Cultural Adornment: African Beads

One of my favorite things to bring back with me whenever I travel to Ghana are beads. These beads can come in the form of earrings, necklaces, bracelets and my absolute favorite waist beads. The beads are made of different materials including the traditional powdered glass, painted glass, wood, coral and the more modern plastic beads. I, personally, prefer the traditional looks, however it can be difficult to avoid some of the plastic jewel-like beads. Despite the material of the beads it is hard to resist the allure of these exquisite pieces of jewelry. The waist beads in particular have a way of making a woman feel like a beauty to be reckoned with. They are worn under the clothes, so only the lady wearing them knows that they are there, but the sheer knowledge of their presence can make you feel quite risqué. Take a look at some of these beautiful pieces of jewelry.

Tips for new bloggers.

If you are new to the blogging world here are a few essential resources to get you off on the right foot. This list is especially for those who have decided to start with a free WordPress blog.

Born black as a result of a sperm bank mixup.

I have been debating whether or not to discuss the now infamous sperm bank mixup here on Afroviolet, but I realize it must be discussed. It must be discussed on as many platforms as possible. If you have not heard of this yet, I’ll give you a bit of a summary.

A white lesbian couple from Ohio decided to start a family by using a sperm bank. They carefully chose the sperm donor through a profile provided by the sperm bank. The donor they chose was a white man with blonde hair and blue eyes,

The Fashionable Africanah

As a child I had always dreamed of wearing garments that incorporated Ankara fabric into wearable pieces in the western world. Over the past several years this has become a reality. Many fashion forward African designers are cropping up all over the world. Their vibrant and rich designs are creating a refreshing aesthetic in the world of fashion. In fact, African fashion has become a hot niche in the international fashion industry. Below are some of the garments and accessories that speak to the Africanah in me. You can find all of these looks on Etsy. Enjoy!

The significance of language in an increasingly western world.

It is interesting that I have been wanting to start a blog for the longest time, but when I finally created my blog I suddenly drew a blank and had no idea where to start. So, this is me just diving in.

I suppose I’ll begin by telling you a little bit about myself. I was born and raised in a New England suburb and consider myself a first-generation American. Both of my parent are naturally born citizens of Ghana. Growing up, I strongly identified with my African culture and heritage.