A Body Positive Standard

Photography: Coco Michele 

"The one thing you can control is how you treat yourself. And that one thing can change everything". 

I can easily say 2018 has been the year of the woman. With nothing being left unsaid, from equality to the "me too" movement the stance and openness on body positivity has been the most impactful (for myself and millions of others). I am so beyond excited to see and hear stories of women finally starting to feel comfortable in their own skin and realizing that its okay to love themselves as they are.

To my 15 year old self; you will learn to love every Latina curve and embrace it because they will someday inspire others who don't know how to.

I have had the idea of putting out this post for over a year now. Meanwhile I had no idea how or when I wanted to post something like this, I clearly had no clue at the time who I would even include in this collaboration. As a blogger/influencer, I constantly see postings, articles, and talks on body positivity, but I have never seen a petite blogger (like myself) ever wanting to share a platform with a plus size babe.

There was no better person I could have ever collaborated with in this vision than my own cousin. Being a plus size girl, she has openly struggled in the past with embracing the body she was blessed with. She stepped into a career that at the time was blinded to nothing other than sizes 0-4 and termed a size 6 as "plus size". I believe she is a trailblazer for her self and many others in the industry. She holds a place as design director at one of the hottest plus size brands, Eloquii and inspires women each day to positively embrace their curves just as she has learned how to.

As Latinas, we can both agree that our culture comes with molds that are slowly changing + being accepted. The Hispanic culture can go both ways. "If you're overweight, you're healthy" or "If you're thin, you're unhealthy", why is this stigma still a thing in 2018?

I really wanted both of us to wear something really similar for this post. It signifies how we are one and numbers don't define us. My 5'1 size 4 petite frame can wear the same, feel the same, and slay the same as a size 16. 

There are so many young girls and women that still struggle with body image and get bullied for it everyday. We're here to tell you that its OKAY. It's your right to be free and feel free. You cannot let society determine how you should love yourself.

I feel incredibly blessed to have a platform where I can express myself and come to together with anyone I'd like. The Latina in me can't help but to try to break barriers and molds within this industry and set a path forward for any aged girl who feels like they don't have a place because of their body image whether you're plus sized or even petite girl like myself with curves. 

Until next post, 

Xo

Things I've Learned From Being My Own Boss

Photography: Coco Michele 

It's been roughly almost three years since I have officially been a business owner. Being a owner of a corp or even your own boss can mean a entirety of things, situations, and experiences. 

I'll be honest with you, when I decided to take The Fashion Muse to another level and create a legal corporation for it, I was SO clueless. Gladly, my father is a business man and a boss of his own and with his guidance I started to understand somewhat the nature of what all this meant. 

I'll be the first to admit that at 23 years old, I never saw myself as an owner of any kind of business nonetheless my own bossy boss! It's hard work.... and starting up something from scratch is even harder but the benefits of doing this for your self are endless. 

I have never been good at numbers, time management, and obtaining organizational skills (true story) Which is everything you need to have to be a business owner, and much more.... However, situations and experiences force you to change and adjust. Even though I wasn't necessarily blessed with those qualities, I was blessed with the talent of branding, communicating, and persuading. I can easily say, those three qualities have led a way for me. 

Many wouldn't think that being an influencer or a blogger required any kind of work in the business field but actually, IT ALL DOES. Being my own boss has made me into a one woman show and what I would call a full time job. From accounting to legal contracts, I've had to learn it all. 

I have easily underestimated myself so many times within all of this, and have even second guessed the goal behind it. I can't sit here and sugar coat everything, because that doesn't exist. There are months where I've had to pull content out of the air and not know where my next brand partnership is going to come from - this is why content planning and financial planning is so crucial. 

I consider myself a hermit crab at heart... Although being very open with you all is easy for me, the nature of my work has allowed me to work from home 95% of the time. Up until this point, I have had to grow tough skin with others and even brands I have shared partnerships with.

I really hope sharing some pieces of my story can help, especially if you're looking to become a business owner yourself! 

Until next post, 

XO