Name: Afi Maita
Age: 33
Title: Fashion Stylist and Fashion & Lifestyle Blogger
Married/Single: happily married.
Kids: someday, were enjoying each other.
City You Live in: Scottsdale, AZ.
A typical day in my life includes…
working out, checking my blood sugar 5 times a day (as a Type 1 Diabectic I have to monitor my hereditary condition), helping women feel like their best selves with styling and trying not to eat chocolate unsuccessfully!
I was born…
in West Africa, Nigeria, raised in England (17 years) and married an American.
My favorite thing about Arizona…
is that everyone is happy and smiles most of the time due to the sunny weather. Vitamin D is key! There’s so much space, the roads are so well planned out and it’s still an upcoming city so it’s very affordable.
I’m listening to…
Macklemore and Lorde as both individual artists are beyond their time with their lyrics and sound. They are both extremely talented individual artists who genuinely have great messages in each song on their latest albums.
My family…
is huge with 13 children! Golly Gumdrops we have 3 sets of twins and me being the only one at number 5 without a twin in the first batch of kids is manic! I love and miss them so much. Every. Single. Day.
If I could have dinner with anyone, it would be…
duh, Beyonce of course! She’s the definition of a “Boss” being an entrepreneur, business woman, smart, talented AF and funny. She seems like she’d make a good bestie, just saying…
When I was younger I wanted to be…
a singer, I was in a 3 girl RnB musical Group in North London called “In Harmz Way”. We had a record producer who developed original songs with us. Right before the decision to go to college came up our parents intervened and chose education before we could go any further.
I’m inspired by…
all things and everyone. Especially *cheese alert* my husband, Zack Maita. He fights everyday to make himself a better person and fights to make our lives better. He quit smoking 1558 days ago (over 4 years ago, I know this because he has a calendar that he marks every day). He runs his own independent printing and embroidery business and even went back to school to finish his degree so he can say he accomplished it! How inspiring! He inspires me to work hard, be a better version of myself and know I can achieve what I set my mind on and if I don’t succeed hey, at least I tried!
The one person who motivates me is…
my older sister Esther (number 3 in the 13 children hierarchy LOL). I was 6 years old when our mother died due to childbirth and my sister Es took on the role of being my main protector. Still to this day she sends me British packages full of goodies from back home you can’t get here in the States. Esther reads all my blogs, watches my vlogs, comments on them, encourages me to be my best self, questions me if she thinks I’m doing something wrong and suggests alternate ways to fix it. She’s my best friend and I LOVE HER!
If I could change anything in the world, it would be…
racism not existing. Being in a bi-racial marriage in America is a toughy! I don’t see color when I look at my hubster Zack but others do and their reactions when we’re holding hands in public is somewhat sad. Most people are fine but there are those bad apples that rudely stare or give us dirty looks still to this day. Golly Gumdrops, I wish those people would get over it already! We live in a global world and love knows no color.
The perfect day would be…
sleeping in late, going to our favorite gluten free restaurant in Phoenix called “Jewels” then going back home to binge watch The Queen on Netflix, then Outlander on Amazon Prime!
My first job was…
working as a telemarketing agent for a mobile phone company called Fonik Limited. They had me close all the sales because I have what they consider a “posh” British accent and furthermore people trust women more over the phone.
My favorite escape…
going to Camden Town in North London once a year when I head back home to visit my family and friends. Camden Town is a funky, innovative and eclectic town that has its own rhythm that is unlike any other place I’ve been to around the world. It’s my favorite escape to lose myself in! You should go…you’re welcome 😀
My life…
is wonderful and I’m so blessed to be alive. Living with Type 1 Diabetes for 5 years now and constantly fighting to stay alive every day with this hereditary condition is hard but that’s what warriors do…fight. I’m grateful I found the love of my life, I’m thankful for all that I have and blessed to have the love and support of my family and friends.
I’m currently working on…
My personal fashion & lifestyle blog & video blog! I was selected out of a drawing by Black Girl Phoenix (a local Arizona organization) who awarded me free tickets to attend the Miss AfriCaribe 2017 beauty pageant at the Mesa Arts Center so I’m writing my experience on that. I’m also working on editing my alternate style video blogs.
Always…
be humble, we’re so fortunate to be where we are right now at this moment. Granted it could be better but it certainly could be far worse.
Never…
underestimate anyone.We are all capable of so much more than we could ever imagine.
Favorite Quote…
“Work hard so you can shop harder”.
Biggest Dream…
to find a cure for Type 1 Diabetes…and meet/style Beyonce of course!
