From weddings to Christmas, Fazeela finds new mission

Fazeela Mohammed adjusts one of the 
displays on show at Dretchi on Wrightson  
Road in Port of Spain.
Fazeela Mohammed adjusts one of the displays on show at Dretchi on Wrightson Road in Port of Spain.

FAZEELA MOHAMMED and Friends’ artistic displays of decorative Christmas items is on show upstairs at Dretchi, Wrightson Road, Port of Spain.

For Mohammed, it’s also her way of giving back to the hearing-impaired community, of which she has been a member since 2009. Half of all proceeds, she said, including those from whatever is sold, will be presented to the organisation.

Mohammed became a member of Dretchi after a car accident in 2009 left her with a high sensitivity to sound (hyperacusis). It is her first exhibition in almost ten years, she said.

Known for her past extravagant wedding expositions and as a prolific wedding-cake designer, Mohammed said her focus this year is more on corporate TT. Homeowners, though, she said, can incorporate her designs into their decor for the season.

The former wedding exposition host and prolific wedding-cake designer, Fazeela Mohammed is chanelling her creativity into new designs.

“Definitely, people can put them in their homes. Even if just to spark a conversation, but it’s something that can be used anywhere and is reusable.

“I am hoping that corporate TT sees the beauty in what I do, not just for bringing good cheer, but to bring back feelings of Christmas traditions. Every piece I do tells a story. After my accident I decided to channel all my creativity into something else and God has inspired me since,” she said.

While most of Mohammed’s pieces are brightly-coloured, one stood out.

Tribute to the 1 Cent, Mohammed said, came about when she heard the Ministry of Finance was making the one-cent coin obsolete.“It saddened me a bit. I remembered as a child how much a cent could get me: three paradise plums (a spherical red-and-yellow sweet), five salt or three sweet biscuits.

If you had two cents (a penny) you could get a pennacool, sugar cakes, tamarind balls, all sorts of goodies. So I remembered that and thought of how much value the one cent had then and how much values we have lost as a country since...My grandmother’s purse is 80 years old, that old machine is just as old, but they were all worth something back then.

Christmas charity: Some of the proceeds from sales of the Christmas and ornamental display put on by Fazeela Mohammed and Friends will be donated to the hairing-impaired.

“It seems we, as a country, have not just lost our cent, we have lost our good sense in some instances. So, this is my way of reminding people to remember the positive old traditions, the values and morals of yesteryear,” Mohammed said as she adjusted several cents on her display.

La Donna Greaves, a student of the School for Sign Language (Arima branch), said she and several of her classmates heard of the expo through their teacher and decided to visit on Saturday. She said it certainly put a smile on all of their faces.

“The artist is really, truly gifted. Her work is astonishing and can make you smile, just looking at their beauty,” said classmate Nicole Vialva.

Mohammed’s expo began on November 30 and was initially scheduled to run until December 7, but a smiling Mohammed said it may be extended until the close of the Christmas season.

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"From weddings to Christmas, Fazeela finds new mission"

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