The fruits of the Caribbean that I miss dearly…
Coconut Water – ‘Described as the ‘Tree of Heaven’, throughout the Caribbean, coconut water is a preferred thirst quencher, while the milky jelly is a tasty appetizer.
Guinep/Skinip – ‘This fruit has a rough but thin skin with thin soft jelly-like flesh which becomes addictive
Carambola/Five Fingers –The Five Fingers fruit is sweet, watery, slightly acid and pleasant to taste when blended to make juice.
On page 20 of the Island issue a island fashionista shows how inventive you can be with natural hair. Little did we know at the time that there was a collective of women celebrating their natural hair by sharing hair care information at fun events. The six Complexd founders aim to connects women internationally by providing a tangible resource of information within the natural hair movement.
At their most recent event Curl Crush – a speed dating event with a hair twist, we were inspired by the array of fashion forward women who were evidence of how much can be achieved with natural hair.
Check out more images by Raoul Brown here
To find out more about Curly Girl Collective and get advice on maintaining natural hair click the image above
Name: Azzi Kalili
Age: 27
Place of birth: Abadan, Iran
Current residence: London
I was born in Iran and my family moved to Sydney, Australia when I was four. It was a very big culture shock, but eventually I got used to the sunshine and the freedom to do whatever I wanted.
I started out editing educational magazines which then led to a job in publishing at Thomson Reuters where I was trained to become a journalist. I did a bit of news reporting for a few years while juggling my own artistic career.
Four years ago I just stumbled on a film set in Sydney where the director suggested I try commercial modelling. I had an exciting time juggling features for The Times newspaper while racing to castings.
Now I collaborate with my partner, we focus mainly on developing our art and photography projects. We are called Picle and we exhibit in Sydney and London.
We also combine our skills to create portfolios for models, actors and performers.
My style is effortless and practical with a splash of colour. I love mixing the old and the new, the cheap and the decadent. I’m obsessed with Portobello Market and grabbing timeless pieces at bargain prices.
A unique place I visited was Exmouth in Western Australia. I had the rare opportunity to swim with whale sharks. My next trip is to Cuba, like Iran it is a country with warm and vibrant people living under an oppressive regime.
Women have an inner, emotional strength that is often underestimated. I am a Complexd woman because being a Persian who grew up in Sydney and now living in London has given me opportunities to see the world. I am academic as a journalist, creative with my art and expressive in my modelling.
Me and the team have been working on the ‘Woman of Strength’ issue and we are confident that you are going to find the features both touching and inspiring. We ask each interviewee this question: Who gives you inner strength?
My great grandmother with my mother and her great grandchild
Without a doubt I get my inner strength from my mother, but I started to think about where she got her strength from. When I asked her she promptly told me that she got it from her grandmother. I have talked about my great grandmother, who turns 103 in April on numerous occasions. Because of the tender love and care she reared my mother with, I have the most loving and supportive mother anyone could wish for.
A few days ago I came across a documentary on the Grenadian revolution produced by John Douglas. During the 1970s, Grenada’s political situation became increasingly violent. The Grenadian People’s Revolutionary Militia was created by the New Jewel Movement a New Joint Endeavour for Welfare, Education, and Liberation. In 1979, the New Jewel Movement under Maurice Bishop launched a paramilitary attack on the government resulting in its overthrow. The movement took control of the country with a successful revolution and ruled by decree until being deposed by the US military after its 1983 invasion.
At 6.36 minutes to my surprise there was my great grandmother at the age of 73 saying that she joined the militia to protect her grandchildren. There you have it, a woman of strength who put her family first so that they could fulfil their goals and aspirations and continues to be a pillar of her family and community.
My great grandmother, local residents and the previous and current prime ministers Keith Mitchell and Tilman Thomas cutting the ribbon for the official opening of Birch Grove bridge
Portrait by Keena ©
Name: Nailah Lymus, Age: 28, Occupation: Fashion Designer, Place of birth: Oneonta New York, Current residence: Brooklyn, New York
My background is a mixture of African-American, Irish, and Cherokee Native American and I was born and raised a Muslim. My UMMI (mother) encouraged me to be creative and my ABU (father) pushed the academic side, so I had a very balanced passion for both. I’ve always been creative and ambitious as a young girl, I used to make flowers and place them on my Hijab (head scarf) to make it fancier. I started making my own jewellery at the age of 7 and was interview by my local paper in Syracuse, New York.
I never wanted to become a fashion designer until the day I attempted to make a skirt for myself, to my surprise it came out exactly as I envisioned. From that point on I started to make my own clothes and friends and family began enquiring about my designs, before I knew it I was creating collections and accessories. I now operate as an independent designer and I love every minute of it.
I want to educate through my designs so I create transitional designs for Muslim and non Muslim women. I wanted to break down misunderstandings and stereotypes associated with Muslim women.
A common one is our attire and what we can and cannot wear. Muslim women can wear numerous styles of clothing as long as we layer them in a way that fits the modest guidelines of Islam. My garments are modest for the non-Muslim woman and would need to be Islamified (layered) for the Muslim woman. I simply want people to understand that Islam is our religion, but we are still women and love fashion.
I love how God created me. The power that a woman possesses once she truly applies herself and remains focused is amazing. I love that we can speak to each-other about the constant challenges that life presents. Women share information with each other that allows us to work on ourselves.
I am Complexd because I appreciate that my talent is a gift that God blessed me with and I know I should use it as a tool to educated myself and not get caught up in the superficiality of the industry. This is my reason for always mentioning that I am a practicing Muslim woman and explaining the true beauty of Islam.
See me of Nailah’s designs here