Change The Record

I would like to start by wishing everyone a very Happy Christmas Eve! I hope this Holiday brings you and yours nothing but joy, fortune, and blissful happiness. In today's post I would like to kind of discuss my goals for the new year. Well...not necessarily my goals but more what I look forward to for this coming year. 2013 has been a very interesting (to say the least) year for me. Although I have no regrets, I certainly can't wait to change the record and play the wonderful soundtrack of my life called 2014!

Like most of us, I am most excited for this coming year because I am ooooo sooo ready for something new. There is nothing more refreshing than the beginning of a BRAND NEW YEAR because well ... it only happens ONCE a year. 

Personally, I like to think of each year in my life as a soundtrack or something like a playlist. Music is very important to me. I love love love music. If you are anything like me, there are certain songs you hear that remind you of certain moments in your life -- both bad and good. So with that in mind, I thought it would be a fun and interesting to make a list of my personal soundtrack for 2013. 

1. We Found Love - Rihanna

2. Rehab - Rihanna

3. Never Would Have Made It - Marvin Sapp

4. Doo Wop - Lauren Hill

5. Stay - Rihanna

6. Get Me Bodied - Beyonce

7. Three Little Birds - Bob Marley

8. Champion - Nicki Minaj feat. Drake, Nas & Young Jeezy

9. Party - Beyonce

10. Listen - Beyonce

11. What Now - Rihanna

12. Leona Lewis - Better In Time

13. Start Of Something New - High School Music

14. Roar - Katy Perry

15. Hero - Mariah Kerry

16. Marilyn Monroe - Nicki Minaj

17. Love Gun - CeeLo

I had a lot of fun sitting here thinking back through my year and assigning songs to certain significant moments. I definitely recommend that you all try this activity out as well. I certainly enjoyed it.

With all that being said, I am so excited to create a brand new soundtrack/playlist for the year of 2014. It is definitely time for me to change the record and start fresh! I have so many awesome things I plan to work on for the new year -- both personally and for the blog. I have no idea what this year has in store for me but I am certainly excited to find out. 

The 2014 Joanna is a happy girl! She knows what she wants and what she doesn't want. She knows herself and loves herself. She has learned to say no when no is necessary because she knows her worth. She will love like she has never been hurt. She will cry when she needs a good cry because she knows that sometimes a good cry is healthy. She will continue to work hard to accomplish all her goals and aspirations. She will do her very best to be an amazing daughter, sister, friend, co-worker, Godmother, aunt, family member etc. And whenever she fails to do so, she will be apologetic and she will try her hardest to fix the problem. She will never see anything as a failure but rather a lesson learned. And finally, she will love love looooooveeee herself! 

This will be the last She's So Me blog post of 2013! I can't wait to share more of me with you all in the year of 2014. Happy New Year in advance to you all. Thank you for reading my blog and I hope to continue spark your interest in the year of 2014.

xoxo JO

All photos by Karen Simmons

Sip Smell Shop Event - s'Adonner Candles

This week I attended an event titled Sip.Smell.Shop hosted by an luxurious candle company named s'Adonner Candles. The event served as a launch party with the purpose of introducing s'Adonner's new line of luxury soy candles.

Each luxurious candle is hand poured using exotic fragrances to create the ultimate everyday indulgence. With four unique scents, the new collection -- titled Voyage De Luxe -- certainly sparked fascination amongst the evening's guests.

The four new scents are Brise De Mer, Bamboo For Breakfast, Middle Eastern Delight, and Vintage. I would say the favorites of the evening were certainly Brise De Mer and Vintage.  Aside from the candles they purchased, event guests were also handed these cute little baggies (pictured below) with samples of the other scents they didn't purchase. I think this was a wonderful idea because that way one can take the scent to the comfort of their home to really see how they feel about it. 

If you didn't know already, I have been working for Kelli Flournoy Public Relations here in Atlanta for the past few months. s'Adonner Candles is a client of KFPR and it was amazing to see how far the company has come. Their success is literally all due to the hard work their fabulous and talented publicist Kelli Flournoy. Even though my time with KFPR has come to an end, I will always carry with me the lessons I learned from Kelli.  Ladies, if you are interested in fashion, beauty, or lifestyle Public Relations, definitely consider interning with Kelli. Below is a picture of me and my mentor, Ms. Flournoy herself. 

So back to the launch party! It was certainly an evening of luxury and indulgence. Stunning Atlanta Makeup Artist Scoobie West was in the building beating faces and taking names, the refreshment table was filled with yummy light bites, the drinks were flowing, and the guests were happy with their purchases. What more could you want from a launch party? Congratulations to s'Adonner Candles and Kelli Flournoy Public Relations on a successful evening.

I left the event with my own favorite candle from the collection. Brise De Mer. Find out more about this scent here!

Keep Up With s'Adonner Candles

Twitter: @sAdonnerCandles

Facebook: s'Adonner Candles 

Instagram: @sAdonnerCandles

Website: www.sadonner.com

Keep Up With Kelli Flournoy Public Relations

Twitter: @KelliFlournoypr

Facebook: Kelli Flournoy PR

Instagram: @KelliFlournoyPR

Website: www.kelliflournoypr.com  

BOW DOWN

If you haven't AT LEAST heard about Beyonce's latest self titled album, then I just don't know what to say to you. Anywho, my favorite song off the album is EASILY flawless. Flawless begins with her self-empowering song Bow Down in which she demands the respect she deserves. However, the BEST part of this song is when you begin to hear the voice of Nigerian feminist and writer -- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. 

There has been a lot of criticism, hate, and whatever else about Beyonce being very openly and unapologetically feminist. All of which I will not even address because it overshadows the amazing and impactful words spoken by Adichie! Amongst my friends and family, I am known to be unapologetically feminist myself. When people ask me why I feel the way I feel, I often get into lengthy discussions explaining my thoughts. However, I am relieved because this poetic collection of words below is a concise explanation of the way I feel. 

We teach girls to shrink themselves,

to make themselves smaller. 
We say to girls,

‘You can have ambition,

but not too much.

You should aim to be successful,

but not too successful.

Otherwise you will threaten the man.’

Because I am female,

I am expected to aspire to marriage.

I am expected to make my life choices

always keeping in mind that

marriage is the most important.

Now marriage can be a source of

joy and love and mutual support.

But why do we teach girls to aspire to marriage

and we don’t teach boys the same?

We raise girls to see each other as competitors –

not for jobs or for accomplishments,

which I think can be a good thing,

but for the attention of men.

We teach girls that they cannot be sexual beings

in the way that boys are.

Feminist: the person who believes in the social,

political and economic equality of the sexes.”

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

I know I said I wouldn't address the critics, however give me a second to do just that. A lot of people complained that Beyonce contradicts herself because feminism and her marriage don't go hand in hand. To those people I say, you have missed the point. Feminism doesn't aim to destroy the institution of marriage or to belittle its value. Feminism calls for EQUALITY of the sexes. Feminism says, that which is taught to the women should also be taught to the men. Amongst other things, Feminism asks why women are taught that marriage is the ultimate goal and men aren't? Feminism asks why female sexuality is such a taboo and male sexuality isn't? To be a feminist doesn't mean you revoke the institution of marriage. 

Take Your Pick

It's official! I am now someone who has to walk around with a pick in her purse! I have officially been welcomed to #teamafro!

I can be really forgetful at times so on my way out yesterday I kept on chanting to myself "Joanna, take your pick...don't forget your pick...take your pick." And guess what? I still forgot it. I get so wrapped up in doing a million things at once, but that is a whole different story.

Anyway, I can't be out here with my fro all tipsy turvy so clearly I need to purchase a purse exclusive afro pick.

Hey ladies (and gents) in #teamafro! Don't forget to TAKE YOUR PICK!

Dress Like JO

I get a lot of inquiries about this particular pair of shoes I have on. This pair is sold out, BUT there is a similar pair you can purchase for less than $40 at ASOS.com I almost want to buy a pair lol.

Celebrate Good Times

In this fast-paced and on-the-go life, we often forget to acknowledge some important moments. I can be very guilty of this. Recently, She's So Me reached 10,000 views (something I am very happy about) and one of my good friends persuaded me to celebrate this accomplishment. I am so glad she encouraged me to do this because it was just the burst of energy that I needed. 

Sometimes in life we get blindsided by all the things -- both negative and positive -- that we have going on. Again, this is definitely something I am guilty of. My family and friends are constantly telling me "Joanna, don't forget about all these awesome things happening" or "Joanna, you don't give yourself enough credit" and they are totally right. When certain things are going askew in your life, don't forget to still celebrate good times!

So, in celebration of She's So Me's 10,000th view, me and a couple of my friends enjoyed a ravishing night of dinner, drinks, and live jazz at Atlanta's own Churchill Grounds. If you are into jazz, I totally recommend this restaurant. The ambience was so romantic! To all my lovebirds out there, this place is the PERFECT spot for your next date night! However, I must say, I was a little disappointed with the service. With that being said, it wasn't enough to overshadow how beautiful this restaurant/jazz club is.

So, I know what you are all thinking right now! "Blah Blah Blah Joanna, tell us where you got that skirt!" Lol! This fabulous skirt was handcrafted by up-and-coming indie designer Chinyere Nwokah! Her amazing collection of designs will soon be available for purchase through the online store! The collection will be an authentic fusion of West African aesthetics and Western fashion trends. Don't worry, I won't let you all miss out! You will definitely hear it from me once the store is up and running so STAY TUNED! You can also keep up with the designer herself by following her on Instagram @chichiwonder and follow the clothing line also @OKOclothiere

That Ugly Sweater

Take a look at this yellow and ivory sweater that I am wearing in this post. What do you think of it? Do you like it? Do you hate it? Well, I got this sweater from Ann Taylor Loft-- at a VERY amazing price by the way. It didn't hurt that I worked there and got an awesome discount (wink wink). Anywhoo, this sweater sat in the store all by its lonesome for a while. I witnessed so many people pick it up and throw it back down in the fitting rooms. People really hated the way it looked. They would pick it up, make a disgusted face, pick it back up, make a snide comment and throw it back down lol.

Well, one day I came into work and -- low and behold -- this sweater was STILL there. For some reason though, I saw it differently than the customers. I loved that "ugly" sweater and so I decided to try it on (while I was on the clock hehe) in the fitting room. Guess what happened? I loved it even more and the funny thing is the customers in the fitting rooms were coming out and asking me where they could find it! Unfortunately, it was the only one lol. 

The moral of this post is this. When you go shopping, don't completely shy away from those items that look a little off at first glance. Pick it up and try it on. If you still don't like it, then walk away from it. Some of my fave pieces are some weird items that people often look at with a side eye in the stores. I guess the same message would apply to every day life. I am sure you all have heard the phrase "don't judge a book by its cover." Well, its the truth - DON'T! You just never know peeps...you just never know! Don't make the mistake of losing out on a treasure like people did with that ugly sweater!

all photos by Arielle Simmons 

Winter Wardrobe Tips From A REAL Stylist

Hey Everyone! Do you remember Stylist Dane Browne? Well, she was my November 2013 Woman Of The Month in the "Who Is She" segment of the blog. If you missed my interview with Dane, you can check it out right HERE!

Anyway...guess what? I am so excited to share this with you all! Below is an awesome video (created by the stylist herself) offering all the advice you need to assemble the perfect winter wardrobe. If you are currently struggling with the Fall to winter transition -- or even the spring to winter transition -- Dane is here to rescue you.

I hear a lot of people complain about the winter season because they feel like it offers no room for creativity when it comes to fashion. People often feel like winter is nothing but hoodies and bubble jackets for four long and cold months; however, Stylist Dane Browne teaches us that this is not the case. This video educates on how to get creative with your winter wardrobe as it is full of styling tips and wardrobe ideas! She even tells you EXACTLY where to purchase each piece!

Keep up with Stylist Dane Browne

Blog Link: http://www.theadventuresofdanebrowne.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DaneBStylist

Facebook: www.facebook.com/dane.brownestylist