24-year-old Ella Mai commanded our attention with her hit single "Boo'd Up" and the one thing that you cannot ignore about the talented superstar is her flawless skin.
She seems to be a minimalist when it comes to her look, which is much appreciated, as it allows for her natural beauty to shine through. Ella partnered up with Vogue Magazine to share details about her morning routine, which is quite unique since she has sensitive skin like many of us.
Ella begins her routine with one of the most underrated ingredients in any beauty routine: water. She makes sure to draw it at a temperature that is not too hot, and not too cold, in order for her facial cleansing to be as soothing as possible, and to open up her pores.
After a quick refresher, she goes in and cleanses with Burt's Bees Facial Cleanser for Sensitive Skin, lathering it on her skin for a few minutes before rinsing off:
"I don't use much as you can see. I have sensitive skin, [so] I've always had to make sure I don't use anything that makes me break out or makes me get rashes or anything so I've kind of had to be into skincare. Otherwise, I'd be walking around like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer."
When it comes to sensitive skin, over time you will learn that less is more! The more focus that you put into products with more natural ingredients, opposed to ones that are loaded with chemicals, the more you will ensure that your skincare regimen revolves around soothing your skin instead of inflaming it.
That's why Ella goes in with Jurlique Rosewater Balancing Mist that acts as both a moisturizer and a toner, and is also a beauty staple of Halle Berry. Many of us who get frustrated with our skin and run to the nearest beauty department forgetting that what we take in has a major effect on our skin, which is why Ella sticks to the basics:
"I drink a lot of water. For ages I cut out juice, I don't drink any fizzy drinks…you will always see me with a bottle of water in my hand and I think that has a lot to do with having clean skin. It's obviously genetics as well, thank you, mom, I love you!"
After going in with a supercharging serum, Ella moves to caring for a part of her face that a lot of us neglect until we are a chapped mess: our lips. She goes in with Burt's Bees Vanilla Bean Lip Balm, and makes sure to bring it along with her during the day for reapplication. This step is easy for Ella to remember because her lips are her favorite feature:
"I'll always have this in my pocket. You'll never ever catch me without it in my pocket."
Moisture is a component that Ella not only loves for her beautiful skin but also for her natural hair. No matter the texture, we can all agree that when you have kinky and curly hair, it is essential to keep it moisturized using products that have little-to-no build up on your scalp. Nourishing her hair and letting it be, instead of constantly manipulating it (especially with heat), is a lesson that Ella learned through trial and error:
"I hardly ever use a hair dryer [and try to] keep heat out of my routine because when I was younger, I straightened my hair a lot, and blow dried it a lot, and dyed it, and all the stuff that you do when you're trying to be experimental. It ruined my curl pattern. So for ages, I've tried to use no heat, let it air-dry, and just use water really."
Nowadays, when she wants to spice up her looks, she lays down her baby hair to her liking and throws on her favorite lipgloss, Fenty Beauty's Gloss Bomb.
With her morning routine being no more than 5 minutes, she proves to be relatable not only in her music but in her approach to getting ready for the day!
Ella Mai's Guide to Sensitive Skin Care | Beauty Secrets | Voguewww.youtube.com
Featured image by Ella Mai.
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While an evolution is a natural progression that happens as businesses grow, a rebrand is a total change. Lola tells xoNecole, "A total rebrand is necessary when a business’s current reputation/what it’s known for is at odds with the business’s vision or direction.
"For example, if you’ve fundamentally changed what your product is and does, it’s likely that your brand is out of alignment with the business. Or, if you find your company is developing a reputation that doesn’t serve it, it might be time to pump the brakes and figure out what needs to change.
She continues, "Sometimes you’ll see companies (especially startups) announce a name change that comes with updated messaging, visuals, etc. That usually means their vision has changed or expanded, and their previous branding was too narrow/couldn’t encompass everything they planned to do."
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The Brand Doula was born in 2019, and its focus is on putting "the experiences, goals, and needs of women of color founders first," as well as brands with "culture-shifting missions."
According to Lola, culture-shifting is "the act of influencing dominant behavior, beliefs, or experiences in a community or group (ideally, for the better)."
"At The Brand Doula, we work with companies and leaders that set out to challenge the status quo in their industries and communities. They’re here to make an impact that sends ripples across the market," she says.
"We help the problem solvers of the world — the ones who aren't satisfied with 'this is how it's always been' and instead ask 'how could this be better?' Our clients build for impact, reimagining tools, systems, and ways of living to move cultures forward."
The Brand Doula has worked with many brands, including Too Collective, to assist with their collaboration with Selena Gomez's Rare Beauty and Balanced Black Girl for a "refresh," aka rebrand. For businesses looking to rebrand, Lola shares four essential steps.
1. Do an audit of your current brand experience — what’s still relevant and what needs to change? Reflect on why you’re doing the rebrand in the first place and what success would look like after relaunching.
2. Tackle the overall strategy first — before you start redesigning logos and websites, align on a new vision for your brand. How do you want your company to be positioned moving forward? Has your audience changed at all? Will your company have a fresh personality and voice?
3. Bring your audience along the journey — there’s no need to move in secret. Inviting your current audience into the journey can actually help them feel more connected to and invested in your story, enough to stick around as changes are being made.
4. Keep business moving — one of my biggest pet peeves is when companies take down their websites as soon as they have the idea to rebrand, then have a Coming Soon page up for months! You lose a lot of momentum and interest by doing that. If you’re still in business and generating income, continue to operate while you work on your rebrand behind the scenes. You don’t want to cut existing customers off out of the blue, and you also don’t want so much downtime that folks forget your business exists or start looking for other solutions.
While determining whether the rebrand was successful may take a few months, Lola says a clear sign that it is unsuccessful is negative feedback from your target audience. "Customers are typically more vocal about what they don’t like more than what they do like," she says.
But some good signs to look out for are improvements in engagement with your marketing, positive reviews, press and increase in retention, and overall feeling aligned with the new branding.
For more information about Lola and The Brand Doula, visit her website, thebranddoula.com.
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