The Fashion Files- Dazzling Bustier

So it's a week later and I am still feeling the creative high from the Styles in the City Fashion Show. I absolutely love what I do. I was asked by Eboni Rollins, the CEO of the ERollins Group to be a part of it and I was more than happy to. The first fashion showcase I did with her company was a wonderful experience as well. So I came, I saw, I beat them faces. Then as soon as the show wrapped, I had to hightail my behind home cause mother rises as 5:30 am Monday thru Friday. Unfortunately I didn't snap a single solitary picture (I need to work on that). I did get some video on my phone, but the quality is not the best. I may wind up on FB or a blog somewhere. But, in any case I had fun and enjoyed meeting and getting reacquainted with people in the business. Plus, I have another opportunity this week as I will be doing make-up for Walk Runway Fashion Show next week-end. I'm super excited.

That being said, even though I am a make-up artist, I have a little bit of designer and stylist in me too. I've always had a small interest in it (my cousin and I created my prom dress), but the latest urge in fashion I blame on Project Runway. After the first season I took sewing classes, got a sewing machine and have been secretly making items here and there for a while. But for some reason I wanted to make something and I couldn't figure out what, until I remembered something I saw on Pinterest. (Sorry, I didn't pin it yet, but I will.) It was a bedazzled bra and I thought it was sooo cute. I have a couple of Holiday parties to go to and being a Diva on a Budget I have refrained from making clothing purchases (except that one time), so why not create my own blinged out bustier that I can style with a blazer or sweater for a creative, festive and sexy holiday look. So here's what I did.

The tools:
Longline bra
Black tread
Needle
Seed beads
White marking pencil
Measuring tape

The work:
First, I had to decide how I wanted the design to look. I knew I didn't want to cover the entire bra cup unless I had huge stones and gems to use, but since I had tiny seed beads, a design would be more practical.
Plus, all the beads had to be sewn on by hand. I started the first row doing them one at a time, then realized that I can sew two at a time and still have it look neat like I wanted.

So this is my progress so far. I'll post the end result and how I styled it in a couple weeks, after the holiday party.

Wishing you Love, Peace and Soul Deep Beauty

Shout out to Curly Nikki!

So, for anyone who has ever talked natural hair with me, they know my go-to site has been curlynikki.com. Ever since I've been wearing my natural texture I have checked in with the curlynikki community at least twice a week. (It used to be everyday, but I had to learn that moderation is key.) Her site is filled with info on styles, products and not only loving your hair from root to tip, but loving yourself as well. I was so happy to find out that she has a book coming out next year and because I am a firm believer in women lifting each other up, I'm gonna shout her book out because you can pre-order now.

Congratulations to my hair guru and friend (in my head), Nikki Walton.

Wishing you Love, Peace and Soul Deep Beauty

ps. here's the convo between me and my good friend :)

The 6 Steps to Success: Step 3- Affirm

In my last entry, I talked about the It's Not Enough to Dream Women's Circle and how I felt inspired by meeting other women of faith who own their own businesses. It's funny how the keys to success that were mentioned were things that I had already talked about before. But, I decided to revisit them because sometimes I don't truly "get it" until the second time around. It's affirmation time.

I've talked about affirmations before. I believe they work hand in hand with visualization. An affirmation is basically a statement about yourself that you start with "I am" or "I have". It's a way of having positive reinforcement. Here are the ones I wrote from my previous post.

- I am confident.
- I am smart.
- I am beautiful.
- I am determined.
- I have healthy skin and hair.
- I have big beautiful eyes.
- I have a good sense of humor.
- I am giving.
- I am fun.
- I have joy in my heart.

Those were easy because when it comes to myself, I exude confidence. My business sometimes, not so much. Ever since I had to close my Royal Oak location I have been walking a thin line between "I'm going to be alright" and "I'm a failure." I guess I was secretly waiting on validation from people to tell me I was great at what I do. I felt like because I'm not name dropping that I was somehow lacking. What I had to realize is that what I may lack in the want to name drop, I make up for in talent and determination. Plus, I understand the importance of paying my dues. Like they say, slow and steady wins the race.

It gets frustrating sometimes, but it all has to start with me. So we were encouraged to write some affirmations about our business at the It's Not Enough to Dream seminar. And although it took me a couple of days to come up with some really good ones that I truly stand behind, I am proud of them and will always keep them in mind when the road to success gets tough.

- I am mastering my craft.
- I am breaking though my own self-imposed limits to build a profitable business.
- My clients get tremendous value from doing business with me and appreciate my spirit.
- My vision for my business is minuscule in comparison to what God has planned.
- The more I trust my skill, the better my business becomes.
- I am not afraid to ask for help.
- I am not afraid that I will regret saying "no" to a project. What's for me is for me.
- I am a woman of power, purpose and praise.
- I am blessed, talented and committed to my craft.
- I am divinely protected and only great things happen to me.

I don't know about you, but just reading those affirmations makes me feel good. What affirmations have you made lately?

Wishing you love, peace and Soul Deep Beauty,
                  Rhonda

The 6 steps to success: Step 2- Visualize

In one of  my last entries, I talked about the It's Not Enough to Dream Women's Circle and how I felt inspired by meeting other women of faith who own their own businesses. It's funny how the keys to success that were mentioned were things that I had already talked about before. But, I decided to revisit them because sometimes I don't truly "get it" until the second time around. Let's focus on how to visualize.

This has to be one of my favorite steps because I 'm a visual person anyway. I have visualized so many things in my head that have come to pass that I am a firm believer that what you put out into the universe comes back to you. I visualized graduating from college and that happened in a blink of an eye. I visualized a smooth delivery for the birth of my second child and after 5 hours of labor I was done (the first one was a little traumatic). And the thing that I put on my vision board that I thought was 5 years down the line happened in just a few months- I am a published make-up artist and writer for a local magazine and it was nothing but the grace of God that got me there. When it comes to the purpose of vision boards, motivational speaker Christine Kane said it best, "Vision boards add clarity to your desires and feelings to your visions."

About a week before going to the It's Not Enough to Dream Women's Circle launch, I was working on updating my vision board. There were few things I wanted to take off and a few I wanted to add. But, the women there had given me a few other ideas that I may be trying. Instead of a vision board, one of the ladies recommended a vision letter. You write a letter to yourself dated a year from now and you read it every week or so. You put in it things that you want to achieve but in present tense as if it has already been done. It not only holds you accountable, but reading it so often helps you to keep your eyes and ears open to that goal.

Other ideas that were mentioned were a dream box and a God box. The dream box is just like a vision board, just in a box. You take images and quotes or whatever inspires you or is representative of your goal and you put it in a box. The only thing about that is that you have to make time to sit down and look through it so that those goals are kept in the forefront of your mind. The God box is a little different because you put things that are representative of your problems or issues and it's a physical representation of "giving it to God in prayer." I really like that one and am currently creating my box.

Whether you decide to do a board, box or letter, being visual is a good idea and an important step in achieving success. Go out and be the visionary that God made you to be.

Wishing you love, peace and Soul Deep Beauty,
                                 Rhonda

The 6 steps to success: Step 1- Commit

In my last entry, I talked about the It's Not Enough to Dream Women's Circle and how I felt inspired by meeting other women of faith who own their own businesses. It's funny how the keys to success that were mentioned were things that I had already talked about before. But, I decided to revisit them because sometimes I don't truly "get it" until the second time around. Today we talk about how to commit.

Over the course of my 31 years of life I have dabbled in a few things. When I was in high school and during my first year in college I wanted to act, dance and a sing. "Nothing but death could keep me from it." Or so I thought- I kept my voice to the choir, sat my flat footed and knobby kneed behind down somewhere and decided I didn't want to be a starving artist. Me plus broke equals no fun. Then, I changed my major to journalism so that I could write, do a radio show and possibly be a producer at the news station. I learned that that ladder was harder to climb than I had expected. I was reaching out to a mentor who didn't want to have a mentee. And after graduating I learned how to sew, started writing a novel, made jewelry, started another novel, along with a few songs and some poetry, did skin care, makeup and hair and am currently back to writing for a magazine and currently learning photography. And lets not forget me and my best friends attempt at wedding planning (that was short lived). I thought all that was just pure talent. I mean, I'm an artist at heart. But, what it truly was, was the inability to commit.

Not to sound over confident, but I've always been smart. I have always had the ability to catch on quick with little effort, so I have never really had to work hard or as consistently at something as I have this business. (Except my marriage, but you have to wait for a girls night out to get those juicy details.) So how do you commit? It so simple, but yet so hard for some to do. Just pick something and put your all into it.

The only thing that I can warn you about, because I have done it so many times is that because I am committed to my business and I want it to succeed, I will say yes to everything. During my first year, every product, vendor show or event that I felt I could possibly meet someone to network with I was there. I paid for advertising for several magazines and bought more beauty products than I knew what to do with. Out of all the marketing and promotional things that I did, only 20% of them panned out like I had hoped. Something that the ladies said at the Detroit launch was, "Not every good idea is a God idea." Instead of being so quick to say yes, I ask myself two questions. One, can I afford this and two, will it benefit my business in a way that has never been done before.

For two years I have put my money, time and sanity on the line to see this dream come true. I finally know what it feels like to pick a profession and not only start it, but see it through to the end. Soul Deep Beauty is more than just skin and makeup, it's a beauty business and anything that falls under beauty can be involved. That, my friends is the real beauty in committing yourself to your business- you can make and change the rules as you see fit.

What new business venture will you commit to? Share your story with me here or on my Facebook page @Soul Deep Beauty.

Wishing you love, peace and Soul Deep Beauty,
                                  Rhonda

Business Spotlight: It's Not Enough to Dream Women's Circle

I am in transition. My business (and personal life) is going through some things that will in the end help me to become a better woman and business owner. During this time I have found it hard to put pen to paper, or in this case, fingers to keyboard. That is, until today.

This month marks the 2 year anniversary of Soul Deep Beauty, and while I couldn't be happier, this shift in my marketing, website, business goals, etc, are kicking my butt. Then, I was invited to attend the Detroit Chapter Launch of a wonderful group, the It's Not Enough to Dream Women's Circle. They are a women's support group and magazine for women of faith who have or are just thinking about starting their own business. Started in 2010 by sisters Adrienne Adams and Bridgette Outten in Chicago, the Detroit chapter presentation was titled "I Came to Win" and will be the fourth city in their ever growing corporation, where they join Chicago, Indianapolis and Milwaukee.

It was a great experience, filled with an overwhelming sense of sisterhood that I walked away from feeling uplifted and inspired. As the women introduced themselves I was comforted in knowing that I wasn't alone and that we all face some sort of struggle when running a business. It felt good to be in a room of like minded women who believe in purpose, power and praise.

Although I have financial obligations that won't allow me to officially join the circle at this time, they definitely have not seen the last of me. They offer business boot camps and other offerings that I want to be a part of and am looking forward to the road ahead. I now know that what I'm lacking in myself right now is confidence and I'm not one who takes or accepts failure easily.

I encourage any woman reading this who has ever had that business or book idea or job opportunity that you wanted to try, to not only consider the possibility but set yourself up to win. I'm getting myself back on track and to prove it, over the next several weeks, I'm going to talk about the six steps to success that Adrienne covered and reflect on how I can improve on each one.

Like I always say, the best is yet to come.

Wishing you love, peace and Soul Deep Beauty,
                                                Rhonda

Me and my hair: Curlformers

For those of you who don't know, I am a natural hair enthusiast. I can, and have talked hair with just about anybody: the lady at the grocery store, patient at the hospital, anybody who even says "Oh, I like your hair. How did you get it like that?" They just don't know what they got themselves into. I love my friggin' hair and I am not ashamed to say it. With natural hair I have never had a bad hair day (not one that I'll admit to anyway.) Natural hair is supposed to be free and unconstrained- a little like me. It's healthy and versatile and I am constantly trying new ways to twist out, twist up, Bantu or updo my hair.

That being said, I decided to give my Curlformers another go and see how many days I could stretch the style.

So this is what I did.
I washed and conditioned with Shea Moisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Moisture Retention Shampoo and Organic African Black Soap Balancing Conditioner.
          


Deep Conditioned with Moroccanoil Deep Conditioning mask.


Used Hair Rules Nourishing Leave in.



I set Curlfomers using LottaBody and Aphogee Wrap Lotion.
   


And here are my results:

Day 1

Day 2

Days 3 & 4

Then, I decided to do something I only do a couple times a year- wear it straight.

Blow out baby!

You couldn't tell me nothing....

By the way I used grapeseed oil to blow dry and flat iron.

Until it rained four days later and my volume and curls left the building.

Days 10-12 I wore some variation of this:

So, through a lot of manipulation, I was able to "stretch" my Curlformers set to 12 days. I have decided that I will use Curlformers to dry my hair when I'm going to either braid it up or straighten it out so I can avoid additional heat. I will try them prior to a twist out one day, but I like my current regimen now and if it ain't broke I'm not trying to fix it.

That's all for now.

Wishing you Love, Peace and Soul Deep Beauty.

Soul Deep Beauty is under construction

This October Soul Deep Beauty will be celebrating it's two year anniversary. Get out the streamers and noise makers cause it's on and poppin! (Sorry). I'm just excited because I did something that three years ago wasn't even a thought in my mind to do. I started a business from the ground up. It may not be exactly were I want it to be, but it it's still going and that's enough for me. That's the good news. The not so good news is that as of Sept. 1st, I will no longer be working out of the Wellness Clinic.

I have decided that it is more economical for me to forgo the rent every month and become a mobile/ on location business because I rarely do work out of the clinic anyway. I want to focus more on my pamper parties and the make-up aspect of the business, so I think that this would be a good move for me.

I have redone just about everything- my website, my online scheduling, and business cards. I even set up a Google Number for my business. So for the next month, I will be in the process of moving and getting myself prepared for the next part of my journey. Wish me luck!

Wishing you Love, Peace and Soul Deep Beauty.

My new favorite foundation brush

I love this brush. It is a Sonia Kashuk Complexion Perfector. It is part of her Spring/ Summer 2012 line sold at Target for $18.99. I am normally a round sponge applicator girl when it comes to foundation. But, in the effort to make some tiny upgrades I started looking for some new ways to apply my foundation. Also, I was growing tired of buying and storing all those sponges. (They say they are washable, but who has time for all that. I barely wash my brushes on the regular.)


 I bought the Basically U Super Blender Elliptical Sponge at Ulta at $5, it's the cheaper version of the Beauty Blender and it worked, but again, the cleansing process left little to be desired. I don't care for the flat foundation brushes for some reason for applying foundation, although they are great for days when I'm doing a concealer only coverage. I needed something flat and dense. My MAC 130 brush is great, but I always had to follow up with another brush or my fingertips to blend under the eyes or around the edges of my face. Yes, I was being difficult. With 10-15 minutes to get ready for work, I needed a brush that was a one for all. And this week I found it.


We are going through a slight heat wave this week with temps up to 99 degrees, so I have been doing the lightest coverage possible with either my Mary Kay Tinted Moisturizer or Maybelline Mineral Power Liquid Foundation, (which is discontinued I believe but I found it at my local Bed, Bath and Beyond for like $4.) So anyway, I just pour a two chocolate chips sized amount on the brush end, swipe it across my forhead, down my cheeks and across my chin and I go back up and blend. Then I wet the sponge tip a little and do a press and roll motion to blend under my eyes and around the curves of my face if needed. I think I might buy another one for my professional kit ;)

Wishing all my beauty queens
Love, peace and Soul Deep Beauty!

My new obsession: Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer

Yes, I know that Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion has been around for years. But, as I have always said, I am a Diva on a budget and spending $20 on a 0.37 oz tube was just not getting it for me. I had been perfectly happy with my $7 NYX HD Eyeshadow Base. But, there I was in the check-out line at Sephora and it was staring me in the face. I turned my back on it and it called me. I told it to leave me alone and that buying it would put me over my $60 budget. It taunted me, saying that it was the best out there and it wouldn't disappoint. I grabbed it and made a mental adjustment to my checking account. In the end it was right- it didn't disappoint.

So here's the rundown.

Pros-
-Nice consistency and doesn't crease or flake
- Very easy to apply with it's new squeeze tube (exclusive to Sephora)
- Keeps eyeshadow in place for hours/ days (S/N- I forgot to wash my face one night and woke up late the next morning. My eyes still looked flawless, so I washed my face and under my eyes, put on some foundation, some blush and another coat of mascara and went on my way. My eyeshadow lasted that whole day, too.)

Cons-
- Price. If this was a $10 product I would buy it in bulk.

Another Pro-
-Three new colors. Where the original is a sheer nude, they have upped the ante and given a little something extra to the other formulations.

 Greed- gold    Eden- matte tawny
  Sin- shimmering champagne

Great product. It will certainly become a staple in my make-up regimen.

Love, peace and Soul Deep Beauty.