WHats Your style?

In the world of of Chanel, Dior,BCBG, Micheal Kores, YSL, Chloe, Marc Jacobs and Diane Von Furstenberg. Defining your own style becomes more and more overwhelming. More discerning is trying to make crucial choice's between which trend fits your style. How does a gal decide between skinny jeans and boyfriend jeans, platform boots and riding boots, dark nail polish and a french tip.Every season fashion books and magazines tell us what is " in" this season.What color is the must have color and if we are wearing round toes or pointy toe shoes. Trends change so frequently that if you are not an educated fashonista ( like yous truly) it can become overwhelming trying to stay "on trend". Well ladies, I have a secret to share with you that might come as a surprise coming from me but,.............................you don't have to stay on trend. Before you call the fashion police and report that I have gone rouge and that I have defiled the good name of Fashion, please allow me to explain. Style is more then what clothes you put on your body.Everyone has their own sense of style, so if this seasons leather, zippers,shoulder pads, dark nail polish,statement necklace's and Smokey eye' doesn't scream your name. Why wear it? The great thing about trends changing so frequently is that you can choose what trends you want to wear and what trends you want to leave on the runway. Defining ones style is crucial to you feeling comfortable and beautiful in your own skin. Don't get me wrong, I am a zipper wearing,shoulder pad sporting,dark nail polish painting, dark smokey eye wearing kinda gal. But, If I didn't like or feel comfortable in this seasons new trend I would wear what I felt comfortable in. Fashion is not just clothes and shoes.....its the way you live your life...until next time always be on the look out for your self inspired beauty.

STYLE STATEMENT

What is style? I am a bit of a fashion junkie so I love everything fashion and beauty related from hair accessories to the newest color nail polish! However ,sometimes I get so caught up in whats on trend and what I think is cute that I buy things that don't translate into my style. I have things in my closet that I would never wear but would look fab on someone else. Frankly, its a waste of money! so I got to thinking...... what is my style? Is it retro? Is it classic chic? Is it classic chic meets retro?! SO I went on the hunt to find out what my style was and how should I define it? I came across this book called "Style Statement" by Carrie McCarthy and Danielle LaPorte. Let me tell you ladies I LOVE THIS BOOK ! It not only helped me to define my style in wardrobe but it helped me define my style in my home and in my over all life. If you are struggling with trying to find what you style is,,,,,,This is the book for you. Buy it, Read it, Love it! Untill next time always be on the look out for your self inspired beauty.

Ten Reason's Why Women Loves Shoes!

A wise women once said "Shoes are to women like breathing is to living". I simply must agree!Shoes are essential to maintaining my quality of life! Some women feel that without shoes they have no purpose, no meaning, and no reason to live! The type of shoes a women is wearing speaks volumes about the kind of women she is.The great Carie Bradshaw once said "You can't judge me till you walk a mile in my Manolo's "..And its true! Flats, pumps,stilettos,boots,pointy toe,or round toe. Jimmy Choo Steve Madden or Manolo Blahnik. Shoes are not only a girls best friend but can oftentimes be viewed as being as essential as air! Like Chris brown and Jordan sparks Said.....How am I suppose to breath with no air ?
Ok,so I might have been a bit dramatic about my feelings about shoes, however, the questions still remains why do women love shoes? What is the attraction? Why do we need so many? In a much earlier post (http://selfinspiredbeauty.blogspot.com/2009/04/optimum-shoes_30.html ) I mentioned that I had a whopping 136 pair of shoes,not including boots! Below I have constructed the top ten reasons why I believe women have had a on going love affair with shoes. There are so many but I decided to narrow down to only ten.

1.Variety: I am always on the look out for new hair styles, new nail polish colors and even new comforter sets for my house! The reason for this is because women love variety. When traveling, I often over pack and my husband just cant understand why I would need three pair of jeans for one day. I always answer "I need a variety. I base the way I dress on the way I feel." Same goes for shoes. Maybe you feel like being sexy one day and flirty the other. There are clearly different shoes to achieve that!

2. Options: I know what your thinking,isn't options the same as variety ? No,options are different.Within your variety of shoes, you need options.For example, lets say your going to a picnic and you decided to wear your mustard off the shoulder DVF summer wrap dress. But you only have a electric blue pair of Steve Madden sandals to pair it with.You wouldn't dare wear those sandals with that dress! A stunt like that can land you in the hands of the fashion police and have you booked and convicted before you knew it! In this case you need maybe a brown wedge open toe sandal ,or a beige flat. But NOT A ELECTRIC BLUE SANDAL! that just wrong!

3. Fashion:I know this might be fickle to some people but, living in NYC leaves me no choice but to be influenced by fashion. (I cant really blame it on the city I have always loved fashion) Women often buy shoes by what trend is happening at the moment. If the trend changes ,you don't want to throw away your other shoes! For example, if a women spent four hundred dollars on a skinny heel pointy toe Jimmy Choo shoe five years ago but the trend has changed to a rounder toe platform shoe, the most sensible thing to do is to wrap the pointy toe shoe up and put them away to next season. Trends change so quickly that they surely will be back in trend in no time. But in the meantime a platform shoe is a must!!! Fashion is a way of life!!! LOL!

4. Weather: In New York we have very extreme weather. In the winter its FREEZING!
In the summer it is so humid. So its no surprise that different shoes are needed for different weather.You cant very well expect me to wear my Uggs in 95 degree weather!

5. Special occasions: Weddings, parties, church, gala events, work, farmers markets, and the movies all require very different foot wear! Contrary to male popular belief, what shoes I wear to a morning garden wedding can not be reused for the farmers market.I don't make these rules....I do however follow them.

6. Sales :Black patent leather strappy three inch heel Tori Burch sandals with the Tori Burch symbol embossed on the side, reduced to 150 dollars..........enough said...

7. Love : Sometimes you just walk into a store and as soon as your feet hit the floor you hear something whisper your name. No its not the creepy security guard trying to get your number, its the over the knee chocolate colored soft leather Vivienne Westwood boots that are not only calling your name but screaming for you to caress them, you are instantly vulnerable! You cant get them out of your head, thats all you think about. YOUR IN LOVE!!! you simply have to buy them. Love only comes a few times in a lifetime. Who are you to pass that up!

8.Security : If your dress size is a 2 or a 12,your shoe size always stays the same. there is security in knowing that whenever you pull out those perfect pumps they will ,like a long time friend, feel like you never left them in your closet.

9. Shoes can never make you look fat: No mater what color , shape, or pattern a shoe posses it can never make you look fat! Shoes only can do good things for your figure. Heels make you strut and running shoes help you sprint.

10. Alter-Ego: Beyonce Knowles is known for her on stage alter-ego named "Sasha Fierce" Beyonce explained Sash fierce as a outgoing all out diva. Using her alter ego allows Beyonce to be a force on stage. Shoes can do the same for any women. If you put on a pair of three inch Louboutin and your favorite freak'em dress you automatically turn into Beyonce Knowles. If you put on a pair of converse all stars paired with a sweater vest , you turn into Ellen Degeneres!

So there you have it. Ten reasons why myself and many other women have to have a massive shoe collection.These are true blue concrete reasons that simply are not up for debate. Now lets talk about purses........

SELF INSPIRED BEAUTY OF THE MONTH

This months S.I.B of the month has nothing to with accessories, clothes, shoes or makeup. This inspiring lady has nothing to do with what makeup trend is "in" for winter or even if we are wearing a round or pointy to this season. Instead, she has everything to do with food!.....while doing some much needed writing at Barnes and Noble the other day, I was interrupted by a womens voice on the intercom informing everyone of Ms. Rachel Rays arrival to the store! She was coming to the book store to have a book signing for her latest book!..... I automatically knew that I simply had to talk to her to ask her some questions about her self inspired beauty!Let me start by saying that she is genuine and extremely nice! ( like scary nice, with amazing skin! She must exfoliate like twice a week..lol!) While listening to Rachel Ray speak about her latest book. I almost instantly realized what she believed her self inspired beauty was! It was clear that the joy of cooking and serving others was what she enjoyed most! And lets be honest she is damn good at it! I will be honest, I didn't get a chance to talk to her that long and I really wish I could have. But, being the busy women she is she had to go to her next gig........anyway here are a few things I found out about Mrs Ray.I didn't set it up like a interview because it really wasn't. I was just being a pushy writer who wanted to get in her business. Lol! Anyway the infomation is below. BTW I got her to sign her book. Shoe wrote " To shukura,my number one fan who loves using EVOO and thinks all food is yummo! -Rachel Ray" How Awesome is that! Until next time ,continue to use your EVOO(Rachel way coined that phrase) and always be on the look out for your self inspired beauty !

ME: how old where you when you finally started doing what you enjoy?
Rachel ray was everything from a waiter, to a short order cook, to a associate at a grocery store. She loves food ! Nothing else makes her more happy, so from a young age she surrounded herself with food. It wasn't till her late twenties/ early thirty's when we started to see her on TV.

ME:How do you come up with so many recipe?
Rachel : I think about food all the time! I am always writing down recipes in my phone.Its like a hobby for me!It always has been and I love it! the recipe just come.

ME: What do you enjoy most about your job?
Rachel : Ummmm....you don't get it dude.... I love to eat!! just kidding,I really enjoy making people feel happy and comfortable. I have really been blessed that this is my full time job!

ME: If you had one thing to say to people who think that they cant accomplish their dreams what would it be?
Rachel : You can do whatever you put your mind to! if you dream it you can achieve it!

Hair today....Gone Tomorrow !

While reading the menu at cold stone creamery,( don't judge me it was the weekend, I was using my weekend calories! lol !) I spotted a women with beautiful strawberry blond hair who was eating a medium cheesecake waffle bowl of ice cream. Of course my heart skipped a beat because I love cheesecake! I immediately inquired about the cold creamy goodness that she was eating. As she started to tell me that graham cracker crust ,cheesecake,strawberry's,strawberry syrup and nuts where all critical parts in this junk food masterpiece, I started to notice that her hair line started to slowly creep further and further back. Before I knew it her beautiful strawberry blond hair was in the middle of her head and her natural platinum blond hair was in clear site for everyone to see! She was wearing a full blown wig! Luckily her friend rushed to her aid and took a hat and frantically threw it on her head like she was trying to score a field goal!( sorry about the sports reference, my man is making me watch football while I write this) That very same night, I decided to go check out what was left of the Jimmy Choo for H&M line,and while I was perusing the accessories I came across clip on ponytails! Has everyone gone weave crazy!
Fashionista's everywhere are in love with the idea of changing their appearance with accessories like scarfs, jewelry,shoes,handbags and more. Thats why it should be no surprise that more and more women are using weaves and hair extensions like a fashion accessory. For years celebrity's have been using weaves and extensions to improve the look of their hair.Celebrity's like Tyra Banks, Beyonce, Barbra Walters, Joy Behar, Joan Rivers, Wendy Williams, Vanessa Williams,Meghan MCcain,Paris Hilton, Jessica Simpson and all the Kardashian sisters have all willingly admitted their use of wigs ,hair extensions, and weaves. Paris Hilton and Jessica Simpson even have a wig, weave and hair extensions line. As weaves become more and more mainstream, they become more widely accepted and are prevalent in house wifes, students and models.Hair weaves have been the topic of movies, talk shows, you tube videos and conversations at the dinner table.Weaves have developed a huge cult following and its following grows more and more every day. I have seen some of the best hair weaves , wigs and extensions that have fooled me into thinking that they were natural hair! I have even seen a girl with natural hair (not relaxed) who had weave that looked kicky and afro textured! I have yet to step into the world of wigs and hair extensions, but I have had a weave and it looked great. I am not addicted to weaves in fact, I have only had a weave two times in my life. However, I operate from the train of thought that if it makes you feel good then wear it ! My question is since we are now treating weaves like accessories, is it still a shameful thing to sport one? Do women still have to hide the fact that they are sporting tresses from their local beauty hair supply store? Or should they share the knowledge and tell everyone when , where, and how much the weave was? Whats your opinion? Should women treat weaves like accessories? Until next time, you know what to do ,always be on the look out for your self inspired beauty.

Optimum Beauty

ACCESSORIES! ACCESSORIES!!!! I am sooooo about accessories! I always have been! they can really take your outfit from drab to Fab! As long as you have a LBD ( little black dress) with the right accessories you can wear your LBD to work or to a fancy dinner! Because I am such accessories girl I like to keep up on the latest accessories trends. I also enjoy making my own original pieces. It is so important to know how to accessorize your outfit.A cute dress with the wrong accessories can be Tragic! If you don't where jewelry , not a problem, accessorize with scarfs! ( see my youtube video about turning necessities into accessories at LADYSKT on youtube) Or with a pair of Fabulous shoes and a outrages purse! One of my most recent fashion accessories obsessions is pearls! Yes Pearls!! Lots and lots of them.Though I have no place to where them like Rihanna did in the picture above, I knew I wanted to incorporate this trend into my fashion arsenal for this season. However, it needed some tweaking if I didn't want to develop a severe neck injury! Its very important to know how to tweak fashion trends to fit your style and to know what fashion trend you should stay away from.Check out my youtube video on how to incorporate pearls into your everyday life. Remember that trends are only a suggestions you don't have to be on trend. In fact some of my favorite dressed people or people who are so often off trend but look extremely chic! Do you research and find your style! until net time always be on the look out for your self inspired beauty!!! xoxo S.I.B


Check out my youtube vids at http://www.youtube.com/Ladyskt ( some of the vids are on the left side of this page. Check them out!

Optimum hair care

OMG Shukura your hair has grown so much! This is the response I get from so many of my family and friends that I have not seen in long time.The next question is ; How did you get it to grow so long? You must have that good hair! My response is always "Why yes I do have good hair its course nappy and afo textured . I love it! (if you haven't noticed I hate when people refer to straight hair has good hair) Then I tell them my secret......I take care of my hair! I moisturize, co- wash, and I very rarely use heat on my hair. But the single most important thing I do to my hair is Deep condition at least once a week. Curly, kinky and afro textured hair is by nature dry so it is very important that those of us with hair that falls into these category's pay special attention to our hair. Deep conditioning is one of the most important aspects of a kinky hair care regimen. Deep conditioning with heat is probably the best way to deep condition. Heat allows the hair shaft to swell and the cuticle to open and allow the conditioner inside. Deep conditioning not only improves the strength of the hair but it makes the hair more resilient and helps with length retention. All hair can benefit from deep conditioning but for black hair ,permed or natural,deep conditioning is a absolute must because deep conditioning restores the balance in the hair which stops breakage. So if you want long or just healthy hair, add deep conditioning to your regimen at least once a week. You will see the difference. Start today! until next time always be on the look out for your self inspired beauty! xoxo S.I.B