Big Rona ain't stopping the show as we continue to be more eco-conscious in our daily lives. Since 1970, Earth Day's mission has been to build the world's largest environmental movement to drive transformative change for people and planet.
In my younger days, I remember looking forward to Earth Day at school because it forced me to think outside of my bubble and come up with my plans to save the planet. Once I got to high school, and all I cared about was fashion and boys, that fire I once had to make the planet a better place wasn't lit anymore. But now that I have a better understanding of what Earth Day really means and how climate action will effect generations to come, I have got to make this Earth Day count.
Our current state of normal includes a pandemic that took us by surprise. Before that, we were startled by the brushfires in Australia and then the locusts swarming Africa. These are all signs that we must take climate change more seriously. When we all make an effort, we make Mother Earth proud.
From shopping with a purpose to plastic audits to simply supporting your mental health, we have some feasible ways to show love to our beautiful planet.
Plant a tree or start a garden.
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We could all use some therapeutic activities while social distancing and one way to celebrate Earth Day is by planting a tree or starting a garden. Planting a tree helps reduce our carbon footprint but also provides beauty for nature. You have a slew of choices from Ash Trees to Cherry Trees. When planting a tree, it is essential to find a great location that will allow the tree to grow without interruption.
As for your new garden, it has endless benefits. Just ask our forever First Lady, Michelle Obama. She wrote an entire book on the impact gardens have on the well-being of our children. Looking for inspo? Read her book, American Grown: The Story of the White House Kitchen Garden and Gardens Across America. By starting your new garden, you can rest easy knowing your produce is free of pesticides and you'll have food right outside your door.
For a beginner's gardening starter kit, you'll need:
- Seeds or young plants.
- Compost.
- Mulch.
- Soil-tilling equipment.
- A shovel and spade.
- A garden hose.
- Fencing materials.
For apartment-dwellers who still wish to give back to Mother Earth but can't plant a garden of their own, look into initiatives like One Tree Planted and Plant a Billion Trees for ways you can get involved. Your health and well-being can also flourish indoors with the help of house plants. Don't know where to begin? Check out our article "These Easy To Care For Plants Can Thrive With Little To No Sunlight".
Use refillable water products instead of plastic water bottles.
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Truth is, we have a love affair with garbage. We don't always think about how much we contribute to waste if it's not at the forefront of our minds. More than anything, being aware can change your outlook. Single-use plastic has to be the type of waste we dispose of the most and one feasible way to make a difference is to replace your plastic bottles with refillable water products. This simple but impactful change can be achieved through a reusable bottle made of stainless steel, glass, or safe aluminium, a filtration system like Brita or an advanced faucet water filter like PUR.
Shop smart and sustainable.
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Being home more makes you want to shop online more. But if you're going to shop, make sure it's sustainable. We found a few products that will do our planet some good. Many of these brands are dedicated to combating climate change by making their products compostable, keeping the consumer informed, donating to climate change foundations or using recycled plastic bottles to create sustainability:
- VELDT Inc LUXTURE AARDE Watch
- BAGGU Resuable Grocery Bags
- Swaggr Recycled Socks
- Love Beauty and Planet Muru Muru Shampoo Bars
- YIHONG Reusable Stainless Steel Metal Straws
- To-Go Ware Bamboo Travel Utensils
- S'well Stainless Steel Water Bottle
- Croon Cleansing Fibers
- AGOLDE Criss Cross Upsized Short
- Antidote Mykilim Dune Handbag
Rethink the way you view transportation.
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One positive thing to emerge from the stay-at-home orders is the decrease in carbon emissions. Social distancing is low-key helping climate change because the whole world has been forced to flatten the curve. By not being on the roads in our vehicles and hopping on flights, we are reducing greenhouse gases. Right now, we are only using our cars to go out for essential runs. What if chose to bike instead to further drop air pollution? CNBC said that cleaner air has saved about 50,000 lives in China alone over these past few months. Biking also allows you to make your lungs and muscles healthier and stronger. We affirm that we are coming out of quarantine smarter and healthier by simply being intentional with the way we treat Mother Earth.
Go plant-based for one meal.
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I was today years old when I found out that factory farms in the U.S. produce 300 million tons of waste each year. That's just the United States. By choosing more plant-based meals, we can be more intentional about our carbon footprint and create a better climate environment for our children and our children's children. Try this easy but tasty recipe this week.
Support your mental health.
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We are living in unprecedented times. Never in a million years did I think we would be experiencing a pandemic like this. Everyone in the world is greatly effected by this one thing. Our mental health along with our physical health has to be the most important thing at this moment. Flattening the curve has costs us normalcy and there's no harm in grieving the loss of normalcy. With the weight of the pandemic and climate change weighing heavily on our hearts and mental, we have to be gentle with ourselves.
Be sure to do things that bring you joy. As we celebrate Earth Day, make sure they are eco-friendly. Check out some ideas below:
- Do 15-minute daily meditations and keep a gratitude journal.
- Hand-write letters.
- Take time to stop, smell the roses and read the signs.
- Watch movies with a friend (virtually).
- Create some DIY house decorations.
- Experiment with watercolors.
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Featured image courtesy of @thjeneralist/Instagram (gave permission)
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The Black hair industry has definitely blossomed in the last decade with a wave of new stylists and salons popping up all over the place. As much as I love that for us, many of these stylists have become the subjects of viral TikTok and Instagram tirades because of their alleged questionable behavior and bizarre rules.
Excessive policies, strange fees, long wait times, poor performance, and the infamous “Hey boo” texts. Beauty is pain, they say… xoNecole got to the root of these issues with luxury hair extensionist Dee Michelle, who’s been in the hair game for 20 years and runs a seven-figure business - all while being a mom of four.
Antonio Livingston
“I started my business with my career in the hair industry [at] very, very young age when I was maybe like eight...So, over the years, I've just built a very successful seven-figure business very quickly just by offering high-end services and creating great experiences for my clients, many of whom are high-profile professionals,” she said. “I'm also a mother of four, including a set of triplets, which inspires me daily to show what's possible with my hard work and focus.”
Dee’s business has gone viral on social media because of what many call outrageous prices for her invisible K-Tip installs.
“When I developed my invisible K-tip extensions technique, I made sure that it wasn't just about the hair or the style, but about providing a high-end experience from start to finish. So, my clients just aren't paying for the extensions or just the style itself, but they're investing into my meticulous, seamless craft and premium hair sourced from the best suppliers…I've spent so many hours mastering my craft, creating this seamless method that gives my clients long-lasting natural results, and my pricing just reflects that - the value of my expertise and the exclusivity of the service.”
The K-tip specialist stands on business when it comes to catering to her clients and giving them an experience worth the cost.
“And it's just important for me to also say that my clients are high-profile individuals who value quality, their privacy, and their time. They want a service that fits into their lifestyle and their time. They want things that deliver perfection. And I deliver that every single time.”
I’m sure we’ve all seen the various TikTok rants about people’s nightmare experiences with stylists and uttered a silent “FELT!” We asked Dee her opinion on a few nightmare scenarios that beg the response, “please be so forreal."
On stylists charging extra to wash clients’ hair:
“I think they should just include it in the price, to be honest. Because I feel like when clients go to a stylist, they're expecting you to wash their hair. Personally, if I see that washing is extra, I just wouldn't go to the salon because it just shows a lack of professionalism, in my opinion, and a lack of experience.”
“I think they should just include it in the price, to be honest. Because I feel like when clients go to a stylist, they're expecting you to wash their hair. Personally, if I see that washing is extra, I just wouldn't go to the salon because it just shows a lack of professionalism, in my opinion, and a lack of experience.”
On ‘deposits’ that don’t go towards the cost of the service:
“I think that's kind of weird, too, for deposits to not be like a part of the service. I've seen people have booking fees and I just don't understand it, to be honest. I disagree with that kind of policy…By all means, people should do what works for them, but to me, it doesn't make sense. Why does somebody have to pay a fee just to book an appointment with you? I don't get it. It feels like exploitation.”
On stylists charging extra to style (straighten/curl) wigs, sew-ins etc., after installing:
“I don't get it. Clients come to us to get their hair done, to get it styled. So why is it extra for you to style it? If you're going to charge extra, just increase your price. I feel like it could be just a lack of confidence in those stylists, feeling like people won't pay a certain price for certain things, or just their lack of professionalism as well, because people are coming to us to get styled.”
On the infamous “Hey boo” text stylists send to clients when they need to cancel/reschedule:
“Professionalism in any industry, especially the beauty industry, is everything. So texting a client the, “Hey boo” is so unprofessional, and it's damaging to the client-stylist relationship. Clients book their appointments expecting a level of respect and care, especially when they're investing their time and money and a service. And I get it, emergencies happen, we're all humans. However, it should be done with a formal apology and a clear explanation.”
“Professionalism in any industry, especially the beauty industry, is everything. So texting a client the, “Hey boo” is so unprofessional, and it's damaging to the client-stylist relationship. Clients book their appointments expecting a level of respect and care, especially when they're investing their time and money and a service. And I get it, emergencies happen, we're all humans. However, it should be done with a formal apology and a clear explanation.”
We know all too well what kinds of things will keep us from ever gracing certain hairstylists’ chairs with our butts again. So, what should hairstylists do to provide a good service to their clients? What is good hairstylist etiquette?
“For one, being on time is an important rule for stylist etiquette. It's just not okay to require your clients to be on time, and you're not on time. Also, communication. Being able to communicate clearly, respectfully, and professionally, whether that's in person, via text, or on social media. Style is etiquette. Appearance matters. So just maintaining a clean, polished, and professional look. Clients respect you more whenever your appearance reflects your work. There's just so many things, but another thing I would say is active listening. So, being able to pay close attention to what your client wants and also clarifying any questions that they might have. Just to ensure that they feel heard and to minimize any misunderstandings.”
Dee also shared some red flags to look out for when considering a new stylist.
“Even me as a client, if I'm booking somebody and they have a long list of rules, I don't even book with them. That's, for one, just such a huge turn-off. Also, stylists who have inconsistent or unclear pricing, that's a red flag. People who change their rates too much without an explanation. Poor communication. So, if a stylist is responding very slow or responding unprofessionally, or giving vague answers to questions, that can make clients question whether or not they are respecting their time and their needs.
Another red flag - an inconsistent or low quality portfolio. And I feel like, I see this a lot with stylists stealing other people's work, and their portfolio on social media is just very inconsistent.”
We couldn’t let Dee go without getting the tea on what styles she predicts will trend in 2025.
“I feel like people are going back to natural-looking styles. So, a lot of people are ditching the wigs, the lace fronts, things like that. People are still wearing them, of course, but it is becoming more of a trend to embrace your natural hair and something that's not looking too fake. That’s one thing that we're going to be seeing a lot. I would say a lot of layers are coming back, heavy layers. Those are becoming really, really trendy. And people are leaning more towards platinum-colored hair. I've been seeing lots of like blondes coming out. Also, jet black is always going to be a trend. But I would say more like natural colors, but natural colors that are still making a statement.”
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Feature image by Antonio Livingston.