My Afro

All photos by the talented Weston McGhee Photography

Growing up I wanted long, straight hair that gently played on my back when the breeze touched it. My mom refused to let me straighten my curly mane. I would sneak and have by friend Niqua press my hair with a hot comb. If you don't know what that is, it's a comb made of metal that you put on a gas burning stove to heat up. You allow it to cool a bit and then you proceed to burn the shit out of your hair just so that it can be straight. I know. F@$king crazy! I did that because the idea of leaving my hair as is was something I did not see around me. I saw women pressing, perming, blowout styling their hair to look other than what it was naturally meant to be. This is certainly not a bash on those who straighten their hair. I assure you, if i want to mix it up a bit I'll blow out my hair  because I'm a grown woman and I can do what I want ;) Ok, I digress. When we press, straighten or do anything different to alter ourselves, I want it to be built on a road where we are defining our own beauty. 

The thought that black, natural, curly, kinky, unprocessed, left to do what it does best, froed out hair was not reflected to me as beautiful. It's changing. We are seeing a diverse mix of women stepping forward and demanding to be reflected in the images blasted towards us. Why? Because WE EXIST to be seen and heard. So much is happening with how we as women see ourselves. WE are digging deeper towards the AS IS part of ourselves that others thought strange or not enough and allowing it to be seen, fully. It's a real conversation that has to be echoed in a time where filters and editing skews so much of we see as beautiful. What I see now in myself took years of adjusting, filtering and being around women who know how to love themselves. These REAL reflections are what our little girls will witness, giving then the opportunity to SEE that their beauty is right there, as they are, right now. Strange, complicated, knappy hair, unruly, smart, loud, bossy, quiet, driven, defiant, necessary, vulnerable...beautiful AS IS.

Fueling Your Style With Confidence

"Show up in something that makes you feel damn good and bring your ALL-IN game!"  LT

Photography: the talented + kind Weston McGhee

When it comes to the process of getting dressed we all have the same intention. To feel great in what we wear. How do we get to that place of having styles in our closet that make us feel great? I'm not gonna bullshit you. It's a process and for some it's a simpler journey. For others, it can be laced with f-bomb dropped moments.  "I'm not tall, skinny, blond, tanned enough etc."  or "I wish my _____ was better."  It's a familiar moment to most of us. There is no magic to owning our confidence. It's a path that's tugged on by misguided social standards that are reverberated by those with good and bad intentions. Inadvertently, these tales become sprinkled through our own self talk making us believe that we are not enough. What does clothing and the process of getting dressed has to do with confidence? For me it's an acknowledgment of my body and how I feel about it and IN IT. The styles we choose will either celebrate our body or shame it. They will either uplift our sense of belonging or make us feel invisible. I want us to choose to see those parts that we love and then work to introduce styles that give those areas a whole lot of love! It doesn't happen overnight.  However, it can start with saying more kind words to ourselves and each other. Our culminated steps and the ability to recognize the me in you will lend to dismantle standards that are far from standard. 

I've got your back. 

dress: H+M