Checked In: Design Tips from Morocco’s Hotel Nord Pinus
When in April this year, travel blogger and friend Natasha Nyanin invited me to join her on a press tour in Northern Morocco she was curating, I hesitated. The schedule…
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An Open Letter to the Boss Who Does Not Know I am a Design Superhero
Good morning, sir. Nana here. If you’ve been reading my articles, you might have noticed that I write about African design. This might appear odd since I work for you…
Anitra Terrell’s 7 Reflektions on Capitalizing on African Print
We all stan for the big names in business – Jobs, Dangote, Branson. Personally I find myself most enthralled with small business owners that are artrepreneurs like product designer Anitra…
7 Home Design Tips Your Job Won’t Give You Before Relocating You To Africa
Akwaaba – you got the job and you are moving to Africa! In 2010, I too joined the brain gain bandwagon and moved back to Africa from Washington, DC for…
Set Design: 6 Things I Learned from Africa’s Sex And The City
An African City (AAC) premiered its second season on January 24 2016 on VHX and fans everywhere let out a collective sigh of relief that the suspense was finally over.…
African Interiors in Fashion – 4 Visual Branding Lessons that Gave me a Decorgasm
African fashion is one of the fastest growing industries on the continent and African art is enjoying somewhat of a renaissance in the Western world. But with the need to…
2016 Design Trends – How Africa Did It Right
Homepolish designer Angela Belt recently featured me as part of a series on 29 Black Tastemakers. Throughout the series, we shared our views on what’s trending in design. Trends inspire…
6 Lessons From Morocco’s Maryam Montague
For this edition of Designed to Succeed, I interviewed Maryam Montague. I can’t quite remember how I discovered her but I knew instantly that I wanted to put her entire life…
African Decor Brands That Should Be On Every Buyer’s Wish List
The first three months of every year feature a strong calendar of decor-focused trade shows and events. There is Design Indaba in South Africa and Ambiente in Germany in February,…
African Interiors in Fashion – Interview with Ghana’s Favorite Golden Girl Bee Arthur
Who is Russian-Ghanaian, born and raised in Ukraine, with blond hair and an acute sense of what’s on trend? Renowned fashion designer Bee Arthur of fashion house B’Exotiq. A golden…
Meet Happy Ideall – A Man on a Mission to Train A New Generation of Artisans in Ghana
My mother, in true African form, applauds literally anything I do to anyone who will listen (and sometimes even to those who won’t). She even brags about this blog. But…
House Tour in Tunisia’s Idyllic Sidi Bou Said
I am an ethusiastic house stalker. One of the properties I love here in Tunis is the home of my very good Sicilian friend Carlotta. She lives in the idyllic…
Designer Natalie Anderson’s Express Way to Greatness
Designed to Succeed – take three! Meet Natalie Anderson of Design Express Ghana Ltd. She is one of the young people in Accra leading the charge to change the interior design…
Micheal Adumua Lights Up Ghana’s Neighborhoods
Allow me to introduce you to my buddy Micheal Adumua of Design Consultants Ghana. He is a towering 6”4 but surprisingly soft spoken. Better still, he can solve most of your deepest, darkest…
African Interiors in Fashion – A Love Story featuring DAAR Living and Christie Brown
Every woman’s life is punctuated by certain critical moments. Puberty, your first crush, graduation, losing your chastity belt. But no event is probably ranked as highly as marriage. The consummation…
Woman is the Key: Interview with Ghanaian Wood Sculptor Ken Gwira
I love my Facebook page. The feedback and messages I receive are so encouraging and I always get to meet interesting people who I instantly want to share with the…
Feel Good Decor with Gone Rural Swaziland
Everyone likes a feel good story and Gone Rural is just that: a warm and fuzzy business venture that makes you feel good about having a fabulously well-dressed home. Introduced…
Yemi Onibiyo Makes a Start up her Dream House
Welcome to the first edition of Blueprint Africa’s Designed to Succeed series! I created this series for the distinct subgroup of entrepreneurs that create business opportunities based solely on their…
Interior Design and Revolutionary Tourism: A House Tour of Tunisia’s Ben Ali Ruins
There is nothing better than getting home from Christmas break and having a national holiday a few days later. Yes, January 14th is a great day – in Tunisia at…
An Interview with Finland’s Developmen’tects Hollmen Reuter Sandman
I have a penchant for Africa-centric do gooders. Particularly those who somehow manage to merge both development and design into their daily work. Finnish firm Hollmén Reuter Sandman Architects is my latest…