‘5 Minutes with…’ is a series of short interviews with some of the esteemed vendors listed on our directory. If you missed any of our posts last year, catch up HERE. We get to know the brilliant people behind the brands we love. Today, we meet Ofe of Ollie’s Studio.
Ofe is the founder of Ollie’s Studio where she creates stylish wedding and event stationery. She worked in finance for several years before being seduced by the world of beautiful paper. Ofe lives in a little village outside Cheltenham with her gorgeous husband and yummy little girl. She’s a big fan of desserts, especially cake!
Your Brand In Three Words… Stylish, contemporary, luxurious
The Part of My Job I Enjoy The Most? The happiness on my brides’ faces when they see their invitations. It’s usually the first tangible part of their wedding that they can actually hold so seeing their pretty paper makes it feel very real for them. It makes it all so worth it.
My Biggest Accomplishment To Date… Probably creating a design based business from scratch with no design background whatsoever, and doing it all with a baby on my hip. Booyah! Lol
The Best Vendor You’ve Worked With… I’ve got three favourite vendors to work with: Weddings by Monet, Didi’s Cookies and Sue Ann Simon Photography. Not only are they very talented girl bosses, they’re also warm, lovely women that have become dear friends. They’re all beautiful, inside and out.
One Quality Every Nigerian Wedding Vendor Must Have and Why? Originality. I see so many Nigerian vendors copy like it’s going out of style, or even worse, try to pass off other people’s work as their own. It’s really sad. It makes it hard to trust their judgement, professionalism and honesty if they steal other people’s work without conscience. If you’re going to post someone else’s work on your page, give credit where it’s due. Dazzall!!
Most Embarrassing/Awkward Experience… I’ve got natural hair and any natural lady knows that a lot of moisturization is required. I was running late for a client meeting one day and quickly poured olive oil into my hair expecting it to be absorbed. Fast forward to the meeting where I was speaking to my client, trying to look like a professional, when I felt something dripping down my neck. So. Much. Oil! I spent the rest of the meeting with my hand on my neck, trying to manage the flow and hoping they wouldn’t notice. Somehow I still got the job lol.
Does anything scare you? Yes. But I prefer to focus on the positives and count my blessings.
What’s the best souvenir you’ve gone home with from a wedding you’ve attended/worked at? I haven’t been to a wedding in a very long time. The last one I was at was my own, and we gave out computer keyboard and mouse key holders with our names engraved in them. My husband and I are tech nerds so they were very ‘us.’
Your thoughts on social media? I feel like it creates unrealistic expectations of the “perfect” life, “perfect” wedding, etc. People aren’t really being themselves anymore. Everyone is trying to outdo everyone else and it’s getting so crazy. It’s all posed, styled and “curated”. This generation is all about over exposing and over sharing on social media. Remember when engagement shoots were just about the couple being together and in love? Now they’re full scale productions with directors, multiple cameras, make up artists, custom made outfits… it’s getting kinda cray cray. If I wasn’t running a business, I probably wouldn’t be on social media at all.
In my Spare Time… If I’m not with my family, I’m learning something new. My current obsession is calligraphy. Although there’s nothing like spare time when you work for yourself and have a toddler who’s obsessed with you.
Interesting Fact about You… I’m nearly fluent in French.
Where do you feel most at home? This is going to sound trite but I feel at home wherever my family is. I haven’t lived in any one place for longer than 3 years since I was 14 so I’ve learned not to get too attached to places.
What Songs Are Currently on Replay? I’m a neo soul junkie so I love Maxwell, Floetry and the Foreign Exchange. I also like The Weeknd. However, since I have a toddler now, you’re more likely to find us listening to songs from Yo Gabba Gabba and Bubble Guppies *sigh*.
What Book are you currently reading, or what was the last book you read? I’m currently reading a book called Type Matters. It’s part of my graphic design self-education.
Call or Text? Call, but I usually text first to see if it’s okay to call.
Cook or Be Cooked For? Depends on what is being offered… some things I prefer to make myself. But generally, I like to be cooked for.
Favorite Food… I love all pasta dishes but my guilty pleasure is Amala, Gbegiri and Ewedu with stew. Specifically from Ola-Iya in Surulere.
What’s your favourite item of clothing? Dresses. I’m not a girly girl but I love how powerfully feminine I feel in dresses.
Ideal Holiday Destination… Anywhere in the Carribean. I’m always busy so when I go on holiday, I want to bum around and be lazy. Preferably somewhere warm and by the beach.
Any Pets? I used to have a Labrador Collie mix called Oreo.
3 Guests For Dinner, who would they be?
- Adam Sandler – He just looks like he would be fun to hang out with
- Phonte from the Foreign Exchange – He’s a musical genius, I would love to pick his brain
- My husband – He’s super intelligent and great at small talk and making people feel welcome. I’m not good at small talk so he’ll back me up.
To get in touch with Ollie’s Studio, click HERE
For more from our 5 Minutes with … series, click HERE
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