ready with a twist. The Statement Skirt — Chic Yet Professional A high-waisted Ankara pencil skirt is your wardrobe MVP. Pair it with a crisp button-down shirt or a silk blouse in a solid colour. It’s the perfect mix of feminine and fierce. Add a slim belt and minimal jewelry, and you’ve turned your office corridor into a runway — without breaking any rules. The Hybrid Dress — Half Print, Full Confidence For the girl who loves versatility, look for dresses that blend Ankara accents with plain fabrics. Think a shift dress with printed sleeves, or a monochrome body with an Ankara collar and waistband. It keeps the vibe professional but with a cultural edge — like saying “Yes, I’m fashionable, and I can still close that deal.” The Subtle Touch — Ankara Accessories Not ready to go full-print? Start small. Add a pop of Ankara through accessories — a fabric belt, a tote bag, a headband, or even a statement shoe. These accents bring colour and creativity to your look without crossing the corporate line. It’s a great way to test your comfort zone while keeping things sleek. The Friday Flair — Go Bold, Stay Polished Ah, the sacred Casual Friday. Your chance to fully embrace the print! Try a tailored Ankara jumpsuit or a midi dress with structured shoulders. Keep your accessories gold-toned, your heels simple, and your confidence sky-high. The key is tailoring — clean cuts keep your look professional even when your fabric is loud. Style Note: Ankara at work isn’t rebellion — it’s evolution. It’s the Accra girl’s way of saying, “I can honor my culture and run the boardroom — in the same outfit.” So next Monday, when you reach for that plain black blazer, pause. Your Ankara is waiting — bold, beautiful, and absolutely ready for business

She's a single mother. This sounds a bit like a derogative description of some silly girl who got herself impregnated by Mr. flyaway and now has to scrape money, not for one but for 2. For the juveniles it seems iPhones and KFC are major contributors. Anyway, we wish girly the best and many do get happily married later. But the above scenario is not always the case. A recent trend is that the girl does want to have a child, normal, after all she's completely build towards that, but she doesn't want the hassle of a husband around who wants to have full details of her movements whilst he himself regularly disappears, with the risk of HIV as a bonus. So she now has a few options. Adopt, though that is not the real thing but the advantage is that you can choose, boy or girl, good looking, seemingly intelligent and heathy, and if you get one at age say 3 the child will not really remember anything else than you. And, maybe surprisingly, grandparents mostly will fully accept the child as their own, even if they have “real” ones from other children. Another advantage is that you don't get stretch marks, at least not from having a child. An option as well is to get pregnant from a known person, maybe a family friend, you've had the chance to check a few things like madness or sickness in his genes, and hopefully sickle. Complication could be that he wants to get too close to the child, claim ownership, things like that, and if everyone agrees that the child has same nose, or bat ears, it will be difficult to deny that he is the father. Option 3 is to get what we call a “one night stand”, say your name is Godwilling Mensah from Kumasi, give him a phone number of a police officer and disappear forever. But in this case you have no idea what's in the making, all his brothers and sisters could be raving mad. Last one (but let me know if you know more) is to get artificial insemination from a donor, the clinic will confirm that the sperm donor looks good and is healthy and “normal”, but that's all you get, apart from a very fat bill (10-25 k easily). Yeah, men have it easy.....

Wear the right slip. Any gynecologist will advise you to wear simple cotton slips, they reduce your chances of getting “cheese”, yeast infection. But they do not always look very good on you, so we wear more elegant underwear. But beware what you wear. A recent test done in Switzerland on 16 female slips found that 14 contained bisphenols A, B and S, substances which are reprotoxic, or, simply said, make you sterile. Winners were Triumph, Chantelle and Calvin Klein with H&M, Intimissimi and Zara doing a good toxic job as well. The 2 “clean” slips were from Etam and Luxury Moments by Hanro. In Ghana you'll probably be buying a “no name” slip, or a Butterfly, Eagle or Royal from China. Maybe pure simple cotton is better?

Like cakes? Real homemade good ingredients not dried out cakes? Try Green Butterfly market at Parks and Garden, near the Russian Embassy and opposite the DVLA office, Accra, every first and third Saturday of the month. If you are only coming for the cakes come early, the better ones run out quick. Apart from cakes and foodstuffs there’s a wide range of articles, ranging from tie and dye to sculptures, books, clothing, you mention it, I never realized how creative Accra can be. A worthwhile experience, and to see it all you’ll need several hours. Additional bonus is that most of the female vendors really try to look their best, and they do.

Lydia...

Do not forget to hit the subscribe button and confirm in your email inbox to get notified about our posts.

I have received requests about leaving comments/replies. For security and privacy reasons my blog is not associated with major media giants like Facebook or Twitter. I am talking with the host about a solution. for the time being, you can mail me at wunimi@proton.me

I accept invitations and payments to write about certain products or events, things, and people, but I may refuse to accept and if my comments are negative then that's what I will publish, despite your payment. This is not a political newsletter. I do not discriminate on any basis whatsoever.