So now that the year is basically over…

Nah, just kidding. October has come to an end and I must say, that overall, it treated me exceptionally well.

Fashion Design

While September is when I challenged myself to do the DIY Capsule challenge, October is really where it took off. I made a wrap camisole, a sleeveless tank and a long sleeve t-shirt in just a few weeks. I’d call them pretty easy pieces, but the main challenge for me was just showing up. To remain consistent in the challenge and put in the work and that’s exactly what I did.

Because I do love myself though and I’m paying attention to areas of potential overwhelm, I am slowing down the challenge a little and will offer different content in between projects, like tips and time lapse illustrations.

I always get inspired by the Fall season. Maybe it’s because I love the color pallette, the coats and blazers, the rich leather and suede or that I can drink hot tea regularly; whatever it is, I’ve been creating concepts left and right in my mind and would love to get them all out into the world.

Start Up

So much development. Firstly, I gained brand clarity and niched down to who my design actually serves. In case you didn’t know…

In figuring things out, I haven’t been scared to “niche down,” I just couldn’t figure out what I wanted to niche down to or find the words that truthfully spoke to my design aesthetic. Now, I have it. As I keep designing, I’m sure I’ll niche down more into a specific clothing category, but at the moment, I’m good at where I’m at.

Other things I’ve done this month include: going to my first networking event held by Cafe Creatives, I’ve increased my social consistency by 58%...if I did the math right, I did my own brand photoshoot, I created my own logo and I know what I need to focus on and it’s not getting rich by tomorrow.

Style

This month, I treated myself to the Lip Bar’s lip gloss in Vixen and their new liquid matte lipstick in Brickhouse. I haven’t used Vixen yet because I’m waiting for the “right time,” but Brickhouse, which initiated the buy in the first place, is everything. It’s a good low key red for darker skin tones. After wearing it a few times, I prefer layering it over my Burt’s Bees chapstick because like to feel the moisture on my lips. The lipstick doesn’t dry your lips out, it’s just a personal preference. And while it’s not a smudge proof lipstick, the color will maintains its richness throughout the entire day…and night…through to the next day if you choose the lazy route and don’t remove it before bed.

I also picked up some cute patent leather pointed toe loafers from H&M the day of the networking event. They were a last minute find but they are everything. It’s been a while since I picked up some shoes that weren’t sneakers and I forgot just how a unique pair of flats or slides can bring a look together. I intend to play these shoes out this Fall and Winter.

After honing in on my brand sentence and my design aesthetic and working through this challenge, I feel my personal style is coming into focus a bit more. I know what excites me and what I want my closet to have more of. I mean, dare I say I’ve even looked at watches because they’re so “on brand” for my developing look.

Self

This month has had a heavy focus on experiences. As I design my best life, I know I want to continuously do new things and create new and impactful memories with my family. I was able to go to my first concert and I saw Bruno Mars perform live. It was an epic moment and I’m inviting more of that into my day to day. Whether on that scale or a lot smaller.

I also worked on my confidence and determined that it’s all in the mind and the story you tell yourself. I’ve added new forms of affirmations like writing and repeating “Do it with confidence” everyday if I start to doubt myself; it’s so I can be present and do the task in the moment without worrying about the outcome. I’ve also created a few mantras based off a few women who are both inspiring to me and are just all around killing every single game.

“What would Beyonce Do?”
For vision and execution

“What would Rihanna Do?”
For empire-building and savagery

“What would Serena Williams Do?”
For power and beasting

“What would Issa Rae Do?”
For craft consistency

“What would Tracee Ellis Ross Do?”
For living the best life

At the ripe ol’ age of 28, I think I’m just starting to come into my own. I’m getting a little more comfortable with making my thoughts and wants heard and am worrying less about how I might come across.

I’m not going to lie though, I did fall off the wagon with the eating healthy and working out. My routines started to feel too routine and I honestly hate anything to do with strength workouts. Despite that though, I know my end vision so I will be getting back on top of that.

next

So November, I honestly just want to keep the momentum going. Consistency is still the focus through the end of the year, but I need to clean it up a little bit. Throw some streamlining and a little bit of order into this ish.

My overall goals for the month include:

• Creating a freebie to grow my community.

• Setting up a newsletter platform to communicate with my community.

• Continue to be consistent.

• Finding a face moisturizer.

Alright guys, now that we’re in November, what goals have you set for yourself? Are you able to feed off of October’s momentum? Let me know in the comments!