Kelu Ogunleye, celebrity stylist and founder of Kelu Consultant, speaks on her career and how important a stylist is in fashion.
How did you discover your passion for styling after studying English at the university?
I didn’t know there was a career in styling. I simply realised I loved to combine outfits in an unusual way. Then I loved to dress people. I used the word ‘dress’ back then because I didn’t know there was a career in fashion styling. I used to look into my mother’s wardrobe a lot then. And from there, random people started calling me for style advice. Especially when I started working with the Lagos State government, people would call me as early as 6am to seek my opinion about wearing a particular skirt on a certain blouse. My aunt told me that I always looked good and I could dress myself in a certain way that came out fine. They believed in my judgement. That was how I decided to push it forward and make a proper career and money out of it.
I discovered my passion for styling in 2008; so I built my career between 2008 and 2010. I learnt from Omoyemi Akerele and I also used a lot of people like family members and friends to start up. I used them for practicals.
Did you eventually take any formal training in styling?
I went to United Kingdom to study the art of styling and colour co-ordination. I studied at Colour Me Beautiful. I also studied with Icon Mode fashion institute.
Would you say it is a lucrative business after all?
When I started, it wasn’t; but now, I’ll say it is very lucrative. The only thing is that as a stylist, you need to be organised and must focus on your clientele base. You need to identify where your strength is. If you’re unorganised, you may not be happy with this line of work.
Also, fashion styling is very vast, and if you are not careful, you will be confused. You have to know your area of specialty. Some of my friends focus on TV reality shows and style the contestants, while some style celebrities for the red carpet. Some handle photo shoots and some handle fashion shows. You can’t be all over; otherwise you won’t be able to handle anything in particular.
I style celebrities and fashion shows. I also style celebrities both for the red carpet because I am an image consultant. I work with individuals one-on-one. I try to understand a person’s style before imposing my own as an expert.
Why do people need a stylist?
Not everyone needs a fashion stylist. The people I will say need a stylist more will be public figures because they are brands. They must appear to the public in a particular way. They are role models to many. It is important for people to look good. You don’t have to be a celebrity before you can look good. As a mother, you have to look appealing to your children and to your husband. A mother who is so busy with the children and does not have time to understand what is happening in the social circle needs a stylist to help her. Your husband must still see you as that babe he got married to. Right now, I am taking certain regular people into my portfolio.
I attend to regular women and brides too. A lot of brides don’t know what to wear. A bride wants to look like a princess but she doesn’t know if she has the body shape to wear a princess ball dress. Some brides find it difficult to choose colours for their bridal train. Fashion has got to the level where you do not blame the celebrities for what they wear. You blame the stylist that put those outfits or accessories on them.
As a professional, identify some mistakes ladies make on the red carpet.
Ha! There are a lot of mistakes people make like when a plus size squeezes into a dress meant for a slim person. You should not look at another person’s figure to dress yourself. Also, wearing colours that do not suit their skin type. People hear that yellow is in vogue and they put them on without checking if it suits them.
What about the men?
I hate it when men wear white shoes with white shirt; Igbo men do that a lot. I mean the kind of white shoe that is pointing to their face; all those I-swear-to-God kind of shoes.
Another one is when a groom wears all white. I keep wondering why he wants to take the shine off the bride.
What must every lady have in a standard wardrobe?
One thing many people don’t know is that you don’t need to have everything. You don’t have to follow trend; you must be able to create your own trend. To have a standard wardrobe, you must have a black blazer. You can wear a black blazer on a smart dress to a meeting. You can wear a black blazer on a tank top on your jeans for a regular formal day. Another thing you must have is a pair of black heels. Heels help the way you walk. From the way you walk, even if you are not confident, it could give an illusion of being confident. You must have a lovely red dress. Red suits everybody, regardless of your skin colour. Whenever you are feeling down, or you don’t know what to wear and you want to appear sexy and glamorous, put on a red dress on either gold, silver, black or brown shoes. Those four colours work well on a dress. Then look at the colour of your shoes and accessorise. Wear a red dress to see your boyfriend and, hopefully, the love will come back. Wear a red dress to a function and you will be the centre of attraction.
On a personal note, what won’t you be caught wearing?
You will never catch me wearing leggings with a small top. I hate it when ladies do that. I believe you should wear a top that covers your bum when you wear leggings.
Name some celebrities that you’ve styled so far?
My first client was Funlola Aofiyebi-Raimi. I have worked with Omotala Jalade-Ekeinde, 2Face, Sound Sultan, Waje, Omawumi, Ini Edo, Ego Ogbaro and many more.