A Smile is Always the Best Accessory in Your Wardrobe

Hello Fashionistas ~

Hope this finds you healthy & happy! This past year sure has been challenging & made many people lose their smile. Understandably so for many reasons. But if we all step back & pause for a moment, many of us may realize we actually found our smile again through all of this. I am definitely one of those people. Some of you probably think I'm crazy, but let me explain . . .

Most of my life I have been a very happy person. Even when times were hard. A good belly laugh is my favorite thing. Being positive, complimentary, & encouraging were things I have always tried to put into other's lives to lift them up. But I noticed a change in myself starting about 3 years ago. I started sliding downhill. Then my slide turned into a major roll. I got to the point that I felt so negative that I couldn't even stand being around myself. Can any of you relate? I tried everything to change how I felt . . . made lists of positive things in my life, read books about "choosing happiness", etc. Trying to make sense of why I felt the way I did was not working out & it was driving me CRAZY! I knew I had everything in the world to be grateful for . . . a great husband, wonderful family & friends, the 2 cutest twin grandsons, cute shoes (LOL!), etc. But I just couldn't dodge the cloud over my head. Until Covid hit . . . 

This pandemic forced me to actually pause for the first time in 25 years. I realized I had been on the crazy train ever since I became a single mom after my divorce from the kid's Dad back in 1995. Often times I worked multiple jobs to make ends meet. Most recently, the business I ran for 12 years was started alongside a full-time job & became my full-time career when I was laid off when the economy crashed. I worked like a crazy woman trying to build it as fast as I could so I could stay afloat financially. As a result, I built a business that was a freight train out of control. Gone from home several nights a week, out of town on the road traveling to shows several times a month, often working 70+ hours a week. Always feeling a sense of overwhelm. If I ignored my phone on weekends, I had so many clients to respond to on Monday that I spent the entire week playing catch up. So I usually worked a good portion of my weekends off. I made great money, but not really if you broke my income down to an hourly wage. When Covid put all of that to a screeching halt, I freaked out completely! Then came the peace & calm . . . 

I realized it felt good to relax. It felt good to have more time to hang out with my husband. It felt good to just sit on the sofa & watch a movie & pet my sweet dog Charlie on a rainy evening. It felt good to have an hour long conversation over the phone with my best friend. It felt good to hop on my Harley "Foxy Blue" & get my face in the wind more often. Things I rarely got a chance to do the past 5-10 years prior because I was working ALL. THE. TIME. I realized where my smile went, why my attitude was not so positive, & why I had lost the ability to fill the cup of others. I was totally burnt out. 

After realizing the problem, I knew MAJOR changes were needed & that I was totally responsible for making them happen. I was on a mission . . . and that is how Lilac Gypsy started. Doing something I love, but being able to do it without being gone all the time. Suddenly I found my smile again. My zest for life is back & it feels SO damn good!!!!

Finding my smile again made me stop seeing wrinkles in the mirror & start seeing "smile lines" instead! Looking in the mirror at my #OOTD was suddenly fun again & gave me confidence. And all of this made me realize that a genuine smile & sense of true happiness within can make an every day outfit truly FABULOUS! Figuring it out helped me be able to start being my old self & to strive to contribute something positive to other's lives once again, rather than suck the ever-loving life right out of them with my negativity. 

I know many people have become very depressed during the pandemic. With working from home, their PJ's & robe have become their work uniform. Many haven't put on a stitch of makeup in months. (No judgement there. Trust me, I love a good "no shower Sunday" & love the natural look.) But so many are depressed without even realizing it. There are many articles out there about getting up & getting dressed & how good it is for the human psyche.

Here is a link to one I enjoyed reading:  https://www.vogue.co.uk/fashion/article/power-of-dressing-up-coronavirus 

With all of this said, I hope that all of you are still holding on to your smile . . . staying healthy through all of this, living the life you want, with the people you love, doing something that feeds your soul. If not, go find it. You CAN do it & you will be so glad you did! After all, our smile is our best accessory, even during tough times. 

If you have a moment to pause, share in the comments what makes you smile. And thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking the time to read my blog! And if you have time while you are here, check out the new line I just started carrying from 74 Harley Street & let me know what you think. I always love feedback on how I can improve. Talk to you soon!

Keep smiling ~

xoxo Stevie