Brief Blog Hiatus

Hi Guys,

I just wanted to post a quick note since I haven't done a blog post in forever now! Initially I thought I'd come across one of my mini-breaks but I think I'm going to be away a little longer than anticipated due to some needs for my computer among some personal reasons.

 

I will try not to stay away too long and will keep you all updated if I think I'll be away any longer than say another month.

 

I appreciate you all for investing time in my blog, love the relationships that I've build here thus far and on your blogs as well and I look forward to reconnecting very soon!!

Donna aka Faith215

Fashion Fridays: Classy Minimalist

Design: 80's Themed Hair Salon

I just came across this article over at design milk of a salon in Slovenia that has an 80's theme. I so can see me applying to a salon like this if I still worked as a hairstylist. I love design but I also love it when businesses such as this invest in an entire concept for their final product or store. It's fun for the customer and often times the employees based on my experience with the salons  I have worked at.

Check out more images below and you can see the entire article and more images over at design milk.

 

 

 

Fashion Fridays: Chevron Love

What's that saying about if it ain't broke?

Hi Guys,

 

I'm linking up with Nicole of Pharr Away today for Monthly measures. I first linked up with Nicole in January I believe, skipped February and now I'm back in March.

See what had happened was, I decided in January to set a goal for myself. January 2013 made it a year since I'd gone vegan, although I'm no longer strictly a vegan I have in that year made a permanent change to my diet and saw some major changes due to this fact. So I wanted to utilize my "anniversary" so to speak to set a new goal and make a new change.

Well the issue was this, my goal was to purposely lose 25 or 28 pounds (forget now) to get out of the 200's. Prior to that I'd lost 42 pounds simply by changing my eating habits. I was losing so well that often times when I'd get on the scale I'd find myself surprised by the fact that I'd lost, not gained weight, thinking I'd overeaten. As soon as I decided to temporarily count calories in order to reach a set goal weight, I began to fall back into old habits and was quickly reminded of why I'm not losing weight in that way. I'm constantly seeking the balance between self discipline and utilizing flat out common sense. Common sense for me is don't count calories! It still takes discipline to not eat everything nailed down but it's like walking via grace vs the law. Counting calories is law for me freedom to chose the right things to eat is grace which allows me to keep at it freely and seemingly effortlessly. So I'm keeping with the goal of eating healthier and making wise choices, eat until full and when hungry and that is that. Counting calories work so I don't discourage others to try it if that works for you. But having gone on diets in my youth it's easy to feel like that's what I'm on if I'm not careful, so it's getting at the mental for me vs. there being an issue with calorie counting. I would say to anyone that feels like they're in diet mode doing so should look into other ways of getting to goal because you ultimately want to adapt a way of eating that will be a part of your life permanently. For me taking out the meat and eating more plant based worked for me, for another it may be changing from ground beef to ground turkey, essentially look for what'll become a permanent change vs. a means to lose weight for now.

 

I was again surprised when I stepped on the scale at my nieces house this weekend (the scale is banned from my house also btw) and I'd lost 6 pounds since I'd weighted myself in January, bringing me to a total of 48 pounds lost! And the beauty of it is that it feels like a lifestyle change vs. an effort to lose. It may not be the 28 I'd planned and would have reached on April 5th but it's extremely rewarding, even more so because I didn't feel like I made a specific effort which tells me this lifestyle change is becoming a part of me. What I am seeking to change now is working out more rather I finally put the gym membership I'm paying for to use or if I cancel it as planned and buy work out vids, that is the area I'm seeking to change and I'll be looking out for cues in order to know what'll work for me on a permanent basis as I also desire to develop a lifestyle of fitness vs. focusing on losing weight, the weight will come off naturally.

 

So in conclusion, no more calorie counting for me, I will be placing more focus on getting in more plant based foods this month, my body is crying for it right now, I babysat my great niece over the weekend and ate a lot of frozen foods, my body didn't like at all which is a blessing because it shows my eating habits are so much better and because I don't like the way it feels it's easy to get back to those foods that are good and good for me:) Lastly I'll begin developing a fitness plan. And as I think about it Spring is on the way so I'll likely begin with walking which is something I do a lot of naturally anyway.

 

One day I'll get out of these 200's and I'm much closer to that goal with the 6 pounds lost. In the end when I get to my ultimate goal weight I won't feel as if I did any dieting and there won't be anything to revert back to because this way of eating is now a part of me and so if I need to challenge myself I'll look into doing it in the area of fitness not food. The most important thing is that I'm healthy and taking care of my temple.

 

 Well see how it goes this month! As I've stated I dont' weight myself regularly so next month I'll report on how things went with fitness and eating more plant based.

Faith: Fearfully & Wonderfully Made

About a week ago I was having a conversation with a coworker and she made a statement that her hairstylist friend has good hair. It was one of those conversations that started one way and ended another, we were talking about something totally unrelated but somehow she ended up sharing with me the fact that her stylist friend didn't do a good job of straightening her hair and she thinks it has to do with the stylist having good hair, therefore not knowing the fact that additional heat is needed for my coworker's, I guess not so good hair.

Quick sidebar if a stylist is indeed a professional stylist , she should be able to do hair textures aside from her own, just sayin.

Now of course the larger issue and the thing that stood out to me was the fact that my coworker referenced this woman's hair as good. Not hating on her at all in sharing this it brought the topic to mind to blog about based on the lie in this, not to bash my coworker. I'll have to do a blog on the history of the term one day I'll spare you guys for the sake of length here but for anyone unaware of the term, the issue is with the mindset that one hair type is better than another and to be very clear, if you have naturally straight euro hair (although not limited to Europeans of course) you have good hair, if you have kinky course hair we don't say bad hair well those that uses the term but that's what is implied and of course there are a plethora of made up terms to imply kinky hair = bad hair but again that's a series of posts that I'll have to revisit. Continuing when I decided to cut off my perm and wear my own natural texture,

Fashion Fridays- A Touch of Spring

Happy Friday everyone! Today I bring you a new feature to my blog, Fashion Fridays. Each week I'll post an outfit, an article, something within the fashion industry that I'm digging at the moment from a specific style to a color that I'm personally feeling. My daughter will be joining me on these post on occasion as well so I'll be sure to have her introduce herself during her first post. I've titled this look a touch of Spring Fever because that's just what I'm having right now as I wait for my favorite season to come upon us (well except for the rain part but praise God for it!:)) This outfit is a little matchy and so I personally like how the polish from Button London and the clutch adds that touch of color without being overwhelming.

Thanks for stopping by guys and I'm sure there is a Fashion Friday's bloghop out there so if anyone knows of one please share it in the comments!

Design: A few of my favorites

I've come to realize that in my time of blogging I have yet to do a post focusing on design! It could be a reflection of the fact that little design work has been going down in my own life however I'd like to change the fact that I haven't been posting anything on it starting right here right now:).

 

Logo Design

 

I love this logo, and I'm going to paste here the about info from Artso's facebook page as not to miss a bit of the description for this company.

"ARTSO is a service based company whose focus is to provide resources for performing artists who are in need of management, development and quality presentations, in order to move to the next level in their careers. Our services include
• Project and Artist Consultation
• Artist Management and Development
• Touring
• Event Planning and Production
• Project Management
• Image Evolution
Currently representing Stephen the Levite, Zae Da Blacksmith, Melissa T, Lunchbox Kids, Poetik Sol"

Artso recently put on the Sho Baraka event I posted about last week which was great btw, I love how fun and inviting this logo is. It's fresh and different including the color choices and if I wasn't familiar with the business already, I'd want to know more about what they're selling.

www.artsoindulge.com Logo design by DearAdamSmith

 

Web Design

The design for HipCityVeg is great, nice and clean and easy to find the details that you're looking for ie easy to navigate. HipCityVeg is a Vegan restaurant based in Philly which has  quickly become my favorite vegan restaurant in the area and it doesn't hurt that the owner always recognizes me even if I haven't been there for months.

The website's design also matches the beauty of the restaurant to a tee, nice, clean, and to the point while still giving beautiful design elements.

www.hipcityveg.com Site designed by http://gumshoestudio.com/

 

Print

Lastly is a print design by Andrea of flygirls This print if from a series titled Crowns of Color and I just love Andrea's use of colors and shapes and how this particular series highlight the beauty of natural hair in a way that says it's just beautiful in my opinion. I have a print by Andrea from a series titled Love My Hair which speaks the same message of loving the hair God gave you but in a way that presents the beauty of the texture rather than simply pushing the message.

To view other prints by Andrea check out her shop here also just as a FYI, Andrea does more than hair prints so be sure to check out all of her design work over at her blog.

 

Well that concludes my first post on design, I hope you enjoyed and look for me to feature more of these types of post more often!

 

Faith: God's Good Gift Inspite of Difficult Trials

I came across a great post last night over at https://princesswarriorjourney.wordpress.com titled

Good Gifts from the Father  and as the titled would imply the author Heidi shares with us God's goodness towards her in spite of a painful trial she's experiencing. Within her story, Heidi describes how what she's going through is impacting her and a process that's not only something that God is mindful of in her life, but something that He has direct responsibility for and how God delights in giving us good gifts even when allowing us to go through such difficult trials. And to say God is responsible isn't to say God brought on a difficulty but there could be something that God allowed that will work out for our good in the end.

There are certain trials that God may walk us through that can be beyond a doosey! Heidi shares in her post the fact that even in that which God is taking her through or allowing her to endure, He's still giving good gifts to her. And she speaks on how we'll not only  receive them but we are to request them of Him. That's one thing I find somewhat thrilling in what I'm experiencing myself. Still won't get into details but it's the type of trial that can break you if you don't have any desire for the things of God,  the blessing is that the strength I thought God developed in me in the early years of my walk are nothing compared to these later years and while extremely painful so seeing the growth and what I can endure, only by God's grace of course is a huge blessing. Then once delivered it'll be as if it never happened, all that'll be left are the memories including how good God was in the mist of it all.

I was thinking to myself about the Israelites. How often I've read about their foolishness and called them foolish thinking who would want to go back to slavery and how dare they not believe God......how could they not believe God after walking through dry land where it should not have been dry! Whales and such suspended in the air from where God parted the sea and somehow they were able to not believe He'd take them where He promised, and not just walking through the Red Sea but getting them out of Egypt in the 1st place and the plethora of miracles that occurred. Well if I succumb to the pain of what I'm going through or you succumb to the pain you're going through forgetting everything God has doe in your life thus far and not  holding on to the promises, we are those fools too. Don't get me wrong it's not about saying oh manna how I love thee and can't wait to eat you for the umpteenth time. But we thank God for the manna and that we're eating at all as we endure the pain of not having that what we're use to, being totally taken out of our comfort zone in their case not having the  leeks they had back in Egypt. Although we may not like it we thank God for it and we believe that God will take us to the promised land flowing with milk and honey vs. thinking the manna will be all that we'll have forever.AND even saying Lord I can't stand this stuff but I'm grateful for your provision and you've promised me Milk and Honey so I look forward to the day when you bring it to pass. Having to eat this manna only gives me a greater appreciation for what's to come. It's the choice we make however to become bitter or better.

So if you have a moment check out Heidi's post  and be encouraged by her story as I have. If you do not have the time to read it yet are facing a trial or trials that have you wondering what in the world is going on Lord where are you, hold on to what He's promised you don't go off of what you see. There are some things that God may pre-warn us we'll have to endure and others that will completely take us for a loop but in it we seek God, we wait for Him to answer and deliver, and in the meantime we obey him and hold onto his promises where we don't recognize a specific way in which He's leading us or when we're not hearing His voice at all.Examine your own heart and check that it's not sin that has you out there for sure, but don't be duped by the lie that certain things we experience is due to our sins only, sometimes it's what we're doing correctly and how God is changing us internally which doesn't always feel good.

 

God is faithful, when He says He'll never leave nor forsake us, he will never leave nor forsake us and He's not like us where He can say that and not come through so if you are His you can trust that He has you and He understand what it is you're experiencing simply trust Him and wait on His timing to bring you to the other side, to whatever your land flowing with milk and honey may be based on your specific situation.

 

Grace & Peace

Sho Baraka in Philly on Friday!!

This just in, Sho Baraka will be performing along with Stephen the Levite at the Arts Garage in Philly on Friday. Too excited and glad I'll be able to go (dear Lord please don't let there be something I'm forgetting I have to do on Friday:)).

 

If you're in the area or able to get to the area, you should check it out!