Meet Kelsea Olivia, the founder of the distinguished creative agency East Olivia.

She is known for creating whimsical yet bold, large scale floral installations that will transform any space into an IG ready centerpiece and quite literally make you stop and smell the roses (or peonies or pampas grass). Her blooming creations are truly what Dazey dreams are made of and we are thrilled to feature her on the Boss Blog today. 

One thing that immediately stands out about Kelsea is her genuine eagerness to create community and carry out the mantra “empowered women, empower women” in her work. After just a few DMs and a fun coffee date, this gal went from a being super cool floral artist on my screen to a true badass business woman pitching the idea for a Dazey x East Olivia collab at the Create & Cultivate Self Care Summit. I’m inspired by her hustle to live out the ideas she dreams up and to see this one come to life today too! 

To prep for the big install, we met at the Penthouse to snap some content! During our hang, I got to learn more about what the floral design industry is like and how Kelsea stands up for sustainable practices throughout her work. Watch the IGTV feature on this badass babe to learn all about her tricks and even how she is leaning into self care these days and learning to slow down. Follow along throughout the weekend to see our collab come to life at the Create & Cultivate Self Care Summit too! 

 Click here to watch the IGTV Q&A with Kelsea Olivia

Last week, Palm Springs was beaming with energy, inspiration, and GIRL POWER as Alt Summit hosted their 10th anniversary conference filled with panels, roundtables, speeches, and fashion shows celebrating women and their passions around creativity, business and entrepreneurship. Dani crushed her speech at the Parker, which went over what it means to truly OWN your phone and Dazey even pulled together a last minute fashion show that turned out to be a HIT! We ran into so many amazing Dazey ladies throughout the summit and honestly just felt so free being there. Alt was truly a magical space void of judgement and negativity, and overflowing with pure sisterhood, overwhelming support, and inspiring spirits. After a week chalk full of education, collaboration, and fun we’ve put together 5 major boss babe hacks and takeaways we got from our newly dubbed Dazey work retreat, Alt Summit:

1. OWN Your Phone 

This NECESSARY hack every boss babe should start now is taken directly from Dani’s speech Own Your Phone that was presented on the first day of Alt at the Parker. It’s available to view on IG stories too if you want to take a peek at that! In sum: Your phone is your #1 tool and if you haven’t already, it’s time you create healthy boundaries and optimize your relationship with your digital space. This means diving into your social media space with MINDFULNESS > MINDLESSNESS, reflecting what you want your digital space to do for you and CURATE that, blocking or muting whatever doesn’t inform, inspire, or empower you, and learning to post for LOVE and not for likes. Once you’re able to stop the scroll, block the bullshit, and really FOCUS on creating a digital space that serves you, you’ll see your relationship with your digital space transform into one that you OWN rather it owning you.

2. Pinterest Is Underrated! Use it To Drive Your Business & Brand! (Tips Below)

Okay, we knew Pinterest was amazing for moodboards and endless inspo, but we didn’t realize all the STRATEGY you can do on the backend to drive your business and brand?! We’ve totally got Instagram down, but Pinterest is a whole new game for us! If you’re creating content in any capacity for your business, THIS IS FOR YOU! The #1 actionable tip we got from the Pinterest guru Anstasia Casey of the Identite Collective is name your files before you pin! It’s an easy way to OPTIMIZE and make all of your content instantly SEARCHABLE on Pinterest and Google! 

Example: Instead of keeping the file name that comes in camera like 0P439585.jpg, change it to DazeyLA-brave-babe-graphic-tee.jpg. This allows your content to automatically pop up when these words are searched on Pinterest or Google! She recommends keeping a consistent naming routine such as, brand-style-item.jpg, too!

4. Prioritize IRL Connection

Yes, we are all for digital communities but sometimes it’s important to stop the scroll and find connection IRL. Ending every day with genuine connection, insightful conversation, and dance parties was probably one of our favorite things of Alt. When you can lean into likeminded people, laugh about the ups and downs of life and HYPE each other up in real life, everything just gets a little bit brighter. It’s things like spending time in IRL that fill our cups back up after long work days. 

Looking for opportunity to connect IRL? Check out this upcoming Dazey LA / Biz Babez event! 

3. Be a HYPE Woman

In the office, on the street, at the store, and any other space you may be YOU have the opportunity to radiate positive energy and HYPE people up. At Dazey’s runway show we were blessed with tons of hype ladies who, in the end, made the experience WAY more fun and gave models the confidence to WERK the runway. If you don’t practice it already, a little “YASSSS QUEEN” here and there can go a long way and create positive IMPACT and instant community. As our ultimate hype bae Lizzo says, “If I’m shining, everybody gonna SHINE!”. Let’s spread those hype affirmations babes!

5. Create Systems to Strengthen Your Workflow! (FREEBIE ALERT!)

Running a business, brand, and being a working woman in general is tough work to balance, ESPECIALLY when you have a creative mind and don’t quite operate on a systematic level. Luckily, we sat down with the organization masters Katy Krupnik and Jessica Litman at the How To Stay Organized When You Have A Creative Mind roundtable and brought back an amazing, simple freebie all of you can try! A quick and effective hack to get your files, priorities, and endless to-do lists ORGANIZED once and for all is desktop organizer backgrounds!! Has anyone tried these?! Personally, my desktop always looks like a wreck and I’m so ready to change that and tidy up my digital life! Click here to get a download! 

HIGHLIGHT REAL, NOT HIGHLIGHT REEL

A collection designed to celebrate the REAL things in an ever increasing digital world. Whether it be spending more time IRL or being more transparent online, we are HERE for it. As women, we are constantly bombarded with unrealistic ideas of perfection and #goals through never-ending “highlight reels” in media. We're done with that. We are ready to highlight REAL moments, emotions, and conversations that matter and can better our human connections with others and ourselves. We are ready to transform the negative effects of a highlight reel by highlighting REAL life as much as we can. Who's with us?!

How we are Highlighting REAL

The Highlight Real lookbook is a dreamy portrayal of what media does everyday. We're here to show you, just like every one else, models done up, retouched, and in gorgeous spaces caught in moments of beauty. But we're also here to show you that this isn't real. Here are photos of our models, Morgan, Rachel, and Claire, before and after the shoot. They're still insanely gorgeous before, just not Photoshopped to "perfection". You see, perfection isn't real, the highlight reel isn't real. What is real is the amazing human behind it all, and that's what we're here to celebrate. We choose to be highly transparent about this whole process in the name of keeping it REAL. We recorded the process of creating this entire production just to show you how much work and people go into making images like this. We are lifting the veil on the highlight reel photos and showing you what's actually REAL. It's time to embrace the other side, once and for all.

The Highlight Real collection was inspired to create conversation on how we can better our mental health, human connections, and overall image of self by stepping away from the filters, reassessing our valued #goals, and getting real with one another. When you cut the b.s. and share the BTS on life, work, love, and all that good stuff, you build strong bridges for human connection. There is power in that courage to let others in. 

Along with a new collection of graphics and styles, we're launching a new YOUTUBE channel dedicated to giving you all the BTS behind the brand. Check out our first video filled with what it takes to launch a collection, create a lookbook, and what actually goes on behind the brand day-to-day. Get a real look at the day in the life of the Dazey team as we get fully transparent on the highs and lows, the creations and frustrations, and show you the full process unmasked. 

So here it is, both the highlight reel and the REAL of our newest Dazey collection. See the months of planning, long hours of creating, and the full progression of this production unmasked. When you see everything as a whole, you realize how perfection is really just a fictional reality we've been conditioned with. It's time to block that bullshit and embrace the realness. Use the hashtag #highlight real to follow along on this season of unfiltered realness and share your own stories.

Special thanks to the wonderful team who helped this amazing shoot come to life!

Photographer: Champagne
Dazey team: Dani, Phillip, Megan, Naohmi
Models: Rachel, Morgan, Claire
Hair and Makeup: Amber and Maura
Set Design: Tess (florals) and Paper Moon Shoppe
Accessories: Santa Venetia Clogs, Sigfus, The Little Avocado Shop, Dear Survivor, and I'm With the Band Headbands

Celebrating and Empowering Women Globally

After months of planning and sharing snippets of behind the scenes our collaboration with Known Supply is here! This is our very first collaboration with a Dazey Dude, Kohl, but he is a man who wholeheartedly believes in empowering women and shining a light on what they are doing. In fact it's the whole mission behind his brand, sharing the stories and faces of the women who make your clothing. They operate their own facilities in Peru, Africa, and India. These are places where garment workers are often paid pennies and forced to work in terrible conditions. Known Supply provides them with great wages, good working conditions, and actually empowers them as the artisans and makers they are.

Each shirt has a patch inside with the signature of the woman who made it. It adds such a personal touch and humanizes an industry that all too often tries to hide the people behind it. @danidazey and @kohlgreyson are also so excited to share the entire journey of their collaboration in documentary called @newbreedmovie. It's all about young entrepreneurs running their companies with social good in mind. We all got together at Biz Babez awhile back and began planning. We wanted a design that celebrated the hands that would touch and wear the tee, all over the world, and  Kohl came up with the amazing verbiage "She is We." It reminds us that even if we are worlds away, we are are human, all equal, and all connected. I drew this design by hand and documented the whole process on our story that you can see HERE. I wanted it to represent women from all over the world and center around the idea of unity. The design in a single line drawing, meaning everything is connected and made by a single line. It was also done in the shape of a globe. These two details really bring home the idea of connection and togetherness. I also love that this design was hand drawn in LA by a woman and the shirt was hand sewn in Peru, like a collaboration directly with the maker! We wanted to take the Unite Women Globally concept one step further and found a wonderful female screen printer, Deluxe, to fuse the art with fabric. The shirt I'm wearing as I type this is made and signed by Frida, designed by Dani, and printed by Elsie. 

10% of Proceeds to be Donated to Women's Refugee Commission

Originally Kohl and I talked about donating a portion of the proceeds to a charity but decided against it since there was already so much to explain about the design and our collaboration,  we didn't want to water down the message or confuse anyone. But given our current state of affairs in America with families being separated at our borders it felt wrong not to donate. This design represents equality and unity across borders and backgrounds. We believe everyone is equal and everyone deserves a chance to live a good life. Sadly in so many places this is not the case and people, women and children in particular, need our help. We've decided from now until our event on July 1st to donate 10% of the proceeds to the Women's Refugee Commission, an organization dedicated to improving the lives and giving a voice to  displaced women and children. Right now they are actively doing all they can at the Mexican border to provide relief to the mothers and children who desperately need it. 

Shirts are in super limited supply so grab yours now! We also hope you can join us at our big collaboration event, which also doubles as the Dazey two year anniversary party! All the details are below and we are so excited to meet and connect with the people who support our brands.

SHOP AND SUPPORT HERE

The Shoot

Below is a photoshoot I did with gorgeous model Kelsey! We shot the new tees along with some other new Dazey items in beautiful Chinatown LA. I loved the juxtaposition of cultures in the shoot. It is really celebrating all cultures and backgrounds with color, life, and compassion!  

Women's day photoshoot and thoughts on COLLABORATION:

Last week was International Women's Day and it was AMAZING. Dazey Ladies were posting left and right and the empowering vibes were everywhere. What a day to be a woman! On that same day I was lucky enough to collaborate on a photoshoot with three amazing blogger babes, @EmilyVartanian, @OfficiallyQuigley, & @FrankVinyl. We had so much fun working together and it just felt like the perfect thing to do on the perfect day. Emily was so inspired she went home and wrote an awesome article on how we can all focus more on collaboration over competition. In the blogger world the competition can be especially fierce, but in reality if they work together and help one another they would all come out ahead. She really captures that in her words from a bloggers perspective, and I think there's a strong takeaway for all of us in it.  

ARTICLE BY GUEST WRITER & BLOGGER @emilyvartanian (see post on her blog too HERE)

International Women’s Day is a day to celebrate ALL females no matter the age, ethnicity, size, shape, color and everything that’s in between! I spent the day hanging out and shooting with @OfficiallyQuigley, @FrankVinyl and @DaniDazey.

It was the perfect, on-the-whim way to spend Women’s Day…with three creative, beautiful, unique and inspiring women! The afternoon inspired this post, which was not a planned one, I might add. I just felt compelled to write my thoughts on the blogging space and how we can all be collaborative female bloggers and not competitive ones.

In this day and age we talk so much about female empowerment, supporting each other, raising each other up. But, are we really putting our 100% into it? I question that A LOT when it comes to the blogging space and that’s just my honest opinion. Sometimes, as much as we post kickass quotes, comment, like and share are we REALLY supporting each other or are we putting on a show for our own selfish reasons? Really think about it, if a blogger was to ask you how you gained 1000 followers in a day would you share your secret? If they were to ask you for the contact to the amazing hotel you stayed at last month would you send them the direct contact email? More often than not the answer is NO…you wouldn’t. And that you guys is NOT the example of female empowerment.

I get that this space is oversaturated and filled to the brim with girls trying to do the same thing. But if we all TRULY support each other, from an honest good-loving place then we all grow together, there is space for everyone! Below are some simple things I thought we could all do to collaborate rather than compete with each other.

1. Connect on a deeper level – We are all so consumed with getting the perfect shot, having the most dreamy feed, growing our numbers that we forget…OH HEY WE ARE ALL REAL PEOPLE. We are not our Instagram accounts, we are not the number attached to our handles, we are not our engagement rate. I think the first step in NOT being competitive is pretending that number does not exist. Erase it! At the end of the day we are all human. Connect on a deeper level with the blogger you are sitting next to at an awkward brunch, don’t ignore her because “UGH she only has 50k followers.” Build connections and foster those connections because they will last longer than the lifetime of your last Instagram post. Trust me.
2. Share the 411 – This is a tricky one because personally I have been in both situations. A. When I was asking for information and B. When I was giving information. I get that too much info may not be the most ideal scenario but if a blogger who you consider a friend asks for something then share it! Don’t you want to see your friends succeed too? Hoarding your growth tactics, editing secrets and things of that nature is not the definition of, “Women supporting women.”
3. Create Together – Once you have solid blogger friendships, you know, the girls you would invite to your wedding, baby shower and early retirement party, create cool shit together! I left yesterday’s shoot feeling so inspired and empowered. People love to see girl gangs…there’s a reason the Spice Girls were so popular. Girl power does exist, it’s out there in the universe with all it’s powerful energy!
4. Support via Stories and Tags – This is a new trend on Instagram and I have a love-hate relationship with it because I was doing it long before it became a “thing.” But, the main point of it is awesome and if you do it from an honest place then YAY! Share accounts you truly love and are inspired by. Share smaller accounts that you want to support because you are a nice person.
5. Give Credit where Credit is Due – Things are getting foggy on Instagram and a lot of girls' content is starting to look the same, mine included! Things can get weird, competitive and nasty if people feel you are “stealing” ideas, edits etc. So, if you are inspired by a specific photo then give credit to the person who inspired your shot! If you are using someone’s preset then tell your followers that. Giving credit to those who inspire you makes them feel good inside and doesn’t make you a photo stealing copycat! It’s a more positive collaborative approach rather than a negative one.

Mama Cax - Model, blogger, world traveler, public speaker, advocate, and amputee

I discovered Mama Cax through a podcast. She talked about all the amazing things she was doing despite her disability. Of course I had to stalk her Insta right after and was blown away by both her stunning feed, amazing style, and those drop dead gorgeous looks! She had grown quite a large following of over 135k people who just adore all she's doing in the fashion and female empowerment world. This gal survived cancer at a young age and lost one of her legs but she did not let that stop her from fulfilling her dreams. Mama Cax is a shining example of strength, elegance, and bold self expression. Through all this she has become a well known spokesperson for the intersectional feminist movement.

It was a long shot, but I figured I should reach out to see if she was interested in being featured on our Boss Blog. As luck would have it she was in LA speaking at Create & Cultivate, the ultimate girl boss conference! I was honored she took the time out of her busy schedule to stop by Biz Babez and shoot with me. We made the arrangements to shoot about a month in advance and I was anxiously awaiting for the day to arrive. I wanted to do something more special than our usual shoots at the office so that morning I ran to the fashion district and got some amazing vintage fabric for a backdrop. She arrived with a bag of awesome clothing and accessories, including this epic wig. She said, "I want to make this a fun and playful shoot!" I couldn't have agreed more! Mama Cax was such a cool and down to earth girl and we had an awesome time shooting and chatting. It's always the best when you meet a role model who is so nice and relatable.

Scroll around below to see the full shoot and read our interview! Mama Cax has some powerful words to share. 

Mama Cax! First off why don’t you tell us a little about yourself. Where are you originally from and what's your full name? 

I was born in Brooklyn but originally from Haiti. I spent most of my childhood in Haiti before moving back to New York in 2004. Mama Cax is my blogging name but most people call me Cax. I hold a B.A and M.A in International Studies but currently I'm a full time blogger and model.

You’re a lady of many talents and pursuits! How would you describe all you do?

It doesn’t quite fit in one box I guess. Aside from blogging and modeling, I often get to speak at events and conferences and the topic of discussion varies from intersectional feminism, body image and sex positivity. Ultimately I like to bring the perspective of a disabled woman to these platforms as we are often not present in those discussions.

I love hearing how you went from working in a government office to being a fashion icon and jet setting around the world. What prompted this change?What does fashion and self expression mean to you?

Totally unplanned. I always thought I’d end up working at a non profit organization. While I worked at the mayor’s office, outside of my 9-5 unbeknownst to me at the time, I was creating and nurturing a brand. From curating my Instagram feed to blogging about travels and body image, it all started paying off when I realized I could also get paid to create content for some of my favorite brands. I took a year off to get my masters, with the hope of getting a better paying position. Life doesn’t always workout the way we plan and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. After getting the opportunity to model on a Wet n Wild campaign it made sense to get represented by a modeling agency. Although me being where I am is completely by chance I also can’t deny the work I’ve put into it. People tend to organically label me and those labels often come with negative assumption. Fashion is one of many ways I let the world know who I am; risk taker, confident and creative.

Where are some of the places you have traveled? Which place is your absolute favorite and why?

I’ve studied in Europe and embarked on a solo backpacking trip in south east Asia. I’ve probably been to 35 countries across the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia. I’ve created great memories in every single one. If I absolutely have to pick one I’d say Iceland in the spring; Dreamy landscape, the weather is perfect and I love the 22 hour daylight. If I could pick more than one, I would have to add Haiti (because it will always be home), Ivory Coast, South Africa and Thailand. These countries have great food and vibrant cultures from the clothing to the music.

How would you say having survived cancer and an amputation at age 16 has shaped you as a person?

I think surviving cancer has pushed me to aim to enjoy the little victories in life and try to live it to the fullest. I always say that if I had a do-over there’s very little that I would change. These experiences have made me the person I am today, they have definitely made me appreciate my ability to adapt.

You have become a huge advocate in the body positivity movement. Why is this movement vital not only to you but all women?

I was unaware of the movement until I joined Instagram. For the longest time it had been a movement to get plus size women (mostly white) to accept their bodies but I’ve slowly watched it include other women (thankfully). I often use the term self-love, but to me it is meant to celebrate and elevate bodies that have been marginalized for so long; plus size, hairy, queer, trans, diverse skin shade and disabled. I think self perception has a strong link with self esteem therefore it affects so many aspects of our lives. 

You have not let your disability get in the way of a very able, full, and colorful life. What does the word “disability” mean to you? After posting on our Insta-stories we had a few girls reach out who also wear prosthetics and are struggling to embrace and show them off the way you do. What’s one important message you have for these girls?

Disability is essentially an impairment, often times it affects us because our environment is not designed with us in mind. Having a disability has allowed me to find a new community and look at our world through a different lens, one that constantly pushes me to think of ways of making opportunities and spaces accessible. As an amputee, there isn’t one way of embracing yourself, for me it meant showing off my prosthetic leg but I understand that our society is not very accepting. To other girls who wear prosthetics I say do what makes you feel comfortable and work on loving yourself at your own pace. 

As a blogger you’ve had a large following on Instagram for some time now, and are now signed with an agency as a model. You travel the world speaking at conferences like Create & Cultivate. What has all this attention and fame been like for you?! The good and bad.

Yes I’m currently represented by JAG Models. I’m always amazed by the messages from all over the world, especially from people whose stories are similar to mine. And always honored to get invited to speak at conferences and events, rubbing elbows with women who have inspired and continue to inspire me. From the likes and comments it’s easy to see the positive but it can be frightening and lonely. Once you’re considered a public figure, your picture can be shared on any platform where the comment sections are not always positive. Often times people equate popularity with “doing well” or “she’s made it” but my life is still very much like a roller coaster; I have great days, depressing ones, worries about not budgeting well and an almost non existent dating life. 

What’s in store for the future of Mama Caxx?! Tell us all your wildest dreams :)

I’lll be on yet another exciting panel at South by South West (so follow me on Instagram for a chance to see me talk). I shot an amazing campaign for Tommy Hilfiger and that will be out in the Spring. Since I never imagined I’d be a full time blogger, model and speaker, It’s hard to allow myself to dream but some things on my list are:

 - to help provide prosthetic limbs to children

- be featured in Vogue print magazine(I like the tangible stuff)

- and finally setting up a fund to provide scholarships for students with disabilities to study abroad

What does being a Dazey Lady mean to you?

Being confident, pursuing my dream, helping my community but most importantly encourage other young women to do the same.

I first discovered Bossladies Magazine in a stationary shop. The soft pink cover and Bossladies title instantly got me! I had only recently started Dazey and was obsessed with learning more about entrepreneurship from a female perspective, and still am! I happily bought my first copy and haven’t stopped since. They are designed more like keepsake coffee table books and are now all proudly displayed at our Biz Babez office. Each magazine comes out quarterly and the Bossladies boss, Chelsea, curates the most inspiring group of women located in the city she’s highlighting. As a writer she really knows how to ask the right questions to get authentic and real stories behind the amazing women she features. Her and the Bossladies team shoot each woman and really spend the time to tell their story and do it justice. Everything about this brand is thoughtful and heartfelt, which is why I love it so much!  

I began following Bossladies on Instagram and that’s when I first saw Chelsea’s stories. She is very much the face of her brand and exudes the same warmth and authenticity as her magazine. I began to follow her journey and saw she kept talking about this Work Sesh, her monthly boss meet up held at new gorgeous locations around town. I was so curious and as soon as we began to put together our Biz Babez office I instantly thought to reach out to Chelsea. We chatted about collaborating since both of our brands are so in line. During our first few months of Biz Babez Chelsea said she had a few friends attend events at the space and told her she had to host a Work Sesh there. During the month of January we were so excited to actually make that happen! We met so many rad women and had a great time. I also took the opportunity to snap some photos and interview Chelsea while we were under the same roof! As a woman who has personally impacted my business I’m beyond stoked to feature her. Below is the full feature, Q & A, photoshoot, and some snaps taken at her Biz Babez Work Sesh! 

Before Bossladies was a twinkle in your eye what did you do?

I was an in-house editor for a novelist. I worked with her off and on for about five years, helping to bring her vision to life and get her stories out in the world. She was an incredible mentor to me.

What was your path to get there?

I studied English Literature and Creative Writing at Colby College, which is a small liberal arts school in Maine. There I studied creative non-fiction: travel writing, food writing, feature writing, the personal essay – and poetry. After school I moved to LA – spent some time working for a commercial real estate firm building communities on their properties, worked for the author, and started a small events business.

What inspired you to start Bossladies?

At some point it became clear to me that I’d like to start my own business, so I began studying other women entrepreneurs. I had no shortage of role models; Los Angeles is full of ambitious women. I followed their businesses closely on Instagram and came to realize two things:

1) The most successful creative women in LA all seemed to be best friends, and they all supported each other.  

2) They all got lots of press in lifestyle publications -- but not in business publications. They were revered for their style and their aesthetic, but no one was recognizing them for the businesswomen they were. I set out to do two things: create a community of entrepreneurs that any woman could join and design a business-focused publication that showcased the women I admired.

I know you had originally started with a Kickstarter. How did that go? Would you recommend it to someone interested in getting a project off of the ground?

Kickstarter was an incredible platform for us. It allowed us to test the market before we launched the magazine. (We discovered that women were hungry for a business-centric publication.) And it was a great tool for spreading the word about the project. I would certainly recommend it for anyone creating a tangible product that takes capital to produce.

How do you go about finding the right women to feature and getting them on board? What’s the process involved in a feature?

Curating the group of women we feature is one of my favorite parts of my job. It requires a lot of research, following my curiosities down the Instagram rabbit hole, and asking friends which women they find inspiring.  We have a series of guidelines that govern the types of businesses we feature; for example, we like to feature sustainable, ethical businesses that are rethinking their industry and using design to drive innovation. My team and I travel to our featured city and spend about two weeks interviewing and photographing each woman.

So on top of Bossladies being a gorgeous female-driven magazine, it’s also a monthly gathering called Work Sesh. Why don’t you tell us all about that!

Work Sesh is a weekly event series that we host here in LA. We gather with 30 other women entrepreneurs for a morning of relationship building, resource sharing, and support. It’s my favorite thing in the world. I love the way women share their hearts with one another and show up to support each other.

How do these two entities work together under the Bossladies umbrella? Was this a part of your original plan or something that came about after?

Bossladies as a company is focused on providing inspiration, education, and community for women entrepreneurs globally, so the magazine and Work Sesh nestle really nicely under that driving mission.

Bossladies recently underwent a big branding change, and you were very transparent about your thoughts and struggles with it. What was your thought process on the rebranding and future image of Bossladies?

The rebranding was such a fun process for me because it forced me to really interrogate what the brand represents, who it is for, and what I want it to feel like. I’m really happy with where we landed. I think our new visuals communicate the strength, elegance, maturity, vulnerability, and intimacy that are central to the brand.

Right now I’m exploring ways to allow the brand to continue evolving but to give it certain parameters, so it feels contained. I think that brands can (and maybe should) evolve as quickly as their founders and creative directors do; otherwise things can feel stale. But you also need certain elements of the brand to remain constant and create a visual home for the brand.

You are always active on Instagram Story and very much the face of your brand. How has this benefitted your business? Are there struggles that come with it?

Instagram Stories have been an incredible tool for sharing more of the behind the scenes moments of running the business and creating space for ongoing conversations with our community. One of the trickiest things about being so forward-facing in that space is that it requires being really open and vulnerable with thousands of people, and, of course, there are moments when you crave a bit more privacy and yearn to keep more of your life sacred. I tend to give 

myself permission to share everything or nothing depending on how I’m feeling in the moment.

What’s in store for Bossladies future? In both the not so distant future and beyond!

So many things! Our San Francisco issue will release May 2018. This will be the first issue that has full chapters on each of our featured women, and we’re doing some innovative and beautiful things with book design.

Events-wise, we’ll continue to strengthen and nourish our Work Sesh community. And we’ll host our first annual conference this autumn. The conference will look much different than any conference we’ve ever seen, and I think it is going to be a really special experience.

What does being a Dazey Lady mean to you? 

Learning from Dazey Lady Lavendaire 

I met Aileen, aka Lavendaire, through a mutual friend, Lynette. Lynette had a vision board event at our Biz Babez space. I not only got to meet and chat with Aileen but was gifted a copy of her amazing book. The year was coming to an end and I was anxiously planning for 2018 and I found it so incredibly helpful! After hearing more about her journey as a YouTube star come author I had to ask for a feature!

She's gone through the self discovery journey and now makes it her goal to help others with the skills and tips she's acquired along the way. Her mission is to equip and empower people to persue their dreams! Obviously something we can really get behind here at Dazey. :)

See the full shoot and deep dive into Aileen's inspiring journey below. We talk about all the odds jobs she had along the way, how she got started on YouYube, and how she went about creating her workbook!  

Let’s rewind back to the beginning! What was your personal experience in college? What was your major and why?

I went to USC and majored in Business Administration. I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life, so business seemed like a general and practical major that could lead to a variety of career paths. It was a major I could count on to get me a job when I graduated, because my biggest fear was to graduate jobless and unsuccessful. I was really ambitious and wanted to feel like I was “doing well” compared to my peers.

On the side, I pursued my creative passions: I was making singing videos on YouTube, on the hip hop dance team, and played the lead in a school musical. Around junior year, I started to question my life existence, asking questions like “What’s the meaning of life?” “Why are we here?” and “What the heck am I doing with my life?” I started thinking differently about everything I knew - it was quite dramatic for me.

Then I got the opportunity to study abroad in Milan, which is where I embarked on a “soul search” and introduced myself to self help books about finding your life purpose. Traveling abroad opened my eyes to so much more. Away from the demands, stress and competition of school in my old bubble, I was able to learn more about myself and what I truly wanted out of life. I gained clarity and inspiration to take my life in a new direction, a direction that aligned with my true dreams, rather than the expectations of others.

The irony is that in the end, my biggest fear came true: I graduated jobless and “unsuccessful” in the eyes of my family and peers. It was a struggle. But it taught me to let go of what others thought of me, and it led me to create my best life.

Following college what did you decide to pursue? You mentioned having a lot of internships!

I had six or seven internships throughout college in entertainment, social media, marketing and advertising industries. I loved the idea of working in entertainment, because I love performing and the arts. But each internship taught me the reality of the business-side of these industries, how unglamorous it is and how it’s just regular work, like everything else. These internships taught me more about what I don’t like and what I don’t want with my life, which I’m grateful for. I got honest with myself and realized that deep down I had always wanted to be on the talent and creative end of the work, instead of the business end.

After college, I decided not to pursue the corporate route that I was expected to take, and instead set off to explore all the creative paths that interested me. I pursued music, making more YouTube videos, performing often, and producing an album. I pursued acting and hosting. I volunteered for a food festival startup, doing marketing, PR and video production, which later became a fun freelance job.

What were some of the highs and lows you had before deciding to work for yourself?

Some highs: Recorded and produced my own album and threw an amazing album release party. Some of my videos were shared by DJs Dash Berlin and Nicky Romero. I got to manage a video team for the food festival and produce my first short film, entered a singing competition on Chinese TV.

Some lows: Dealing with depression my last semester of college, getting fired from a couple internships, clashing with parents & family who didn’t understand me, working with other creators and getting burned/disrespected from people I thought were my friends, getting disqualified from the singing competition because of irresponsibly showing up late to rehearsals.

It’s funny to organize it this way because as you might suspect, there’s a story in each of those lines. Another observation I made right now: I listed my highs in past tense and my lows in present tense, maybe because my highs are “things I’m proud of accomplishing” and lows are “difficult times I had to go through.” Interesting!

What lead you to start producing content on youtube?

In those years of creative and self exploration, I realized that we can really shape our lives in any way that we want, and that was so exciting. Because I didn’t have a 9-5 job, I had the flexibility to say yes to all of these odd jobs and opportunities that made my life so much more interesting than it would have been otherwise. In those years, I learned how to be an artist of life.

I started Lavendaire to share this discovery and all the insights and lessons that came from my experience so far. I had gained so much knowledge in personal growth from reading books & studying people I admired online. I was totally a sponge during those years. Lavendaire was my outlet to share all that I was learning. At the time, it was hard to find people my age talking about self help on YouTube—I was like “Why isn’t anyone talking about this?” I knew that there must have been others my age going through the same struggles, so I decided to start sharing.

What are the best tips you have on building a following on YouTube?

Find your voice, your message and your style. You really have to know who you are and what you want to say. Then, commit to creating and posting consistently. Stick to a schedule and treat it like a real job! Always create the highest quality videos you can with what you have, but don’t worry about the technical aspect, because you can learn along the way. Start with the gear you have and just create something and put it out there. Ask for feedback on your videos, and make efforts to learn and improve so that each new video is better than the last. Wash, rinse, repeat.

I love your brand name, Lavendaire, what does mean?

Thanks! It’s just a word I made up because I liked the sound of it. I wanted to create an original word that didn’t exist online yet, so that if you searched it up, I would be the only result that shows up! I brainstormed some other options but Lavendaire stuck, because I love lavender and the multiple meanings behind it—it’s a light, dreamy color, a flower, and a calming scent—all qualities I liked for my brand. And my hair was purple at the time. My friends at the time joked that it was just “lavender + hair” put together. But I added “aire” because I like an airy feel and wanted the word to sound a bit French. 

You really focus your videos on teaching people and trying to spread a positive message! What is your main focus for your videos and why?

My mission is to empower people to realize and embrace their truest self, and set forth to create the life of their dreams. That’s the meaning of being an “artist of life.” I truly believe that we all have gifts and strengths to share, that make us incredibly unique. We’re meant to bring our uniqueness to the world, to light it up in some way. If everybody lives according to others’ expectations (like I did in my youth), the world would be made up of a lot of mediocre copycats, and our gifts would be wasted. The world benefits when you are being yourself and you share your unique light. You’ll also be infinitely happier. It’s a win-win situation for all parties.

So after building a popular fan base on YouTube and Instagram you decided to launch a book! Tell us a little about Artist of Life?

The Artist of Life Workbook is a book of questions and exercises to help you plan your best year. It’s essentially all the questions and exercises that I’ve personally done, that have helped me in my journey. Within are questions to help you reflect on the past year, clarify what you want for the new year, set your goals in all areas of your life, and help keep you accountable for your goals throughout the year.

You can learn more and see photos of the Artist of Life Workbook on my website here.

How does one go about creating a book!? Walk us through the process of idea to final product!

First comes the idea. I’ve actually had the idea of creating a life guide type of book five years ago, but the idea came back to me in 2016 with more clarity. I had so much inspiration to make the idea come to life, so I committed to setting aside time to get it done. I made the first version (the 2017 Artist of Life Workbook PDF) on Pages and launched it as a digital workbook. My audience asked if there would be a print version of the workbook, since a lot of people like using pen and paper. So, I started researching printers and emailing for quotes to get my digital workbook printed. In the end, my boyfriend connected me with a manufacturer in China who could help us with production. I collected photo examples of what I wanted and sent over samples for color and material for the workbook cover as well as samples for the paper I wanted to use. I also sent over the dimensions and design for the workbook and cover. Then, it’s up to them to source the right materials that are similar to my vision, send me photos of their findings and (if time permits) create samples to send over for me to review.

Because we were on a time constraint last year, we skipped the step of creating samples, so the workbook I sold was the first workbook they created. This year, I had more time to create the workbook. I took a class to learn Adobe InDesign and created the new workbook design on that. In production, we went through 2 rounds of samples before landing on the third and final design.

Tell us a little bit about your podcast! How long has it been going on? What are you trying to accomplish with it?

My podcast, The Lavendaire Lifestyle, has been going on for almost two years. It’s an extension of my channel so I chat about the same topics of lifestyle design and personal growth, but more in depth. I bring in a variety of guests in the self help, wellness and creativity spaces to share about different aspects of how to create your dream life. My guests embody what it means to be an artist of life, so they always have nuggets of wisdom to share on in our interviews. I actually learn a lot from interviewing guests on the podcast. My YouTube channel is generally me sharing my experiences and what I’ve learned. But my podcast is a chance for me to learn from someone else, an expert in a certain area, and share that experience with my audience.

You are a lady of so many talents and pursuits! What’s next for Aileen and Lavendaire?!

This year I’m focusing on laying the foundation for new beginnings. I’m looking to hire a couple people to help with video editing and production. I want to elevate the brand of Lavendaire and create content that’s high quality. I’m realizing that I can’t do it all myself at the quality level I want it to be. I have to collaborate and work with others, others who are better than me in areas where I am lacking. That’s the next step! Learning to build a small team, create new systems and learn to manage it all.

Another reason for wanting to get help is to free up my time for writing a book! Publishing a book has always been a dream of mine, so I’m just getting ready to tackle that.

What does being a Dazey Lady mean to you?

It means being a woman who feels empowered to express herself confidently and go after her biggest dreams, regardless of what anyone else thinks.

Dazey Getawayz Nashville Edition

As part of our New Years Resolutions, my boyfriend Phillip and I decided we want to travel more. Especially trips we can dub "work trips!" Before I started Dazey I worked full time for larger companies and inconveniently always either quit or was fired just about the time where you get that weeks paid vacation. So I literally spent a good 3-4 years not traveling AT ALL. Guess you can say I’m making up for lost time this year! 

1. Urban Cowboy BNB - A Boutique Hotel Dreamscape

2. Pinewood Social - Nashville’s Ultimate Hang Spot

3. Date Night: Rolf and Daughter

4. Barista Parlor: Nashville’s Official Coffee Shop

5. Five Daughters Bakery: Donuts With a Twist

6. Lunch at Pharmacy - Big Ass Burgers (Veggie Included!)

7. Butcher and Bee - A Sweet & Savory Masterpiece 

8. Atta Boy - Curated Cocktails

9. Crema - Sweet Coffee and Clean Space

10. Gift Horse - Quirky Gifts with a Nashville Twist

11. Wheat & Co - For Ya Dazey Dudez

12. Two Sons - Shipping made Simple and Spectacular 

This store was recommended to us by a lot of you! It’s a giant space filled with only a few racks of very curated clothing from awesome designers like Ace & Jig. The whole store was expansive and white, but their rack was rainbow color coordinated, I loved that. 

Women's March 2018 - Still Marching

As some of you may remember last year I designed a whole collection inspired by my empowering experience at the 2017 Women's March. One year later and we still have a reason to march. Some may argue that protesting doesn't really change anything, but I beg to differ. It shows the world that there are hundreds of thousands of people who care enough to show up early on a Saturday morning and march for their beliefs. It shows the attendees they are not alone as they stand in solidarity with their sisters. It brings light to not only the issue of gender inequality but so many more injustices people face.

My boyfriend and I got back from a week long exhausting work trip and then I had a sudden realization that the Women's March was in ONE DAY! The hype about the march this year was substantially less than the previous, yet our issues have not improved. I knew I had to get Dazey involved. Luckily I have a gorgeous space downtown, Biz Babez, that's always ready to host people! We decided to do a pre-march prep party, complete with sign making, coffee, and snacks. I announced literally the morning before the March via Instagram and so many babes showed up! This was a great way to get a group of gals together and march as one, and we all had an amazing time getting to know each other and really feeling like a community. I asked gals to show up wearing their Dazey and so many did, it was awesome! 

One of my favorite parts of the march is seeing all the powerful, funny, and inspiring signs. It's actually what inspired my collection last year! This year I noticed too many talking about intersectional issues such as DACA, racism, transphobia, ageism, body positivity, and so much more. It was a great reminder that feminism is more than just a fight against sexism, it's about standing up for all marginalized people. Feminism stands for equality for ALL and needs to address these intersectional issues. As a brand we need to do a better job of spotlighting the people who have multiple marginalizations and give them a loud and proud voice in this movement. 

Below we have photos from the full day along with a few posts we did on Instagram about the march. Huge shout out to these amazing Dazey Ladies who showed up and stood with us! So proud of all of you amazing, kind, and strong women. We also saw so many of you  marching in Dazey in other cities and states. It was so cool to see and we have included some of the photos from around the globe! 

👊YOU CAN MARCH WITH US 👯 Had an incredible day standing alongside my sisters in the DTLA Women's March ❤️ We had a pre-march party at @bizbabez where we made signs and formed our Dazey Lady girl-gang ✨ There's NOTHING like gathering in solidarity to stand for something you believe in 💪 Swipe right to see some of these inspiring and empowered women 👉 #dazeyladiesunite #girlgang #womensmarchLA #womensmarch #empoweredwomen #timesup

A post shared by Dazey LA - Brand & Boss Blog (@dazey_la) on Jan 20, 2018 at 6:07pm PST

💗 Let's talk about INTERSECTIONAL FEMINISM 💗 If you were at the women's march yesterday no doubt you saw many signs talking about intersectionality. This is a lot more than the feminist movement's most recent "buzz word". It's at the core of what we're fighting for, equality for ALL. Intersectional feminism recognizes that many women face prejudice far beyond just their gender. Weather it be their race, orientation, body type, socioeconomic class, or ability. Intersectional feminism does not dismiss their experience and wants to give them a voice and position of power in this movement. Everyone deserves the same rights and treatment. Period. As a brand we want to do a better job of shining a spotlight on these strong inspiring women with multiple marginalizations. What does intersectionality mean to you? How can I as a white feminist better include you? Let's all talk about this important topic below in the comment convos 👇 #dazeydialogue #commentconvos #intersectionality #intersectionalfeminism #womensmarch #dazeyladiesunite

A post shared by Dazey LA - Brand & Boss Blog (@dazey_la) on Jan 21, 2018 at 11:39am PST

Women's March Austin TX - Via @allychavezzz

San Diego March - Via @merzydotes & @timmelideo

Women's March Reno - Via @jessicabannister, @lorawagener/@lorawagenerco