Transformation (Warning.. Long post)

Hey All,
You may notice the change of my blog. If this is your first time visiting, then welcome! I decided to change the name because it represents all that I'm embarking on. I always heard that change is necessary for growth and I'm a firm believer in that. When I first started this blog a few years ago, it was to focus on my creative outlets for decorating and fashion; so the title was representative of that. Now that I have ventured out into other things, I decided a name change and blog refresh was necessary. I will still do fashion/beauty and home decor posts but it will also feature my lifestyle changes and the things that inspire me daily. This blog for me is more than just about posting how to put looks together and recent home decor finds I'm loving; but it is an attempt to motivate and inspire. In doing this, I continue to develop myself as well as hopefully to help others. I am sure that I am not the only one that sometimes struggles with their purpose in life or what they are truly passionate about. Sure, we all have hobbies and interests, but what about the bigger things.. things on a bigger spectrum that allows us to give back or instill something in others.

If you read my past post on attempting veganism, I'm here to tell you that I'm back at it again. When something is nagging at you and never really leaves, it's a sign to push forward. You may ask why is it so important to pursue veganism? Because I know that I desire a healthier lifestyle and for ME, that begins with diet. I admitted that I felt better overall when I was eating this way and my plan was to make it a permanent thing. Well, of course as with some things, I fell off. BUT,, i digress and say that I'm now back on track. I realize now with doing a lot of research and soul searching within myself that I have to start small. I can't do cold turkey. I will begin with the main things that are hardest for me and that's dairy. By doing these small steps, I've already made the first step in moving towards my goal. I already eat some meatless dishes now so that wont be an issue for me. If you are trying to begin a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle, my suggestion is to do the same. Start with what is easiest for you. There are so many vegan options out there that can give you the same satisfaction; and also have a better health benefit. I'll be doing a post on some vegan options soon.

So that was the transformation for my diet. If you've read my past post, then you also know I was struggling with my loc journey. I re-started my second set of locs this past March and I'm happy to say I've stayed the course and now embarking on my 8th month. I've seen a lot of growth and I've learned to be patient and happy at this stage.

Acceptance has been another thing that I have been working on with transformation. This is a big one. Often times we can get caught up in where we "think we should be" in life or what we think we should have. I am learning to be content.. but just for a moment. Knowing what my goals are and working towards them are a continual process. I have felt stagnant and unmotivated lately and I am honestly not happy with that. That is not me because I have always been determinate and have pushed through circumstance, but lately that has been an issue for me. I realize now that it's only God shaking me up.. testing me. Sometimes when you feel you are at a good place in life but your desires are to want more, God allows you to see yourself. My goals have by far not come into fruition and for me to have the audacity to stay still and be unhappy is not a good thing especially if I'm trusting Him to make these things to come to pass.  Acceptance has also taught me how to deal with my father's death a little easier. I already shared before how much of a pillar he was in my life but with it coming up on a year since his passing, I had to re-analyze myself. I miss him every day, but the values he instilled in me never stray. I even felt like giving up on finishing my degree because he would not be here to see me graduate.

Then I had to realize that this was MY personal goal to get my degree; not his and who was I really doing this for??! I have children that see me pursuing my dreams and I want them to do the same; so giving up just isn't an option. Whenever you are close to obtaining something great, trials come and it's up to you to not let failure outweigh that. I'll end this post with saying if you are feeling unmotivated or just feeling like odds are against you, I encourage you to push through. Seek confirmation through prayer and meditation and know your WHY. That's the key. Stay strong and don't let anything deter you from what you want.

-TB-

End of Summer Round Up (Part 1)

Summer is coming to a close and for that it's a little bittersweet; for a few reasons. First, that means school will be starting soon for my kids and myself (UGH).. and it'll be time to put away my sandals. I'm one of those people that cant wait to have my feet out. I always feel like my feet are confined with boots in the winter and I hate wearing socks; but one thing I am excited about is that fall is coming and with that brings a ton of exciting stuff.. holidays, my birthday and yes.. fall fashion. These are two items I wore this summer. The jumpsuit is one I truly have a love/hate relationship with. I ordered it last year from Shein to wear for my daughter's graduation and was turned off by the fit/cut of it. I kept looking at it this year and attempted again to wear it but it just didnt look right. So, for blog purposes, I decided to try it. I tried belting it but didnt like that look either so this is my final try.. it wont be worn again nevertheless. It's not bad but could use some tailoring for sure but the price I paid for it truly isnt worth me bothering with all that. A tip: if you have something in your closet that you will never wear just give it a try... it might work and this is why sometimes I choose to buy inexpensive clothing for cases like this. I think I only paid about $30 for this so no biggie. It would've been cuter if the fit was better; but I tried! 

P.S. I always write a "book" when I've been MIA from the blog. Enjoy! :-)

Dress - Marshalls

Sandals - Target

Bag - Charlotte Russe

Jumpsuit - Shein

Sandals - MixNo.6 (DSW)

Necklace - Walmart (YEP!)

February Beauty Finds

With February being a short month, I didn't buy that much. I'm in the process of switching out all of my brushes and updating my makeup collection. I scored this Sonia Kashuk brush set for $18.99! And let me tell you, that is a steal! This set was the collection around the holidays and I'm sure she's got something cuter coming for Spring. I went ahead and got the holder for it too, since that was also on sale for $6. I am going to be updating my vanity area soon and I need to get more storage for my makeup so I got this. The lippies were a steal too. They're from Wet n' Wild, who I must say have stepped their game up as one of the top drugstore makeup brands for me. I wanted to try the lip crayon and I didn't think it was possible to find any cheaper that the ones that ColourPop sells for $5 but on this particular day when I was in Walgreens, they were on sale 2 for $5! The colors are highly pigmented and really creamy. I have been going for more of a matte lip these days and I love the way these lipsticks stay on all day! Shocking! They were about $3 each. Don't skip out on these drugstore brands because we all know everybody thinks MAC is the Holy Grail in makeup but if you wanna save money and still get great quality, this brand doesn't disappoint. I also picked up an eye pencil from Wet n' Wild too in the color Calling Your Buff. It's a nude color I like to use in my water line. I see a YouTube channel in my future (but I'm not ready yet :-) I'd love to do hauls and show these products in real time!

I already used the foundation brush (ha ha)

Lipsticks : Purty Persimmon and Think Pink

Velvet Matte Lip Color Crayons (I don't have the name of the colors, they were on the wrappers,which I threw away) 

To Loc or not to Loc..that is the question

Okay, so here is the post I've been promising to do for awhile now. Lets talk about locs. I started my locs on August 8, 2015 and combed them out on January 28. That was about roughly five months.

A little background about me and my hair. I'm ALWAYS changing it. I get bored rather quickly and I'm also impatient. Two things you cannot be when starting locs. When I first told people I was getting locs, I got reactions from laughs, side eyes and even bets to see how long it'd last lol. Well..contrary to what most of them thought, I was up to that challenge, or so I thought. I have been natural for almost 5 years now and I believe I'd tried just about every style there was; so I was ready to move on. I was bored with twist outs and buns, the tapered cut (that grew out ) the big afro, etc. and I started off with the big chop so I had the TWA too. Locing really came about by chance, I'll say because I had always thought about it, but just never felt sure enough if I was ready. I knew it was a permanent thing and it was going to take alot of patience. My youngest daughter embarked on her journey to locing in June and I decided to go along with her, hence starting my own. I was really really excited. A lot of things emotionally were happening in my life and I felt I was ready to be constant with my hair..and I was. I did not like them when I first got them; I started out with the comb coils method, but I got as creative as I could with styling as much as I could. I persevered and before I knew it, I saw budding and length! I was getting excited!! I even was able to get pin up styles by my birthday! So what happened??.... Well in all honesty, I got impatient. I kept seeing what I wanted my hair to look like (my goal was to have a bun by the summer) and crazy as it may seem, I just couldn't take it anymore. My stylist had to reschedule my appointment, and my hair had already started itching like crazy; I really didn't know WHEN I was going to get my hair done again. With my loose natural hair, I could maintain that myself; wash it when I wanted to etc. Now I was set on someone else doing my hair, it drove me crazy so maybe out of boredom ( we were in the middle of the blizzard) I combed them out. Even as I was doing it, I kept saying WHY AM I DOING THIS??  I even got a little emotional and I kept psyching myself up looking at pics of my loose natural hair saying yeah, I'm going back...making all these excuses of why I missed my hair. Yeah ok. After about a day to comb them out, I knew I had made a mistake, but what was I gonna do now? So... I sucked it up; went BACK to Target and brought some hair products (something I loved not doing having locs) and twisted my hair. I got all the reactions from everybody, " I knew it wasn't gonna last, I should've bet you, Why?!, What is wrong with you, you don't know what you wanna do to your hair, etc.) But I was prepared for it all. So I told myself, that this was it, I'm happy with my loose hair. Again, yeah ok. I made an appointment to get it straightened just to see how much growth I'd had in the five months of being loc'ed. After I got it done, I literally hated it. I felt like it wasn't me, I looked "older" and I just could not identify with that anymore. Well.. needless to say; against all the naysayers and myself, I'm going back. I will be getting it redone in another week ( my stylist thinks I'm crazy) but I will stick it out this time. There are certain stages in loc'ing that are referred to as the "ugly or the in-between" phase. I was actually at that point, and that's really what did it for me. I felt ugly, unattractive at times, and I'll be honest, I knew that was just my mind bending towards what society has said looks "good". Well, let me tell you, whether anybody believes it or not, I'm going through the fire this time. I'm sticking it out because I know what the outcome will be. I honestly believe that this is teaching me something about myself; about patience and life too. You wont understand unless you've been there and it may sound silly that I'm using my hair as a learning tool, but preparation and growth can come from different areas of life; it just so happens that this go round for me, it's my hair. Stay tuned!

Here are some pics of my hair, I'll call this my first set of locs! :-)

From my birthday in November (it was really cute, sigh)

Right before I combed them out.. See I had length :-(

Another Attempt at Veganism

Hey Everyone! As I've stated before this blog isn't just about fashion; it's about all things that are pretty and lovely, and that includes our bodies. I had been thinking about veganism for quite sometime and I took a 14 day vegan challenge in January. I was pretty excited and I knew that it would definately be a challenge I was up to seeing through. I did the challenge through CrazyUrganVegan. You can find her on IG under that surname or visit her website www.crazyurbanvegan.com.  Everybody has their own reasons for changing their diet or rather incorporating a healthier lifestyle. Mine was simply because I know what food does to you. Eating a cleaner diet not only helps to combat diseases but you feel better. There's so much info on plant based diets right now and I'll say what really brought it home for me was watching the documentary Forks Over Knives. When I truly understood what food was doing to my body, I knew that this was something I had to do. I thought about my father having cancer and realized that diet does contribute to a lot of diseases. Now, I'm not saying that him eating bad foods is what caused the cancer, but we all have to take responsibility for what we put in our bodies because it does have an effect on your overall health. It's always said that African Americans have the highest rate of diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Experiencing my father's illness had got me researching natural remedies and no matter what I came across, it was always "natural food diets". Carrot cleanses, herbs, etc. I could go on and on. Needless to say, I was shocked to find that a plant based diet could do all these things. Cure aches and pains, give you healthier skin. I was in! Besides, I was turning 40, and I wanted a healthier lifestyle anyway so the vegan challenge came right one time. I will not sit and say it wasn't easy. The recipe choices were great and there were times I got so weak, that I almost quit. I ordered pizza (Papa Johns) and wings for my family one night, and I opted to eat a vegan pizza. I had to literally leave the room when they were eating the wings because I wanted one so bad lol. I made it through the challenge and here are some of the benefits I saw.

-I had more energy
-My skin was glowing ( I didn't experience any breakouts during this time)
-I was drinking ALOT of water
-I didn't have any issues going to the bathroom (I know TMI, but I had to say it)
-OVERALL, I FELT BETTER!!

Sooo.. what happened?.. Well, I was so amped and I was all ready to continue with this vegan life; but the deprivation I'd had in just 14 days of not eating sugar and meat had me going crazy! I realize now that my body was simply becoming weaned off all that stuff. All I kept thinking about was a burger; and Im not a burger person like that! Strange! But I wanted it. I fought it as long as I could and lets say about a week later, I was back to my junk again. Slowly but surely, I was incorporating those same junky foods back into my body. WTH??! All that for nothing and that's when I started to see the changes. My skin broke out?.. Huh?.. , I was tired as hell, I think I was even grumpier lol, and I didnt even want to try to work out. During this time, I even combed my locs out ( another story later), but this didnt have anything to do with that. Although, I think if I'd stayed on my vegan diet I may have still been loc'ed. Soooo... I got tired of seeing my face looking crazy, tired of being tired and I HATED the way I felt (guilty, sluggish, sick) after eating Krispy Kreme donuts, pizza, burgers, bacon, and all the junk food I loved and decided this was it! So... I am BACK at another attempt. This time I know what to look forward to. The first go round it felt like unchartered territory. I will take this slow and not rush it, because I know it's a process.  Some may ask why not just become a vegetarian or even another one I pondered; pescatarian?.. I found that I'm really not a fish eater like I thought I was; I like shrimp but not to the point of having to have it. I think I'm better off doing vegan. I will be updating on my progress monthly. I know there will be highs and lows on this journey, but my health is truly a priority for me. I have to make the best effort I can. Wish me luck!!!

Livin' for the Weekend

This look gave me exactly what I needed, casual with a bit of edge. Love these booties I found on Net-a-Porter. I cannot believe how comfy they are! Definitely one of my good picks for late winter shopping! Enjoy the weekend! 

Coat - H&M

Plaid shirt - old

Jeans - Charlotte Russe

Booties - Sam Edelman

Lip color - MAC Russian Red

January Beauty Finds

With the new year coming in, most of us like to tweak our beauty regimens, whether it's for hair or makeup. Me, I'm all about both. So, to start off I think I'm going to begin doing a monthly beauty finds here on the blog. I recently went into Ulta on a hunt for two NYX lip liners and couldn't find them. So.. I began to browse and came across a few a products I've been wanting to try. The first is the Anastasia Brow Definer. I'm all about clean and groomed brows and I have been looking for a substitute for my MAC Spiked brow pencil. I found it with this product. It retailed in Ulta for $23 and was worth every penny. Next up, I was looking to try a new foundation and I prefer creme foundations over liquid. I heard raves about this Urban Decay Naked Skin Ultra Definition Powder Foundation and have to say I love this too. I'm a fan of UD products anyway because they're organic (if you didn't know) and I love the Naked 3 palette; it's my everyday go to.  I also picked up the Eyeshadow Primer because I was tired of the creasing I'd get throughout the day when I use concealer to prime my lids. This product was great and I didn't see ANY creasing! Then finally, the Yes to Grapefruit dark correcting serum. If you have pigmentation from pesky pimples then you know how they can leave dark spots and I HATE that.. so I'm hoping this does the trick. Too early to tell right now if it works, but I"ll come back next month with an update. If you don't shop at Ulta, stop by, they have tons of brands of makeup and they do offer sales. Also, if you get their Rewards card, you get points that add to bonus coupons too. If you check some of these products out, let me know what you think!

I added better pics for you to see the product, sorry for the Iphone pics! :-(

Urban Decay Naked Skin Ultra Definition
Foundation Powder 

Anastasia Brow Definer  (Dark Brown)

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion (Original)

     

 

Autumn in January

Because that's exactly what this weather feels like. About 56 degrees with a slight wind. Pretty unusual for this area, but then it was just 70 degrees a few weeks ago for Christmas! So, I get to dress for both seasons! YAY! The fur vest was warm enough for me to wear alone. Lovin my hats for sure especially on bad hair days! :-) 

Hat - H&M

Fur Vest - TJ Maxx

Jeans - Zara

Boots - JustFab

Lip color - NYX Bruised Rouge

#BOSSMOM

I stumbled across this t shirt on Instagram a few weeks ago. It was created by two wonderful women that are moms who are putting their dreams to work. Their website empowers all moms who are doin IT! They feature a line of different t shirts on their website so be sure to check them out www.bossmomnation.com. I can attest to the fact that I wear this shirt proudly because as a mom of four it is NO JOKE trying to balance it all but I do..even when it's extremely hard! Shout out to my 4 kids because they do keep me motivated to continue to press on! XOXO!!!

Coat- H&M

Hat - Charlotte Russe

Jeans - Zara

Tshirt - Bossmom.com

Boots - BCBG

Glasses - Hush Boutique

Lip color - MAC Heroine

MIA Where have I been??

First post of the new year and first post on this blog in 6 months. When I say life happens, it happens! It's taken everything in me to get back to posting, because although I was on a roll last year, this was something I truly enjoyed. It was a pastime for my creativity in clothing and also an outlet. So I'll sum it up as fast as I can. I went to Mexico in July on a WONDERFUL girls trip and had every intention of posting pics of that, but shortly after I got back things in my life took a turn for the worst. My father was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer and I became his caretaker. I'm the only child and this weighed HEAVILY on me, not just because I did everything by myself, but because I loved and still love my father dearly and he was my everything. Seeing him decline was so difficult for me that some days it was hard to breathe. I wont linger too much but only to say that his death has left me with an emptiness that only those who have gone through this can understand. Moving forward in life without him has been very trying and some days I still don't believe he's gone,but one thing I know for sure is that he would want me to press on and do all the things I'm supposed to do; live life to the fullest (because he did), experience new things (because he did), be kind and try to be a good person to all, even those that wrong you (because he did). So many things I could say about him and what he meant to not just me, but to his family and friends and all the lives he touched, so I'll stop here. I also turned 40 in November, and life really got put into perspective even more. I guess I could say I've lived half of my life and I've learned to be very mindful of all the blessings I have, in spite of my loss. I knew that when I turned 40, I wanted this to be a turning point for me. I had a list of a few things I planned to accomplish. I pretty much am on the path with most of it. I started locing my hair in August which actually was something I'd thought about doing for awhile. A post will be coming on that shortly. My youngest daughter started hers in June and I told her that I would go on the journey with her ( yes a journey, because it is). She was a little nervous about it and I wanted to let her know I supported her and it just was a no brainer to begin my own. I'm currently on a 14 day vegan challenge but I told myself that this was the year that I would become a vegetarian anyway. It's been 6 days without any meat and I'm being so honest when I say I don't miss it and feel so good!! I've found that although I didn't hate cooking, I'm enjoying the new recipes and cooking my own meals. I started back exercising because you can eat healthy all day long, but you gotta stay active. School picks back up for me in another week and I can now count down because by the end of the year, I'll have my degree! Lots to look forward to so let's get this year started on the good foot! I have SOOO many outfit postings that I may end up doing two a day to catch up! Thanks for sticking around if you've been rockin with me for awhile, and if you're new, thanks for stopping by to read and check my blog out! #LETSGO!