Hi friends. It’s been almost a month since I’ve posted here. Initially it was because of work (even with COVID happening, I still remained busy with photography), but then George Floyd’s tragic death turned the world upside down. With all of the protests and petitions and amplification of resources to help with making some real changes, blogging about makeup and clothes (especially with us still not really being able to go anywhere) felt trivial, and even overwhelming. All four former officers involved in George Floyd’s killing have since been arrested and now face charges, but there’s still so much more that has to be done to fight the systemic racism that permeates through our nation, so going back to “normal” isn’t really possible.
I never talk about racism or politics on here because I’m not a news outlet. While I may talk about pop culture topics here and there on social media, my platform wasn’t designed to be that way. It’s evolved over the years to still be my personal blog, but to also serve as a resource for the everyday woman who’s still trying to figure things out. She’s figuring out her personal style, how to balance pursuing a career and a personal life, which skincare and beauty products work best for her, how to design a home that she loves even if she’s a renter, and how to take care of her mental and physical self overall. But as we all know with life…there is still SO. MUCH. MORE.
I will always be true to who I am, so I’ve spent the last few weeks honestly trying to figure out what my role is in all of this as I move forward as a blogger. I’m blessed to have a platform, so I really wanted to define how it could best be used at this time. I’m an optimistic, solution-oriented person, and I’ve always been a connector of sorts, so sharing resources (informative websites, content creators, small businesses, etc.) will continue to be what I do. To be honest, it’s what I know how to do best. Naturally, life is a little different because we can’t go out how we used to, but that doesn’t mean I still can’t share life through my lens. It will be a little different, and I will still continue to share my outfits and product reviews, and all that jazz, but I also want to be a source for people when they’re looking for something a liiittle bit deeper.
2 years ago, an issue of diversity in the interior design space became a hot topic and I shared a list of black female creatives that you should follow to help diversify your feed because I wanted to be a (positive) part of the conversation. So many people live in bubbles and only follow what/who they know, so I’m planning to do another version of that list because I know personally how hard it is for black content creators to be introduced to new audiences. I’ve received an overwhelming amount of love from people on Instagram over the last week as part of the #AmplifyMelanatedVoices efforts and I want to pay it forward on my end. I’m also working on lists of black lifestyle businesses (fashion, beauty/skincare, accessories, bookstores, etc.) in addition to organizations, educational materials and people that are out there on the front lines every day doing the hard work. I’m doing the research, but if you have any recommendations, please leave it in the comments below. Over the last 2 weeks I’ve reshared a lot of information in my stories, but I wanted to create content that was a little more permanent and that could still be found and shared beyond the gram when needed.
Substantial change is not something that can happen in a week, so I didn’t want to flood my blog with posts just for the sake of putting information out there and checking the act of doing so off of my list. This is an ongoing effort, and though I know it’s small, small actions add up over time and it’s one way that I can still authentically show up for my community. I hope that you guys will continue along with me. xo
