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Summertime by hip hop duo DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince is one of my all-time favorite songs! Its smooth beat and lyrics create a celebratory and relaxing mood. The month of June is one of my favorite months because it’s the beginning of summer! This month is cause for celebration for several other reasons, as well. 1. June is Accented Glory's anniversary month! We turned 5 years old on June 15th. I use this time of year to celebrate and reflect upon how far my brand has come. I also set new goals that'll help expand my reach! You can read more about Accented Glory’s brand story here. 2. I'm a history nerd and I especially LOVE African American History! With that being said, each year I look forward to celebrating Juneteenth. Juneteenth means more to me than any other American holiday because it acknowledges the emancipation of slaves. I rejoice in the strides African Americans have and continue to make in the US and identity how I can use my sphere of influence to assist in overcoming obstacles we still face. 3. In June, my natural hair Facebook group, Accented Glory Naturals (AGN), hosts an event for Loc Appreciation Day (LAD)! LAD was started by YouTuber Qochemist back in 2011. It's an annual occurrence that happens on the 4th Saturday of June. LAD celebrates the diversity of natural hair community and different ways to style natural hair. This year, AGN content curator Lorna Brown will be hosting a Facebook Live convo in our Facebook group relating to locs. Click here to join our natural hair group! 4. Lastly, but certainly not least, June is the love of my life’s birthday month! My husband and I have been married for 24 years and he continues to be my #1 fan. We are both entrepreneurs and fully understand the highs and lows of the small business owner's journey. I look forward to to celebrating a new year with him! I welcome June and Summer! This month and season brings so many blessings. I’d love to hear what your favorite month/season is and why? Tonya - Visionary of Accented Glory P.S. Check out our NEW hair jewelry we have added to Accented Glory's Amazon shop just in time for Loc Appreciation Day! Our hair cuffs can be worn on locs, twists, and braids. Click here to shop!  Accented Glory Haircuff Designs Accented Glory has kicked off our #BeDifferent campaign with Accented Glory Naturals Facebook Group content curator Lorna! Lorna is a natural hair enthusiast whose specialty is locs and loc care. She's an amazing creative who wrote a #BeDifferent Haiku!  Lorna of Accented Glory Naturals My natural self Challenges accepted norms. Those "norms" then conform. Lorna Are you a blogger, vblogger, or content curator? If so, check out Accented Glory's Affiliate Toolbox and see how you can possibly generate some passive income!
 Photo Source: CreateHER Stock February is the month of LOVE! Couples spend a lot of time and money planning Valentine's Day activities for their significant others. This year I plan to switch things up this month and chose to love me first! I'm going to use my time, energy, and resources to show love to myself too. Without loving yourself first, you can't effectively love others. Below are some "Love You First" ideas you can explore this month as well! 1. Escape Room - Have you ever said I want to be in a relationship with someone that's going to stimulate my mind? If that's you, I got you! You can intellectual stimulate your own mind and have fun at the same time via an escape room. Even though it's advertised as a team building activity, it's definitely something you can do solo! Most escape rooms gladly accept a single person to complete a team roster. The themed adventure usually lasts an hour and you team up with others to solve clues to escape a room. Google escape rooms in your area to find one close to you! 2. Nature Adventure - Outdoor activities are great for engaging with nature and getting in tune with oneself. Being outside and having time away from technology can be both refreshing and replenishing. More importantly, you'll also get in some physical exercise! Search your local parks or outdoor centers to see what activities they have scheduled this month. Most offer hiking, obstacle courses, or walking trails. If you're located in area of colder climates, your local parks or recreation centers my offer some indoor activities as well. 3. Reservations for One - Take advantage of the opportunity to spend quality time with yourself and get your eat on! Make reservations for one at your favorite or upscale restaurant. Put on your favorite outfit and treat yourself to a delicious meal. Be sure to order dessert whether before or after the meal; splurge on the calories for this special occasion honoring the value you bring to the table.  Photo Source: CreateHER Stock 4. Love Letter - Write a Love Letter to yourself! It may sound silly, but trust me it'll be fun, healing, and inspiring. Begin the letter explaining why you're writing it. Expound on its importance and impact you desire for it to have. Then share the things you love about yourself and why. Continue with what growth you desire to see in the relationship with yourself. End the letter with affirmations. Remind yourself why you value the relationship you have with yourself. 5. Treat Yourself - I like to call this one "retail therapy" and it's one of my favorites! Treat yourself to something nice. I recommend you go out to a store instead of shopping online. Get out and try on your purchase in person. Be sure to catwalk in the dressing room and wink at yourself in the mirror before you pivot! Remind yourself that you're worth sowing into and rock the piece you purchase like the queen that you are. 6. Adult Coloring Book - Adult coloring is an activity I enjoy doing in my free time. Coloring can be therapeutic, relaxing, and healing. It's a great way to escape the noise of your world and drift into the calm of shapes and colors. This activity is an inexpensive self-care practice you can continue throughout the year! I want to encourage you to love on you first! I know for some this statement my sound selfish. Trust me, it really is not. It's a necessity for self-preservation. So, go on and show some love to yourself, because can't nobody love you better than you! Tonya - Visionary of Accented Glory P.S. This month Accented Glory is hosting "Love On You" Online Pop-Up Shop on Facebook. We are providing an opportunity for you to show some love to YOURSELF! We have ALL our Fall/Winter headbands and a few jewelry designs ON SALE! You have until Sunday, February 18th to catch our sale. Click link below to visit our event Facebook page for more details! https://www.facebook.com/events/333457790474378/  Hair Goal Challenge Hi Accented Glory Fam! Do you have a hair goal for 2018? Do you want to take better care of your hair in the new year? If you answered YES to at least one of these questions, I want to invite you to join Accented Glory's Hair Goal Challenge! The challenge is taking place in our Facebook natural hair group Accented Glory Naturals. Below is a quick video that outlines the structure of our group challenge. Click here to join the challenge and let's make 2018 an Epic Year! Tonya - Visionary of Accented Glory Our visionary, Tonya Cross, is now a regular contributor to Dear Curl Friend. Dear Curl Friend is a digital platform for women to connect about their natural hair and receive beauty tips. See excerpt from her article below titled "4 Tips For A Healthy Scalp".  Photo Source: @CreateHer Stock In 2014, the Accented Glory Naturals Facebook group hosted a healthy scalp challenge. Healthy scalp is the foundation of healthy hair. Like a vegetable garden needs good soil to produce good crops; a healthy scalp yields healthy hair.
Properly caring for your scalp can also be beneficial for your overall health. Scalp care is relaxing and relieves tension. Check out 4 questions at Dear Curl Friend that we answered for our Facebook group members from the challenge! My Journey Most would probably classify me as a natural hair veteran. I began my natural hair journey in 2001, before the natural hair movement regained its popularity post 60s and 70s. Like most, when I first started out, I struggled with finding hair care products that met my natural hair needs. It was also difficult to find hair accessories. Most hair accessories in retail stores catered to a much younger demographic and were not natural hair friendly. So here I was, in a dilemma. I wanted to dress up my new natural tresses with age appropriate accessories, without damaging my hair. Fast-forward 12 years later, after raising three beautiful daughters who are also naturals, I picked up a new hobby – crafting hand-made hair accessories. The hobby was both a time filler and therapeutic. Once I had a few prototypes created, I was surprised to find that my daughters liked the designs and started to wear them regularly. Soon they began to request specific designs, like the afro puff holder, to accent certain natural hairstyles. Other natural haired women started to notice our hair accessories and asked where we got them. When they found out I made the accessories, they wanted to purchase my products! So my daughters and I took a leap of faith and launched a handcrafted hair accessory brand for women called Accented Glory.  Inspiration Results Many positive things have been birthed through my natural hair journey, most of which are related to my brand. Before starting Accented Glory, I had no entrepreneurial or marketing experience. With the guidance of my oldest daughter and small business online groups, I've learned a lot in the past few years about marketing and entrepreneurship. I’ve also built a natural hair Facebook group community, Accented Glory Naturals, of 300+ members that I co-manage with my daughters. The relationships I have established as an entrepreneur have been great. I’ve met other forty plus female entrepreneurs who have decided to pursue their passions later in life too. Many of us are balancing full time jobs while building our brands. I’ve chosen to keep my full time job because I have two daughters in college. The steady income from my 9-5 helps to ensure their tuition is paid. Although having a full time job and business can be stressful at times, I'm thankful that my three daughters are actively engaged in helping me build the Accented Glory brand. I honestly couldn't do it without them - they have truly become my tribe; my support system! Lastly, my natural hair journey has taught me a lot about myself, my passions, and my drive. Whether it's building a brand or mastering a flat twist style, with the right tools, I can do anything I put my mind to. Building my own brand has helped me to discover my passion to create beautiful things by hand. Now anyone can reap the benefits of this passion when they wear my hair accessories. Accented glory fosters my daily drive to be a better version of myself and to turn obstacles into stepping-stones. I can’t wait to see where my natural hair journey will take me next. Tonya – Visionary and Accent Designer of Accented Glory We NOW have "Embrace Greatness" Lady Tees! Visit our online store to purchase.  I started my natural hair process in 2013, however, I didn't truly embrace the idea of being natural until 2015. When I started the process in 2013 it was simply because my hair was extremely damaged due to dying and relaxers. I decided I would give up the relaxers in an effort to maintain my color....I just wasn't ready to go gray. Well, let's fast forward to 2015. On July 1, 2015, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Prior to the start of chemotherapy I was told I would loose my hair in about 14 days. My oncologist was right. In two weeks I was bald. Five months after being completely bald, I embraced being natural. In January 2016 my new hair blossomed. Although, I love this brand new, chemical free, beautiful hair, I do understand, "I am NOT my hair." Benet   We NOW have "Embrace Greatness" Lady Tees! Visit our online store to purchase.  Choosing to wear my hair in its natural state has allowed me to be able to embrace my hair has built my self confidence. It has also influenced my daughter's to love their natural hair too. My girls are my motivation and knowing that they embrace their hair at an age where appearance means so much is awesome to me. They are in the 7th and 9th grade. Tameka  We NOW have "Embrace Greatness" Lady Tees! Visit our online store to purchase.  No, this is not a blog about 50 Cents! However, I do have some questions I got to ask relating to natural hair. I'll ask 6 questions and they're all about us; Naturals! We all know that when going into a job interview we must look our very best. We have to be clean-cut and professional from head to toe. But what's considered a professional hair style for women with natural hair? Just because I see my hair as tamed and professional, will my potential employer view it the same way? This is a question many naturals are faced with while job searching or transitioning to fully natural hair. Another question is, would you straighten or change your hair for a job? Many will instantly say no, but sadly many women are faced with this decision in the corporate world. Some women with natural hair are being pressured to straighten their hair or to style their hair in a certain way to receive or maintain a job. This leads to my next question, Is it fair that I may get overlooked for a job, because of the way I choose to style my hair even though I'm the most qualified? Because there's two sides to every coin, I must also look at the situation from the employer's point of view and ask should not the business have a say in how they're represented through their employees? Personally, I've never experienced being asked to change my hair by an employer. However I can say that when I do go in for an interview, I avoid wearing head wraps. I never thought about it until now, but I also never wear my afro completely out. It's either braided down or worn up in a way that doesn't appear "unruly". My final question is this, should women with natural hair have to be concerned with how they wear their hair at work or should employers be more open minded about what they consider appropriate hair styles for the work place? If you still have love for me (In my 50 Cents voice), please answer one of my questions in comments! Thanks. P.S. Join Accented Glory YouTube Channel Sunday, January 24th at 8pm EST for Accented Glory Naturals Hangout On Air titled "It's Just Hair or Is It". We will discuss the question, why would someone even care how someone would choose to style their hair?  |
Cierra CrossCierra has been a part of Accented Glory since its launch in June 2013. Outside of being an "Accessory Diva", she's a millennial who's currently navigating adulthood. Click Not One Of Your Little Friends to check out her podcast! Archives
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