In a world with cookie cutter beauty queens and glammed up reality tv starlets the idea of standing out with one’s own can seem a bit daunting. The mom’s that proudly rock there own unique look with grace are truly wonderful and give their daughters a wonderful head start in the world where image is king.

My own mom shirked a lot of tradition in the realm of beauty – not born a buxom blonde she had to work with what she had: long limbs, brown hair, freckly skin. As I was growing up I noticed her penchant for cool.  On a whim and because she could she went ahead and got a bunch of piercings. But rather than having them spread freakishly over her body she just had them all along her ears. It was quirky and weird and very unlike everyone else’s mom. She didn’t need to push her standard of beauty in everyone’s face, but was happy to show was quirky and interesting but still professional and approachable. Nowadays she’s simplified her routine a little so there isn’t as many earrings, but just the fact that she was confident enough to reclaim her own beauty in a unique way has been very inspiring to me.

My mom just doesn’t  let the rest of the world make unreasonable demands on how she looks. She cuts her hair short, dyes it red herself, and doesn’t get too fussy with the makeup. Lucky for me she hasn’t force fed her own concept of beauty down my throat – allowing for a very different expression as I take inspiration from women’s magazines and celebrity style. But her influence has definitely taken root. No matter how much I take to a mainstream trend or look I always have to shape it to my own body, infuse it with my own personality.

My mom is beautiful this way and as a result so am I.

Here’s to rocking this New Year as your signature sexy self!

You’ve got the right stuff already – I’ll show you how to work it your best way with plenty of tips, tricks, and girl friendly strategies. So stay tuned in and share in the awesome!

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photo credit: Raul Tejero

Meet Stacy – a real cool girl in the fashion industry

It is said that the world of fashion is a very cutthroat industry filled with not the nicest or even “realest” of folks. Those of us outside of its arena seem to have the impression that designers are demanding geniuses and models are fluffbrained little princesses. What I have found in my recent adventures in this so called fashion world has been refreshing however. It is a world that holds some very genuine people, just like you and me. They just happen to work with a lot of fabric – from the artists that are inspired to create beautiful clothing to the graceful girls that carry the vision on the runway.

I was fortunate enough to meet one such genuine soul during a local fashion show last month – and I’ve been very impressed with both her work, her attitude, and her sense of self within this frantic and often misunderstood industry.

Stacy Rabideau: (photographed above by Jeets Photography)- fashion model and proud of it!

Along with the height, the body, and the beauty this girl has a great head on her shoulders. And she just happens to love the work of modeling, probably not for reasons you would think either.

Reason number one – she loves meeting people. Already an astute observer she learned quickly how to be a savvy and charming networker . She’s the first to tell you how important it is to go right up to people and tell them “hey, what’s your story? what do you do?” or “I love your work”. The results of having those conversations have definitely paid off too. In just one short year since starting this whole modeling gig she’s got a ton of shoots under her belt and even a bit of runway under her feet such walking for local designer Kish Carter.

Reason number two – she enjoys working with artists and creative people. Photographers, makeup artists, designers, writers, videographers, even other models. She has an arsenal of awesome friends within the industry which gives her no shortage of work. This alone makes it such a fun activity for her and has rapidly added to her portfolio and professionalism.

Reason number three – she’s always learning something new. From ways to style herself, take direction, to how to talk to industry leaders she gets to digest a lot of great information that is more than just putting on a fabulous garment. Though she has been learning a lot about fashion itself and now finds it an exciting challenge getting out of her “jeans & tshirt” comfort zone (though she’ll still probably stay addicted to her favorite shop, The Buckle).

She’s also learned to stay cool under pressure during the fast paced ever changing scenes at runway shows, etc. Despite nerves, crazy heavy hair, and last minute changes in runway she’s learned to focus, improvise and rock it with genuine confidence and poise.

I hope she does super well and we’ll see more of her awesome realness in the future. In the meantime it’s great to see someone bring those lofty heights of fashion down home for the rest of us to be inspired by day to day.