#BlackBusiness of the Week | "Black" Pin Makers

Black Business Trend Alert: Pins!!!

Those who know know me, know that I love accessories. Earrings, bags, shoes, bracelets, head bands. I love them all. And now, I love pins.

I first noticed the pin trend several months ago on Instagram (where I discover most of my favorite black businesses). With pins featuring a variety of afrocentric messages (e.g., "black girl magic" and "black & proud") and images (e.g., Michelle Obama and afro-haired women), I had to get some.

The first pin I bought was a 

"She's Gotta Have It" brooch (priced at $25) by Rachel Stewart Jewelry

. This solid wood brooch is inspired by the Spike Lee movie of the same name and is F-L-Y. Every time I wear it, I receive tons of compliments about its beauty and questions about where I bought it.

At work wearing my "She's Gotta To Have It" brooch and "Still I Rise" pin. 

The past two months I have gone pin crazy. First, I bought a

"Still I Rise" lapel pin (priced at $10) by Radical Dreams

 to represent my love for the famous Maya Angelou poem, and then two weeks later, I bought their

kneeling "Colin Kaepernick" lapel pin (priced at $8)

to show my support for the former NFL player and his fight against racial injustice and police brutality against black people in America. I have worn these pins several times this past month to keep me motivated on the days that I feel weary and frustrated with the things happening in this post-Obama world. Most recently, I purchased an

"I'm Judging You" pin (priced at $14) by Pin Vibes LA

. This metal pin is part of a special collection celebrating the release of

I'm Judging You: A Do Better Manual

by Luvvie Ajayi aka

Awesomely Luvvie

. I love to wear this pin to work (use your imagination on why 😬).

Judgey but motivational with my "I'm Judging You" and "Still I Rise" pins.

I like to make statements with my clothes and accessories. And, anything that allows me to show my love for black culture and black people and be fashionable is a must-have for me. I absolutely LOVE the fact that "black"pins allow me to express my pride, my beliefs, and my mood without having to say a word.

They are great for work and play. You can wear one pin, or a bunch of them, anywhere. Pin them to your jackets, shirts, bags, or hats.

Make a statement with your accessories and check out these black pin makers today.

#BuyBlack Spotlight: Iman Cosmetics

I love Iman Cosmetics!!! (

*Oprah voice*

)

I started following the beauty brand on Instagram two months ago after seeing a beautifully rich wine-colored lipstick while exploring the app. I immediately liked the picture and then left a comment under the picture asking about the name of the lipstick and where I could purchase it. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that they sold the lipstick and other Iman Cosmetics products at Walgreens.

I have known about Iman Cosmetics for years. I remember when it started over a decade ago as beauty brand that made makeup for women of color. But for a long time, I thought it was a high-end makeup brand like MAC or Dior that was only sold at department stores and that cost between $30 to $50 per item. This past year I have seen Iman Cosmetics featured on various best beauty brand lists in Essence and Ebony magazines. 

After finding the lip color (which is Iman Luxury Moisturizing Lipstick in Opal) in one of my local Walgreens stores in Boston (and seeing the affordable price of $10), I decided to finally try out the brand. I went to the beauty brand's website imancosmetics.com and downloaded their suggested Iman Cosmetics Beauty app, which provided customized Iman product recommendations to match my unique Color Signature, based on facial recognition technology that analyzed my skin tone. The app helped me identify my concealer and foundation matches and also suggested lipsticks and eye shadows that would work well with my skin tone. 

For my first purchase, I bought the Iman Luxury Moisturizing Lipstick in Rebel, Iman Second-to-None 

Stick Foundation

 in Clay 4, Iman

Corrective Concealer

 in Earth, and Iman Luxury 

Luxury Lip Shimmer

 in Honey from walgreens.com (also available at amazon.com). The products arrived at my house within 5 days. I tried each product out immediately and I fell in LOVE with them. 

The concealer and stick foundation matched my skin color so well and provided such great coverage. When I wore it, my friends and my family immediately noticed the difference and complimented me on my makeup. Iman Cosmetics makeup products gave me such a beautiful, healthy glow. Within a month, I got my mom and my best friend to purchase and try out Iman Cosmetics products. I also purchased two more lipsticks, another lip shimmer, and the new Iman 

Luxury Concealing Foundation

 in Earth 3. 

As a black woman, I really appreciate the quality, price, availability, and color options of Iman Cosmetics. I am tired giving my money to beauty brands that do not care enough to create products that match my skin color. Creating one or two "dark" or "brown" foundation or concealer for women with brown pigmented skin is ridiculous, exclusionary, and outdated. Black, latina, and other non-white women come in a variations of colors and make up significant portion of the female population. We need more than one or two shades to cover our beautifully diverse skin colors (I am looking at your Maybelline. Your

FIT ME Matte & Poreless Foundation

has only one color for brown skin).   Iman Cosmetics is made for us by us (F.U.B.U). Model and creator Iman is a beauty icon with a passion for creating products that match ALL women, from the very fair-skinned to the very dark- skinned. 

I have been searching for new makeup products for women of color, after my local Target stopped carrying Covergirl Queen Collection products (which I started using in 2010). Iman Cosmetics came into my life at the right time. As an advocate for supporting black-owned businesses, I have committed to making my personal cosmetics and beauty collection at least 90% black-owned beauty products by the end of 2017.

Ladies, I highly suggest you check out Iman Cosmetics. You won't regret it!! 

Here are my three favorite Iman Cosmetics products thus far: 

Iman Luxury Moisturizing Lipstick, Opal

Iman Concealer, Earth

Iman Luxury Lip Shimmer, Socialite

Buy Black On Black Friday: 13 Black-Owned Businesses For Your Holiday Shopping

It is Thanksgiving. Since I got such a great response to my "Buy Black on Black Friday" shopping list last year, I decided to do it again. I have mix of some brands I love and some brands that I just discovered that you can find either online or in your local stores.

With an unpredictable four years ahead of us, it is important that we support the businesses of marginalized peoples--black-owned, women-owned, immigrant-owned, etc.

1. 

Loft324

 - clothing

2. 

Rachel Stewart Jewelry

 - jewelry 

sale: 25% off purchases with code: POWER (11/25-11/28) 

3. 

Ariel Brands

 - clothing, prints, accessories, and games

4. 

shadrieka

 - prints and greeting cards 

5. 

DorcasCreates

 - prints, accessories, and greeting cards 

6.

DEMESTIK

 - African print clothing

sale: up to 40% off; additional $25 off purchases of $200 with code: DRR1124

7. 

Kashmir VIII

 - prints, accessories, and clothing 

sale: $10 or more off all items; additional $5 off all orders $75+ with code: 5off ; additional $10 off all orders $120+ with code: 10off ; $20 off all orders $200+ with code: 20off

8.

Postively Perfect Dolls

 - multicultural dolls (available at local Walmart and Target stores)

9.

Philadelphia Printworks

- clothing 

sale: Sale with Free Shipping with code: BLACKWALLSTREET (until 11/28)

10. 

Nubian Skin

 - lingerie and hosiery for women of color (also available at Nordstrom stores)

sale: 40% off Lace Collection with code: NSBLACKFRIDAY (until midnight 11/25)

11. Ty Lite - LED lighted phone cases (aka selfie phone cases) 

sale: 50% off all cases (until 11/27)

12.

Iman Cosmetics

- beauty products for women of color (also available at Target and Walgreens stores)

13.

Bevel

- grooming products and services for people of color 

Kicking Off #29DaysOfBlackness

Today is February 1st. And, I am so excited!!!  In the midst of all the craziness happening in this country to black people in America, I have decided to take the time this year to truly celebrate and honor Black History Month by loudly and proudly sharing my love for black people, business, culture, and history here on this blog and out in the real world.

I plan to be #veryblack. Unapologetically black. Happily black. Twirling in the magic of my blackness. For the entire month of February, I will be wearing clothing and accessories that are either created by black business owners or featuring black culture and/or people. I will also be featuring some of my favorite black authors, entertainers, poets, and creatives. And, to top things off, every week I will be spotlighting black folks doing and achieving amazing things in a "Black Excellence" post.

I think this is a great way to open up dialogue about the richness of black American culture and history, and to also educate the uneducated about the many contributions that black folks have made to help build this country.

Despite what some crazy confused fools have been saying in the media, Black History Month is very much needed---maybe more now than ever. I love my blackness (and yours too).

So, I invite all of you--and I mean all of you, regardless of race or ethnicity--- to join me in celebrating #29DaysofBlackness.

#29DaysOfBlackness Outfit of the Day:

Shirt:

Because Of Them, We Can Crewneck Adult Sweatshirt 

Never Shop (Online) Without It: PayPal and Online Shopping

I learned an important lesson today, after a certain celebrity-sponsored clothing line took my money and a month later sent me no product and no replies to my many email queries.

I love online shopping. Etsy is one of my favorite places for unique items. Amazon is my go-to for books, household items, and tech accessories. Instagram is my favorite place to find out about different black-owned small businesses across the US and the world. Being able to patronize businesses via their websites gives me the chance to get unique items that I want without the hassle of salespeople, long lines, and missing out on cool items sold in cities far from me, and also the opportunity to read reviews and compare prices. Plus, shopping online offers more options for discounts, often not offered in stores. For example, I recently bought a Calvin Klein coat from macys.com, originally priced at $325 at the store, for $112 plus free shipping, due to a combination special online pricing, sales, and online coupons.

I have had very few bad experiences with online shopping. I usually get my purchases in a timely fashion and have been easily able to return the items that I don't want. But, this experience that I had with this clothing brand, which came to my attention due to Beyonce wearing one of their flannel shirts, could have easily turned me off to online shopping, if it was not for the purchase protection that PayPal offers. For the past three weeks, I have been trying to get someone from the online clothing company to tell me when I would receive my merchandise. They took my money immediately after I clicked "submit order" but didn't answer one email I sent after I had yet to receive my order after a month of waiting. Luckily, I paid for my order with my PayPal account and I was able to get them to contact the company. Less than two hours after reporting the company to PayPal,  my order was cancelled, and most importantly, my money was refunded to my account. Three weeks of complaining and trying to get this company to give me my order or my money back, and PayPal solved the issue in two hours.

Lesson of the day:

Always pay for online shopping orders with PayPal.

If you don't have a PayPal account, I highly recommend you get one

here

.