My Hoopla Adventures and Thank You!

Below is a recent newsletter I sent out to my customer list. As many of you know I am a stella dot stylist. This past week was the annual conference for all stylist and the preview for our fall collection. Reflecting on my trip, I sent out this thank you and update to all my customers and thought it was a good post to share with my readers as well :-) Just got back from this year's Hoopla at Paris Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas and wanted to share with you my trip and the exciting new fall collection.  View this email in your browser

Lessons Learned and Thank You! Doing something I'm afraid of has payoffs Many of you know me personally, some do not, but attending Hoopla goes against my personality. I usually avoid large crowds and groups, especially alone. My tendency is to shy away from motivational speakers and sales conferences. Well, for some reason or another I signed up for hoopla months ago on a whim not knowing if I would have anyone to attend with or what to expect. All I knew was I wanted to be a part of the experience. It didn't even hit me that just attending the huge annual event was such a big deal for me until my husband who drove out to meet me sat with me at lunch one day and said "I'm really proud of you for doing this. For stepping out of your box and coming here." Holding back tears, I realized just getting to that moment, just showing up was an achievement for me. I won't go into too much details about all the great lessons I learned, mostly that I can do anything I set my mind to, a reminder that I desperately needed and forgotten as I've grown up. I want to thank you to all my customers, mostly my friends or friends of friends for supporting my dreams and helping me build my own business. To you this maybe just a great tote, bracelet, earrings, or necklace, to me it's so much more. It's independence, freedom, growth, and most importantly meeting and learning from each of you. Thank you for your support these last 9 months and thank you for your business, because it is so much more than jewelry for me. Love- Serein P.S. Below are photos from my trip and glances of the new fall line :-) http://www.stelladot.com/sledford

First official day of Hoopla when I've picked up my badge and swag bag! How cute is the new metalic "how does she do it" tote?! Doubles as an adorable diaper bag or mommy bag.  These 2 amazing ladies adopted me and took me under their wings. Here we are enjoying some cocktails from the lounge. Tonya earned the amazing Red Tec Tote that she worked so hard for, which makes the bag even more precious. Can't wait to get the black version for myself :-) Here I was all on my own checking out the fall collection! I took these shots of some of the beautiful statement pieces coming out.  I'll be getting all my fall samples and look books this week, Let me know if you'd like me to send a look book or if you have any questions!

Another Birthday Come and Gone

So as I reach another birthday I reflect on the last year of my life. It's been a little less than a month since my personal holiday.

Sometimes as excited as I get about celebrating my day, there's a deep rooted sadness that I feel around the 19th of April as well. As I get older each year the sadness becomes more prominent. This could be the fact that as a child you never imagine yourself past 20.

This year was the marking of truly feeling like an adult, yet still not quite. Do we ever feel our age? I seem to have age identity crisis a lot.

This I've done this year:

I planned a wedding and got married!
As much as I love being married and I adore my husband, who makes me the happiest woman on Earth, I never actually imagined being married before meeting him.

So as I look back at 2012, getting married was a huge milestone in my life and it happened last year! Just sitting back and reflecting on the whole process of being engaged. Planning the wedding. Getting married. It's all very overwhelming. No matter how much I knew my husband or how much I loved him before the wedding, something happens when the vows are said, the ceremony is over and that little wedding band is on both of our fingers. I can't explain it, but a shift happens. Expectations change, not bad, not good, things just change. It's you and him forever now. You have a partner for life. You are responsible for another's well being and hapienss. It's a huge adjustment mentally.

Youtube Beauty Guru
I've also become an active youtuber posting multiple videos a week on beauty, product reviews, makeup tutorials, and shopping hauls. I never would have thought of myself as a youtuber. If you asked me a few months ago even, I would laugh and be embarrassed of my endeavor to advise through youtube. Making videos has become an outlet for me. Videos fill my creative needs and also makes me feel productive and helpful to others. It's become my main source of daily expression and creativity. I get complete creative control talking about things I'm passionate about.

Yoga?
I became a Yogi in the last year as well. In college I hated yoga, I didn't see the point, now I need it. The breathing, the stretching, the community, it all calms me and centers my mind. The physical benefits are great too!

Independence
I've learned to be alone. Being alone use to lead to depression and feeling like a looser for me. Now I cherish the moments of solitude. To do my own thing and not be disrupted or worried about someone else. While I love my friends and always need them in my life, I have learned that as we age and grow up and build our own families, the time we do get to spend together is precious and rare. Just because I don't hear from them every day doesn't mean that they would be there for me if I needed them. This goes for them too. I don't feel the need to have to call them everyday, we are all busy and trying to live life. In fact my best friends are the ones I see the least.

Move On
This is something I'll always struggle with, but looking back at the last year, I've really improved this trait. It use to take me years to move on from the smallest slights or fights. Now mostly I figure it's not personal, but something the other person is going through. How often do I start a fight or get upset at someone because of my own insecurities or issues? Almost always. So 90% of the time if someone has beef with you, it's really not personal.

Growing up has made me a better partner and friend to those in my life. Do I still get a little sad around my birthday? Yes. I think it's the panic that I haven't done enough with my life or that I am not where I thought I would be, but honestly? Who is exactly where they thought they would be? Life is unexpected and beautiful. The control freak side of me needs to just shut up and enjoy the ride because looking back at the last year, It's been a pretty great one :-)