Yesterday I lived life as offline as possible and spent the day doing me for a change! Why? Because it was my birthday!!

Every year I like to celebrate by hosting a giveaway. This year I’m a day late, but I’m truly psyched about this one. Bellas – allow me to introduce you to Fairwinds, a unique jewelry collection by Rachel Roy. The collection is a collaboration between Rachel and Fairwinds Trading. Every item has been hand-crafted in Africa by a female-owned business.

This clutch was made in Tanzania, using local fabrics.

These gorgeous earrings were made in Rwanda, featuring beads made in a paper layering process.

This bracelet is made from shredded woven paper, using traditional Rwandan techniques.

Right now, Rachel Roy’s Fairwinds collaboration is available at rachelroy.com and select Macy’s stores and macys.com, and the collection compliments Macy’s Rwanda Path to Peace collection of amazing baskets — which is also made by Fairwinds Trading!

I reached out to Rachel to learn more about the collaboration.
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Originally posted over at BVHairTalk.com.

This is the time of year where pink ribbons mysteriously appear on every item at the drugstore, where annual walks are walked and funds are raised, all in the names of the Susan G. Komen fund and breast cancer research.

When most people think of breast cancer, they think of the most obviously affected area. Not everyone addresses the less obvious things that are affected by breast cancer, like self esteem, overall well being, and hair. But for some women, cancer can attack those things are well.

When my Aunty Gemma was diagnosed with breast cancer, I got to see how breast cancer can go far beyond the chest. My aunt struggled with hair loss, and what to do in the aftermath of cancer therapy. In an effort to answer some of her questions, I reached out to an expert in the field.

Vaso Spirou, the owner of Miami Beach’s Salon Vaso is known and widely respected as a master colorist and hairstyling artist who specializes in curly hair and caters to the needs of South Beach’s elite. Her salon is sleek, sexy, and captures the exclusivity of the city. But Vaso’s hidden passion is in helping and serving the needs of those affected by cancer. As a survivor herself, she knows all too well the debilitating effects the disease can have.

“It has a major emotional effect on your beauty. Losing your hair can help you feel even worse,” she said in a telephone interview.

For clients of her gorgeous salon, Vaso customizes store-bought human hair wigs — offering scalp measurement so the wigs fit perfectly, and styling the wigs so they look normal and natural for each customer. “Why would you want to look different, especially when you are going through something as serious as breast cancer?” she asked.

Vaso offered five helpful tips for patients dealing with cancer-related hair loss.
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Anyone who’s been reading this here blog for a while now knows — En Vogue were among my most significant beauty icons back when I was but a greasy-faced teenager who wanted to wear makeup and feel pretty but didn’t know how. In my day, it didn’t get better. En Vogue filled an important chronological girl group era for me — between TLC — and raised the bar for harmony and class.

LOVE. THEM.

So imagine how geeked I was to meet them! Yup, two weekends ago I had the privilege of meeting the Funky Divas during a stop on their Rooted in Nature beauty tour, on assignment for Black Voices.

Click here to read my original post, and click below to watch the video!

Please excuse my nerves.
I also met Angela Guy, senior VP general manager of Softsheen Carson, who told me more about Roots of Nature. I’m curious about that reconstructing deep treatment, so expect a review to come!

The girls were sweet as pie and seemed honestly interested in checking out the site. So Cindy, Terry, and Dawn might be reading this. If so — hi!! It was wonderful to meet you, and I look forward to hearing some new music from one of my favorite groups ever!

What’s your favorite En Vogue song, bellas? I’ve been listening to Free Your Mind lately, and WOW that song and the video are so progressive and ahead of its time!

From the minute Disney announced the first African American princess movie, The Princess and the Frog, the buzz has been building. And so has the concern.

Disney’s history of racial sensitivity in their cartoons caused eyebrows to be raised early on, and understandably so — having waited this long to produce a film starring an African American princess, the pressure was on Disney to come correct. Every little detail of this particular princess will be analyzed, criticized, and committed to history. The film will open for an advance special engagement in New York and Los Angeles from November 25 to December 13 (click here for those special tickets), and will open nationwide December 11. I’m going to reserve judgment until I’ve seen the film itself. But in the meantime, allow me to unabashedly gush about what Disney’s already done right.

For super special The Princess and The Frog merchandise, Disney’s teamed with one of my favorite brands, Carol’s Daughter for a truly magical beauty collection.

Click here to sign up to be first to know about the Fall 2009 release of the Carol’s Daughter collection, starring Princess Tiana.

I was lucky enough to catch up with Carol’s Daughter creator Lisa Price, to get her feelings about this awesomeness. It was so inspiring to hear how this came about, and how this little company that could has managed to become part of Disney history. And to find out straight from Lisa herself, that her mother’s parents were from Trinidad? This Trini bella felt very proud all around.
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In the music industry today, finding artists who truly understand the importance and effect of their image is rare. Even moreso when it comes to females. It can seem like socially conscious musicians like Queen Latifah, Lauryn Hill, Tanya Stephens, and India Arie are anomalies of the industry. Compare their success to the stars who get the magazine cover shine today. Sometimes when I listen to the radio or watch music videos on TV, I’m filled with an overwhelming feeling of despair and unbelonging.

See, I’m a bella who’s constantly seeking music that uplifts, enlightens, and informs. So when Queen Ifrica came on the scene, I sat up and took notice.

I clearly remember the first time I heard her voice — at first I thought she was a dude, simply because her intonation in the chorus of Daddy is so deep. The lyrical content is so heavy. In case you’ve never heard Daddy, click here to experience it. Be forewarned – it’s not every day a song about incest becomes a hit reggae song.

Tackling heavy subject matter head on is what Queen Ifrica does. Name another female artist who’s addressed a topic as controversial as skin bleaching in the Caribbean — a chronic problem as revealed here.

“My complexion is better than ever!”

I love her spirit and her sentiment.

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Fingers and toes crossed, this bella is hoping to attend New York Fashion Week for the first time this September!

I figured it’d be a good idea to get my feet wet by interviewing some designers. So when I got the word that eternally gorgeous and talented New York based designer Rachel Roy was about to debut a new, affordable fashion line at Macy’s, I jumped at the chance to ask her some questions. Without further ado…

I love that you’re coming up with more affordable items for women in my demographic, can you tell me more about the overall inspiration and aesthetic of the line? What I’ve seen so far is bright and fun!

Accessible fashion is very important to me, and I believe every woman should get the opportunity to express herself through style. I have wanted to design a fashion forward yet affordable collection since I was young. With this collection I focused on accenting women’s best features while keeping the clothes edgy and youthful.

I think it’s interesting that your affordable line is at Macy’s, which I must admit doesn’t spring immediately to mind when I think “affordable.” What made you choose Macy’s as opposed to say, Target?

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