I decided to deactivate both my social media instagrams (public and private) to take time off to focus more on the present, which included doing more reading, movie watching, helping my cousin out with his resume, catching up with my parents and generally, not feeling like my time is being spent 24/7 on social media.

It wasn’t really hard to find alternatives to scrolling through my Instagram feed. Deleting the app from my phone prevented me from accidentally signing in and helped me adjust to an “offline” life in a matter of days. I do recommend signing off once in a while; whether it is for a day, a week, or more. Do what makes sense for you and I guarantee you will feel less stressed, overwhelmed, and maybe even pick up a new hobby with that spare time.

I have since returned back to social media after the July 4th weekend because I really just wanted to post more outfits! And the break did help me recenter my fashion Instagram’s purpose, which was to showcase my style to those who appreciate and enjoy it. As well as catch up with my fashion friends.

I don’t have a theme to this blog post, so consider it a potpourri of things that I’ve discovered to be interesting, cool, or pertaining to my interests.

Black Owned Businesses

I finally received my liquid lipstick from the The Lip Bar in the shade “Bawse Lady” and my mules from Zou Xou shoes. I have not tried the liquid lipstick yet due to the fact that masks cover my entire face and I think I’ve forgotten my makeup routine during quarantine. (Results pending!)

I have worn the Zou Xou mules though, I have to say despite sizing up I still needed to give the shoes a couple of days to get the leather to mold to my feet (but otherwise they are so comfortable!). I never thought I’d be a mules person but here I am wearing the laziest yet stylish (and most expensive) mules I’ve owned.

• 

• 

I also got a sample of Briogeo‘s Mini Charcoal + Coconut Oil Shampoo and Mini Deep Conditioning Mask. My hair is so crispy so let’s see if these items will tame my mane. (Again, results pending!)

The final business I wanted to give a shoutout to is The Tiny Tassel that sells super cute tassel earrings (fruits, flowers, rainbows). I actually adore these flamingo earrings, which I’d love to have for a tropical vacation that won’t happen until coronavirus decides to subside or when my country’s leadership decides to take the pandemic seriously. Whichever one comes first.

Kawaii Shit

Deco-den Phone Cases

What the hell is a deco-den phone case? Deco-den is the Japanese word for “decorated.” And boy, are they decorated!

As a lover of all things “kawaii”, I really fell deep into this hole. Recently, my love for deco-den phone cases was reawakened when I was directed to a post on Instagram called “Black Owned Kawaii Businesses” and one of them was called Love Tee Tee, and she was making these deliciously looking snack cases featuring Rilakkuma, Sailormoon, candy, glitter, and resin whipped cream (#extra). Unfortunately, from her Instagram it seems like she is not currently taking requests for custom phone cases.

So I settled on a case from NatashaStudioArt on Etsy, which has been my primary shopping source. The phone case has Duffy…ShellieMay… macarons…StellaLou… basically if Disney threw up on a phone case.

Stickers and Pins

Let me just put out a list:

Pin Pin Pals is a women owned business that sells stickers, pins and customized t-shirts. Their food and boba themed items are some of my favorites!

Roocharms and her Kawaii science related stickers, badge reels, and magnets. One of my favorites being the Motivational Mitochondria sticker (because the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell… makes sense it’ll keep going!)

This Ramen-Cell sticker from MyPetCephalopod that satisfies both my love of ramen and biology. The artist is grad student who loves both science and art (sounds like me, minus the grad student part).

Ceramics

I’ve been a big fan of Jam and Bee Ceramics for quite a while now and Laura has been expanding her line of work to include more than just mugs and plates! She’s got a line of fruit earrings recently on the shop (like these peach ones that I managed to snag).

My favorite item may still be my “Where’s My Bells At, Bitch” mug featuring a smug Tom Nook.

Some final OOTDs

I guess this post isn’t complete if I don’t share a couple of my outfits that I’ve worn recently. I lied and went back onto Target online to snag another LoveShackFancy dress. This is a collab that I really did not expect to love so much, honestly.

• 

• 

• 

• 

A lasting thought: I had someone in a work meeting announce that he thought my fashion was the greatest thing to happen in my office building. It was totally unexpected but compliments like this (really go to my head, just kidding) really make it seem like my style has a huge impact on the impressions I make.

It also reminded me of what my office admin, Tanya, told me. She said as a young black woman in science she was told that she would not succeed in her field if she did not dress a certain way. Tanya said she was inspired by my fashion and most of all, that I didn’t sacrifice my style for the sake of my field.