Blog : Michigan

You are enough. You are worth investing in. Your dreams are worth taking the risk for. The things that bring you life are important! As a mom I’ve carried this thought that I’ll be frowned upon for wearing too many hats… that raising my kids and building a career shouldn’t go hand in hand. For so long I fought fear that my kids would feel put on the shelf if I sacrificed even a moment of my time with them to invest in a career. Or that they would turn out to be wretched little humans if I didn’t give up everything and give them ALL of me.
I was wrong. The people who made me feel shame for wanting more than being a stay-at-Home-mom were wrong. I’ve learned that a child who knows they’re loved & feels secure, is there cheering mama on to become a success in her endeavors! Mamas success is theirs to celebrate too!
When Delaney says I’m a great stylist, I feel humbled. When I get to buy the kids something fun with my earned money, I feel proud. When I take a step back and I realize that the dreams in my heart were put there by a God who calls me worthy, deserving & capable, I understand that He also equipped me to walk through motherhood & my career with grace and balance. Moms are bosses.
Photo: @kelseyhettinga

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What makes your heart light on fire? What is it that you start talking about faster and louder with whole hearted excitement!? Girl, chase it down!! Hold on tight, let the fire inside of you ignite it in other women who need it too! You hold something more special, more wild & untamable than you know – your heart! Your ability to be YOU! No one else could ever fill the (sparkly, leather, red, sassy, comfy) shoes that were designed just for you! You’re fierce, don’t cave to comparison! You’re strong, tell self doubt to shut the heck up! You’re full of fire, fuel it with people in your tribe who love & support you! And don’t hold yourself back, you weren’t given a spirit of fear but of love, Power & a sound mind (2 Tim 1:7)! Be fierce, be strong, be full of fire!

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Photo taken at: Grand Rapids, Michigan

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January. The month of fresh starts, refreshed vision & renewed motivation! This month I officially started training my first ever assistant stylist! That felt like a big step in the right direction, a big step also into unknown territory that totally freaks me out. But hey, if you don’t take the scary steps forward then the growth seizes to exist and that’s something I refuse to let happen. I had this realization recently, if my mentality moving forward is full of ‘somedays’ then I’m not really running after my dreams, I’m crawling toward them. That’s when I decided that now is the time to start training my first ever newbie because the day WILL come (and it’s quickly approaching!) that I need her. Expecting that growth, investing in it now and keeping vision for what’s beyond it means that I’m running full speed ahead! My heart and hands are open to the Lord to do His thing through my business and He will continue to open the doors if I continue to put my expectation in Him. I am a grateful and busy mom boss and it’s the greatest feeling in the world!

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Photo taken at: Grand Rapids, Michigan

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The beauty of a new year isn’t that it means I’ll be a new me, it’s the fact that I have a fresh start to becoming a healthier, more intentional me! Goals for the new year shouldn’t simply be ways to fix our current problems, they should be decisions we make intentionally to pursue health where we need it. Because a healthier you means growth, it means an increased capacity & greater sense of self worth, it means motivation and commitment that can’t stop, won’t stop. Imagine what you could accomplish if you were the healthiest version of yourself! You would be a fire so bright that no insecurity, no self doubt, no comparison could squelch it! My dreams are huge, massive, scary big… my goals are small, attainable steps toward achieving them! My goals for 2019 are to grow in self love, to become healthier spiritually so I can’t be shaken & so I can pour out into my business & my family. Healthier mentally so I’m aware & calculated, healthier physically so I’m peaceful & full of energy to chase after those big dreams. Cheers to 2019, I’m so ready for this!
PC: @kelseyhettinga

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Photo taken at: Ada, Michigan

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I’m so grateful for friends, holidays & my sweet little family! But also the sun & infrared lights. Oh and for a cozy bed & a week having my hubby home for family adventuring. Also for day after Christmas sales ?

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Ya want real life? There she is! A photo of me working the week before Christmas, blurry from tiny greasy hands on my phone. My 4 year old spontaneously took this picture 🙂 So many jobs are over glamorized and feel untouchable or elite. My job can sometimes fall into that category – like it’s not attainable to have a personal stylist. Do you get your nails done so you feel pampered? Because they last a lot longer and look beautiful? Probably! Even though you could buy cheap polish & paint them yourself just to have them chip that night… there are reasons services like mine exists, to offer quality and expertise where you need it. You don’t have to have it but it could change your life – as I hear from 100% of my clients! WHY I do this job is because every woman deals with insecurity & busyness, clothes should not add to the frustration or chaos. They should empower you & give you confidence! Yes I love fashion! I love trends & style! But I love to help lift burdens that get too heavy for women to carry, style is something we can control when other areas of our lives feel disheveled. I do what I do not because it’s glamorous (although I love me some designer shopping & sparkly everything!), I do it because for so many women it’s a problem that I have the solution to & I’m passionate about it. ❤️

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Purging & rebuilding feels so dang gooooooooood!!! Get rid of the stuff that you constantly second guess or better yet, get a second set of eyes to help you see things differently! Maybe items will go but just maybe you’re sitting on treasures just waiting to be styled and worn!
Is it faded? Misshapen after the laundry? Worn? Pitted out? Does it fit a little weird? Does it wash you out? Does it make you feel boring or insecure?? Get rid of it!! There is nothing that can’t be replaced for something you’ll love & feel confident in!

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It’s cold & all I want is the warm sun so I can stop taking 2 (yes, literally) hot showers a day to kick the chill that goes to my bones. Plus my skin is not happy with me about it either.
I guess I could stop getting iced coffee & wearing pants that are cropped so my ankles stay warm, that might help…
But somedays ya just gotta go with the crop because it rocks with the top, ya feelin’ me!? Welp, cats out of the bag with how smooth that last sentence was… I’m officially switching careers to becoming the new Cardi, I’ll just have (a lot) less cleavage. Happy freezing Wednesday. ? @kaleighdsimmonsphoto

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Because fishnets and a little bubble sleeve make the world a better place! Well, my world anyways! Maybe plaid or stilettos make your world a better place! That’s the beauty of this style thing, we all have things that make us feel beautiful and express our individuality! There are ways to incorporate styles/trends outside of your comfort zone into your wardrobe in a really comfortable way. I love helping women discover their style & it’s just so much easier done when you understand your body type, fabrics & colors that works best for you. Those are things that I love to help my clients understand! I not only work one on one, I’ve had the honor to be able to speak to rooms of women that all struggle with the same things… positive body image, frustration over getting dressed or shopping, understanding how to best dress their body type and I would love to do so much more of that! If you have a need/want for a styling workshop or body type workshop please contact me! I would love to help!

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Photo taken at: Grand Rapids, Michigan

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What I wish you could see in this photo is the moment we realized we could feed alpacas that lived directly behind this studio. As in, open a door in the back of the studio and walk right into their feeding area!
They were stinky, adorable, enthralling & I was obsessed with the idea that such a beautiful studio had this unexpected surprise! There was something so honest about it; the collision of this beautiful studio & these wild animals and the fact that they shared a single door. (I’m working on embracing the way my mind works when it comes to this stuff but I do appreciate that Jesus created me with tenderness & insight toward seemingly ordinary things.) We paint a calculated representation of who we are and allow the world to see it but we hesitate to crack the door where, on the other side you’d find the messes of our lives. Reality is that we all have this door, the one hanging in balance of our beauty & our mess. We tell ourselves people will love us less if they knew about the mess on the other side when the truth is it bridges gaps, offers freedom & gives others the opportunity to feed our hearts & feel understood in return. We are all messy & we have all been broken, it’s a part of our story! Just like one success doesn’t cap our ability to achieve, one painful circumstance doesn’t blemish us. John 1:5 says, “Light shines in the darkness and the darkness can not ever come it.” If we crack open the door from our perfect facade into our passing pains then they can’t stay in the darkness & chip away at us. So today I’m aware of my door and the insecurities on the other side & I’m allowing a crack so the light can get in – I am not inadequate, I am enough! I am worthy! I am loved! I am strong! I am not alone! YOU are enough, you are worthy, you are loved, you are strong and sister, you are not alone.

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Photo taken at: Grand Rapids, Michigan

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