Small town stylist goes global
MOST people have read the quote 'opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work'.
Surely you are also familiar with the one about the correlation between preparation and victory or success.
These characterise Nosipho Ncube's unexpected turn, one she calls a stumble and falling into love, from pursuing a white-collar financial job to the flexible, artistic career of a stylist.
The 32-year-old KwaMsane resident's tale now stretches between two cities - Durban and Johannesburg - having had her styling work grace the front page of international magazine, Uncutxtra.
She says it is all down to preparedness.
"Although I knew I would not be doing the cover, I came prepared to the shoot with a look that I thought would be cover worthy, and my preparedness worked out because the stylist for the cover unfortunately ran into some issues on the day," said Ncube.
How did she get there? The miracles, if you will, of social media, turning the impossible into a convenience and connecting people from across the world.
"I received a WhatsApp from the magazine's operations manager, who explained they were working on a cover with a South African actress and that they had seen my work and would like me to style the editorial images that would be inside the magazine," said Ncube.
She describes her fashion style and design as 'classy, simple and timeless with a dash of drama', and of her ways, a non-conformist with a keen eye for the unusual which tests her abilities, while adding
'just the right amount of drama and character to my wardrobe'.
"I'm a big thrifter, so a lot of my most loved pieces are second-hand items. Those items tend to not only be unique but the quality is usually unmatched," she said.
Now Ncube hopes to style the cover of a South African publication, working with 'a celebrity or two'.
"I do other things, too, so it's really just to grow the businesses and continue to do great work in whatever space I'm in," she said.
Not by choice
Ncube said this stylist career chose her, one who knew nothing about it nor about fashion.
The Investment Management graduate with an honours degree in financial management was introduced to styling by visual artist, illustrator and photographer Viva Thabethe, who is now a good friend.
The two have worked on a number of photo shoots, which enabled Ncube to build her own portfolio and eventually secure the international gig.
It was not by choice that Ncube abandoned her pursuit for a place in the professional world and its promise of security for the creative, flexible, fluid fashion industry; it was the stark reality suffocating many South African graduates unemployment.
"That is when I stumbled and fell in love with the crafts and fashion industry," she said.
An avid researcher with a penchant for international fashion shows, and one who flocks with birds of a feather, resilience has been a source of light for Ncube.
"You need to be able to bounce back from whatever life throws at you. There's a speech from Denzel Washington where he says '...fall down 7 times, get up 8...' and that's all there is to it. I am standing today because I refused to stay down. This industry needs you to move smart. At any point, someone is looking to black ball you so it's important to keep your head down and do the work you came to do. Most of the time, the battles are not worth fighting so learn how to pick them wisely," advised Ncube.
You need to be able to bounce back from whatever life throws at you. I am standing today because I refused to stay down
Resilience
This resilience has also helped her with coping with the tough times of financial uncertainty in the industry.
"I think you need to be smart here though; if a certain collaboration may lead to future rewards, I reckon at times you can do it for free just because you're looking at the bigger picture. From that perspective, you now have the experience and the leg to stand on to prove that you can achieve the goal. Without working with Viva on our collaborations, I wouldn't have built a portfolio that led me to other projects and ultimately the magazine cover."