At one point I used to write a list of at least 10 resolutions, and then disappoint myself by failing each one. Then I got into vision boards and spent time at the end of each year gathering and then cutting up my magazines to create a master plan for my year. Over time my…
Life
The Best Planners To Help Get Your Life Together
The end of an old year. The beginning of a new one. A blank, first page to scrawl your annual aspirations on. It’s the time of year to start journaling, creating your year-end exit interview, writing your resolutions. It’s the time to get your planner and get to planning. But which planner do you plan…
Going Home For Homecoming. Meet Me in Miami this Friday!
I’m gonna be honest, y’all. 2016 has been a lot. Life lessons on top of learning experiences. Trials and tribulations, peaks and valleys. This year I planned to celebrate my 10th anniversary in August. I had all sorts of plans, design partnerships and events, I was invited on a special trip that month — so…
October 13th is Metastatic Breast Cancer Day. Here’s What You Need to Know
October is a month awash in pink and festooned with ribbons. Everywhere you look; there are pink products you can buy to support the overall cause – from pins, stickers and tee shirts to fancy sneakers and pricey kitchen appliances. In the midst of all of that, there remains a lack of awareness around breast…
10 Years of Afrobella! Reflections on My Decade of Beauty and Natural Hair Blogging
I can remember exactly what I was doing 10 years ago this week. The memories are so vivid. 10 years ago this week, we were living in a townhouse in Kendall, Florida. I worked as assistant calendar editor for the local alt-weekly. I was bursting with ideas of my own, but always on assignments…
The Perfect Father’s Day (According to the Fathers I Know)
Socks and ties and socks and underwear and socks and a nice shirt and maybe a wallet or a belt or some of those whiskey stones — for years I took a very material, literal approach to Father’s Day. My dad could rely on certain gifts every year. It’s always a challenge to think of…
Meeting Betsey Johnson
To be honest, I was having kind of a rough afternoon. It was all hustle, bustle and stress, dealing with things I didn’t want to deal with. But at the end of the day, there was a bright pink ray of light awaiting me. Betsey Johnson was appearing at Macy’s on State Street (along with her…
Let’s Go On a GirlTrek! It’s #ActivismApril!
“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.” Audre Lorde made the declaration in the epilogue to 1988’s A Burst of Light, and today that quote has come to resonate in the online community. You see it shared on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram, but what does it really…
Making Your Own New Year’s Traditions For Luck, Love and Resolutions
I used to celebrate New Year’s Eve in a raucous way. Lots of drinking, lots of noise, lots of people around to toast with and kiss at the stroke of midnight. Party like a rockstar and recover all day January 1. I’ve got some great memories from those years. And honestly, I’ve also had some…
Lessons From A Very Different Thanksgiving for Two
“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans,” as John Lennon sang in his ode to his son Sean, Beautiful Boy. If you saw me a month ago and asked about my Thanksgiving plans, I would’ve started gushing about recipes and table setting ideas. I was planning a fabulous Thanksgiving for…