About three months ago, Ashley of Sed Bona (one of my favourite blogs ever), published this post regarding eight important things every happy woman should have. I felt it was such an endearing post that spoke directly to me, and would resonate with my friends, family and readers.
Over the past couple of years, I have spent a lot of time reflecting on things I could do to better myself and live a happier, positive and “truer” life. I really enjoy learning and discovering new things, and I feel to do so, you need to declutter your life and really think about what brings you happiness.
Have a read and let me know what you think!
8 Things Every Happy Woman Should Have:
1. A Go-To-Drink: Red wine…specifically Shiraz, Syrah or Amarone. Unfortunately, in some horrible twist of fate, I have developed an allergy to red wine. Every now and then, I sneak a few sips and brave the impending head-to-toe hives. Le sigh…
2. A Go-To Karaoke Song: Umm…I hate karaoke. Can’t do it. That being said, I love belting out some awesome girl rock, like Joan Jett’s Do Ya Wanna Touch Me?
3. A Uniform: Black distressed skinnies, low-cut black boyfriend tee, my gold bar necklace, my black leather moto jacket and black strappy heels…well, I want this to be my uniform. You will most likely find me in work appropriate floral dresses.
4. A Hairstylist They Love: Gloria at Hairworld and Dorothy at York Street Spa (she has since moved to NYC).
5. An Exercise Routine: Running a few times a week with weight training thrown in. I think about doing yoga more than I actually do yoga.
6. A Hobby: Scouring eBay for great finds, usually fine china, flatware and crystal. I like all aspects of my life to be pretty!
7. A Best Friend: My husband. Yep – I’m one of those. I married my best friend. The couple who goofs off together, stays together. I’m also incredibly fortunate to be best friends with a couple of women who pretty much inspire me on a daily basis. They are both Einstein-smart, supportive, full of zest for life, funny, witty, gorgeous, stylish…the whole nine yards. I’m particularly lucky to also be blessed with the best two sisters in the world. My heart beats for them.
8. A Healthy Sense of Self: It took a long time for me to get where I am today – happy, loved, healthy and successful. I grew up pretty insecure – something I was painfully aware of, so I masked it with my huge sense of humour and big mouth, two things that got me into trouble a lot. Well, let’s be honest…still get me into trouble. As I grew up, made more friends with more diverse backgrounds, experienced the world, and most of all, looked within to discover what truly made me happy, those insecurities fell away. Instead of worrying about being popular, being prettier, being thinner, being smarter (damn you, math class!!), I learned to love myself for who I am, faults and all. I’m not perfect – I’m the first to admit that. It took a long time for me to realize that being judgmental and mean were really projections of oneself. It also took a long time to learn empathy and to put oneself in another’s shoes. Just because that person is being a real b*tch, doesn’t mean she’s evil. It means that she probably had a terrible morning, something bad happened to her that was out of her control, she’s dealing with things we can’t understand, etc. For this understanding, I thank Ryan, Vanessa, Lucie, Erika and Alice for checking me constantly. I now know what I’m capable of, especially when I put my mind to it. Sometimes it scares me how determined I can get!
What makes you happy?
Dominique is a Canadian-based fashion and beauty influencer with a strong voice in Ottawa’s black community. Since launching her blog Style Domination in 2015, she has amassed a global fanbase. Dominique shares her life through beautiful imagery and compelling story-telling that speaks to her fans on a personal level. She’s been featured in The Guardian, Flare, The Kit and Cityline. She also hosts events for Dress for Success, the Gem Conference, and has been named a United Way Person 2 Know for the past three years.
“I think about doing yoga more than I actually do yoga” haha I can soo relate to that! Awesome article 🙂 xx
Author
Thank you, my dear! LOL! I’m ashamed of all the cute yoga clothes I buy with the intention of actually yoga-ing it up. Let’s face it – I just want to look cute in my yoga wear, carrying my little yoga mat as I walk to Starbucks. LOL! Jus
Ahhhh, I love this post so much!!! <3
Author
Thanks Raven! Means a lot! xoxoxo
Awe this is such a nice post!! Thanks for sharing! I agree that the couple that goofs off together stays together. Just like my boyfriend and I. <3 xo
Author
So great to read that, Katie! My hubs and I are like little kids – constantly having fun and laughing together. The key to a successful relationship is communicating and accepting each other’s flaws. Is it really worth screaming at him because he left a sock on the floor? Nope. When he does little annoying things, I think of the countless huge wonderful things he does for me on a daily basis. xoxox
Oh I agree with you completely! My bf and I have awesome communication and we definitely accept each others flaws lol. 🙂 xoxox
OMG this post made my week!!! Your responses are so spot-on — I especially love that your husband is your best friend! I feel the same way about my Hubby, we do practically everything together and even work from home together so it’s weird when he isn’t always there ha ha. But it’s your last response that resonated the most with me. I struggled with insecurities and frustrations with my body image from a very young age and even through everything I’ve done and experienced, it still creeps up occasionally out of no where!
Adding your post to my post now!
Xoxo,
Sed Bona
Author
Ashley – thank you soooo much for your response. I have been following you on instagram for a while now, and was thrilled when you started your blog. It surprises me that such an accomplished young woman such as yourself struggled with insecurities – but it just goes to show that we each have our own set of problems. Thank you so much for reading and linking back to me. Keep being fabulous, ok?? xoxoxo
Author
Thank you!
Loved to read this post! You are so fortunate to have found yourself. I’m working on it, transitioning to an empty nest!
Author
Awww! We are all works in progress. My mother struggled with empty nest syndrome, which surprised me as we drove her crazy while we all still lived at home. Now when we visit, she gets so excited, she can barely contain herself. LOL! Thanks for reading! xox
Love this!
Very cute post!
Author
Thank you, Joy! xo
What a great post!
This resonates a lot with me so thank you so much for sharing 🙂
Author
You’re welcome, Dana! As always, thanks for stopping by. Hope you’re well!
Love this post and think I’m doing pretty well on your list!
1) Cider.
2) I wanna dance with somebody – Whitney Houston
3) Skater dress, ankle boots and a selection of antiquey looking jewellery.
4) I fail on hairstylists.
5) I’ve started running – its a working progress!
6) I play guitar and write songs, oh and I blog of course!
7) Sharni – she’s pretty awesome.
8) This I think will always be a working progress but I’m pretty happy with what I’ve achieved so far and believe in myself enough to know I still have much to do!
Author
Wonderful answers, Rachel!!! You’re doing great! “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”!!! My God! That used to be MY JAM!!! Someone gave that Whitney Houston tape (frigging tape!!) to me at my 13th birthday party and my friends and I played it full blast and bopped around my bedroom! Jeez! Such good memories! Thanks for reminding me!
I think my sister would benefit greatly from this advice