Black women are the creators of style.We set trends.We are the trendsetters.What we wear, everybody else emulates.But they can never be us.But so often, we are left out of the style conversations, which is why black style anecdotes exist.
This is where black women can share their style stories. Hey, y'all.Welcome to another episode of Black Style Anecdotes, where Black women share their style stories.I am excited to talk to my guest today.She was in, I want to say, season four.
And I am just a fan of her style, continue to be.And so, Hallecia, welcome to Black Style Anecdotes again.Thank you for having me again. Um, and so let's just get into getting into like a little update on your style.
Um, my first question for you is like thinking back, actually, I take it back.My first question for you, Alicia or Lee, as you like to be called is what, tell us a little bit about like your earrings and like what you have on today.Cause I'm,
I'm all really into the earrings.I'm caught up.What you got going on?
OK.Shop Koi Black-Owned, you already know.
This is literally like my favorite earring or like jewelry brand in general.I've been seeing people talk about them.Yeah.I mean, she's just that girl.I just think that her pieces are so unique.
And so these are basically like your hoops, but like backwards in a sense.But you could wear them either way.But I love that she designed them to where the backing is like a stud. That could be worn in the front.
And then I just have on like a denim fitted top and some faux leather, kind of like joggers, I guess you could say.Yeah.
I have here, we'll talk a little bit more about shopping, but I've seen you talking about Koi over the last like few years.So I definitely love her pieces and those earrings are fire.I love the backwards.
So now I'm gonna go look for those and put them on my shopping list. But my first real question for you, Lee, is in the past, you were on in 2021.I want to say September-ish of 2021.And you described your style as sporty chic.It's been a few years.
And it may have changed.It may have not.But how would you describe your style today?
It's a little bit more experimental, I guess you could say.At that time, I was super into sneakers.You couldn't tell me nothing about a pair of sneakers.And now I've just kind of evolved into a lot more versatility.
And I just like to explore different pieces in general.They don't necessarily have to fit anything that I've ever worn in the past.But if I like it, it's just like, let's just take this out for a run.
It's like test driving a car, but you do it with clothes. I pick out pieces and then I figure out how I'm gonna style them at this moment, at this age, in this day and time.
And I'm just open for whatever magic kind of happens versus sticking to certain things.Cuz I just feel like fashion can get boring sometimes.And you evolve, you grow, and things look different and feel different to you.And my body has changed.
So it's like I'm more comfortable in certain things.I'm also a lot older, so not all of the time do I want to give you sporty, like, I don't want to be a grown woman here, okay?
I am serving thigh and clavicle and whatever else, like, I, yeah, so no, I feel you. I do, I do.And I do feel like I do see you doing more, like you still do a fire sneaker look, right?
Like you still, when I am looking for a sneaker inspiration, cause I still feel like they're not, I have more sneakers or I wear sneakers more, but I feel like they're not still like my most comfortable.
my comfort zone, my comfort zone is like a heel or something.
And so when I am looking for like inspiration for how to integrate sneakers into my style or into a look I have in my mind, you are someone I go to because I feel like you do a good job of like mixing when you do being like really, really feminine, but still like with a sneaker.
And so I love that about your style and like just the juxtaposition.And so, um, You mentioned a moment ago, you kind of answered my question, thinking about the things that have changed in our lives that shape our style, right?
It's not realistic to have the same style at 20. is at 30 and at 40.Some people do that and bless them, but it's not very realistic.As you said, our bodies are changing.We are hopefully evolving and changing and growing, right?
And so I love that you- Your lifestyle is- Yeah.
I was just thinking, I don't even have the same style as two, three years ago.Sometimes I look back and I'm like, what was happening here?What made you want to do this?So I just think that it's just constant.
It's also your mood, I think, that really, really affects it.Because sometimes you might be in a super playful mood, and then sometimes it's like, I'm serious.I'm a grown woman.Why would I dress like a child in a sense?
Or what does this give child-ish, you know?
No, that's so true.That's so true.Yeah.No, that's so true.It's like, what's the vibe?And then you become the vibe, because you be giving, like, you be the vibe. Thank you.
One of the things I'm wondering is when you are putting your looks together, whether you're leaning into the sporty, leaning into the grown woman, leaning into something else entirely, where do you find inspiration for your style?
I always start with the way that I feel.I notice that the way that I feel really encompasses what I want to put on.I noticed that if I'm in a really cozy or relaxed mood, I want everything oversized.
It doesn't matter what it is, where we're going, I want it to be oversized.I want it to give, I can wrap up in this.So I don't know, that's just been how I focus on style lately.It's just how I feel.
And then however I feel, that's how I want to present myself to the world.So it really changes from day to day, moment to moment.You can also tell, do I really want to be there?
Did I really go all out, or did I just go with something that's typical of me?Because if I took a chance, I really cared.If I put on a familiar outfit, I'm here.
Now people are going to be on Instagram like, OK, she ain't want to be there because she need.
I mean, it's not necessarily, but we don't always feel like it.
So it's kind of like, if I don't feel like it, I'm already putting all of my energy into maybe being in a space when I would rather be at home on a couch.So it's like, I'm not going to put energy into that and energy into the look.Pick a struggle.
Facts.Pick a struggle.I love that.I see the looks that you put together, whether it's doing something locally, whether it's travel, whether it's events.And I think that you're one of my favorite people to see
on my feed because I feel like your style is not dressing like everyone else.And so I just want to name that publicly.But what I'm wondering is, are there any celebrities that you see and you're like, OK, I really like what she's done.
I really like how that she's put that together.And maybe some of them do have stylists, of course.But I think there are some celebrities that just know how to put stuff together on their own, too.
Yeah, so I would say number one is probably Kalana Barfield Brown.Oh, yes.I don't really know if she's like a full celebrity.
Right, same to me too. Same to me, too.So I love her style.I live for her looks.And she does have a very streamlined look, in a sense.It's kind of expected, but she does it with the most interesting pieces.
But I know for a fact she's going to have on the details.An oversized pant. a corset, a blazer, a deconstructed top, and she always does like a skinny heel or a sneaker and a red lip.It's like, you know what's coming, but it's also so exciting.
And then I would say Tracee Ellis Ross. She gives it.She gives me sex.She gives me versatility.She gives me structure.She gives me interest.She just does it for me.And hers kind of changes.It's not as predictable, but still really, really good.
Those two, I would say, have probably been the most consistent for me.
Yeah, no, those two are like, those two and June Ambrose are like my dream guests.My high in the sky, I have mama, I made it for real.
Yeah, guess because I just feel like I agree Kalana does have like she has a uniform But it's like but it'd be like those little details that I always just like oh that course It has an extra little zipper or something you didn't expect.
Yeah.Yeah, and then I love I've always loved Tracy Ellis Ross like back in the girlfriend's days, I thought I was going to be a lawyer because she was wearing those suits.
But what I also enjoy is that I feel like her style very much reflects the bits of personality she shares with us.There's always a fun element to Even her more serious and demure, not to be on trend.
But demure looks, they're still like a fun something.Because she's funny.She's a comedian.There's always something.And then June Ambrose, you ain't name her, but I just love her.And so she just makes statements.
Yeah, she's a good pick, though.
I always associate her with a hat.
Yeah, which really seemed like a more recent thing.Is it just me?More like in last few years or something.But I love it.That is true.Yeah, because it wasn't always a thing, right?
But whatever caused her to get into the interesting hats, I'm glad I enjoy them. One thing I'm wondering.They're cool.Yeah.
So one of the things I'm wondering is, when we talked before, you talked about how you were shifting away from buying so much fast fashion.And you were going to be focusing on buying more or all black-owned brands.
And I feel like I see you wearing more and more black-owned brands, which I love, which we talked about them before. Um, but one of the things I'm wondering and thinking about is two things.
One, like, are there's along with like coy, which you already shared as like, are there some black on brands that you didn't know about three years ago, but now you're like, I got, I gotta keep them in my wardrobe.I gotta wear them.I gotta love them.
I would say. Fumi the Label is a good one, but her pieces to me are very sexy, but almost like covered in a sense.It's not a lot of skin, but it still gives like body, yada, yada, and I like that.Yeah.Kendall Miles, which is a shoe brand.
And over here is for her shoes.She does a lot of texture in the shoes.And I really love that element, because the shoes are just different.And they're actually made to fit our feet.Black women typically have wider feet.
She always makes the bed a little wider, which makes them so comfortable, even for a heel.OK.And then, see?A little TV.And they're made in Italy.You're talking about top-tier luxury shoes.Yeah.That's her.
Kai Collective, which I don't know if I mentioned then.I don't think you did.But I probably hadn't started wearing them yet.I feel like at that time I was probably only wearing like Kanifa or that was like my main brand.
So I'm definitely throwing in Kai Collective.Her brand to me is very hip, very trendy, very fresh, very new.And also more like vacation and resort.I agree.
I'm out of town. Oh, those are some good ones.I would probably say, and Andrea Ayama.Yeah, I think you mentioned her then.OK, I probably mentioned her, so yeah.
Those are probably them girls.And Laura Bae, OK?
Mm-hmm.Laura Bae on the sunnies.Yes.Because she going to give you a good, unique pair of sunglasses.
And quality, too, because, I mean, you can get unique for cheap, like for plastic, little steel. a little peel off, but quality too.
I would say over the last four or five years, I feel like people have better come to understand that like black designers can and do make quality products in a way that they didn't understand before.
Like more mainstream understanding that like black designers make quality products.Every person who has their name on something that isn't like a little boutique little, you know, you know, I'm trying, I'm clicking, clacking.
Yeah, like a little wholesale boutique.
I found that my Black-owned pieces, if they are actually Black-designed, yes, and like produced, they're typically higher quality than the mainstream luxury brands.That has been
Really what I've discovered, I'm like, oh, this quality, this $300 piece is better quality than a piece that may be $3,000, which is crazy.
But I just find that if they are actually designed by Black people and then produced, then the quality is typically there.
Well, I can see that.And I think I've been recently reading this book called Fashionopolis, and it's talking about how
manufacturing has changed in the fashion industry, from manufacturing in America, from the way that designers and companies source their products, how denim is made.I haven't finished, but it's a lot about a lot of these things.
But it talks about how some of the larger designer brands are just like money focused.
And so it's like, even though they're selling it for $3,000, it costs 300 bucks or less to make it because of where it's being made and how it's being made these days.
Whereas smaller Black designers, their options for manufacturing are a little more limited because of growing out and creating smaller, having smaller stock and all these things, which means that
they can be a lot more intentional about who is actually making their stuff.And so no, I definitely could see that for sure.Agree.
The small brands are definitely winning.
Yeah.Yep.If you're going to be buying, go look at little small brands or look who.And you can ask how stuff is being made.You can make decisions about that kind of stuff.
I love how you support Black-owned brands, and I love that you brought up the quality of those pieces.One of the things I'm wondering is when you are shopping, what do you find to be a challenge?
What's a challenge that you find when you're shopping or putting a look together?What's your biggest shopping or style challenge?
I would say for shopping, the biggest challenge is
typically the fit or let me say being realistic about how it's going to fit me because it took a while surprisingly for me to come to terms with the way that it's presented on the model is not the way it's gonna show up on you.
Like that model's body is not your body.And even when you slightly find people that are like similar, it still doesn't like give that.So I learned to actually stick to certain silhouettes that I know are going to work.
So I look for things in that silhouette.And I also had to come to terms with, girl, you are short.You are trying to purchase pieces that have all of the details at the bottom of the piece, and it's maxi or it's long.
So if you go get this hemmed, you've lost the zhuzh of the piece or the purpose of this piece.So you're either stuck tripping or walking.It's just like I had to come to terms with like, everything is not going to work for you.
You have to be okay with that.You have to move on from that, no matter how much you enjoy it.And sometimes it's really hard because you just like, dang, I really want that.
You fall in love with something, but in the back of your mind, you know, for a fact that is going to be a waste of your money.
yeah and then for me typically with styling the biggest challenge a lot of times is comfort because i want to wear stuff but i also don't want to be uncomfortable yeah but i also really want to wear it
So it's like, I have to tell myself, you're going to be gone for 8 to 10 hours.You might not want to be strapped up into a corset for that long.You might not want to be in a 4-inch heel for that long.I know you want to wear it.
But it's not practical for what I have going on.So a lot of it is just internal struggles, because it goes against what I want.But it's like, girl, that don't make no sense.Come on now.
I think that also comes with age you talked earlier about like getting older and I think like. of the ridiculousness of being in my 20s and wearing stilettos to class to walk down the Tiger Walk.
And there's just no way I would do that as I approach 40.I think some of it is like, OK, yes, I know I want to wear that platform.But I know this street I'm going down is cobblestone when I'm traveling or whatever.
girl, put that flat on or put that sneaker on, wear that boot, you know, like just like having that, I think that also is like, I guess, like wisdom of becoming a, yeah.But also, you know, better you do better.
Yeah, but also very relatable.I think we all are coming to groups with like, just figuring out like, how can I be more comfortable? and look good as I get older.
And also like accepting that I can't always do exactly what I want, which is like with life, like you can't always do exactly what you want.It's just like how life is and our style too, so I get that.
What is a trend that you are just like, I am loving it, everyone's wearing it, it's on the runway, it's wherever, but you just are like really enjoying it, if there are any.
red, the color red.Give it to me in red.At first, I knew it was a color when orange on our skin is like perfection.And then to me, the fact that red is trending is just like that fall winter version of orange.
It's just a little bit deeper, but it just looks so good on us.And it's like a bright color, a sexy color, but you don't have to do too much.Cause it's like, we see you girl, like you're red.
It's just good, though.Yeah, I agree.And it looks good on you.I see that red dress behind you.Right.
And you know what's funny is I bought this dress recently, but I laughed about it because there were, and I think I've mentioned this on the podcast before, but there was a time when I would not wear red.I was just so opposed to wearing red.
There was just no way you could get me to wear red.And then one day, my mama gave me some. vintage silk shorts that she used to wear back in the day.And I just wanted to keep them because she had given them to me, right?
And I was like, but then I was like, let me put these shorts on.And then ever since that red, I've been like, okay, I can do that.And it looks good on darker complexion, light skin, caramel, like every
Shade of melanin looks good in red and orange, too, but especially red.So for sure.I'm loving it.And I'm looking forward to seeing how people put it together and incorporate red into their looks as we go throughout the rest of the year.
I'm loving that.We are almost at the end.So we are approaching our end.And so I just have two more questions for you, Leigh.And my next question is thinking about, and we talked about being a Black woman.
We talked about melanin, our skin, and how things look good on us and Black brands. I know that for you, it's important to have your own style and not like be like anyone else.So why is that important for you as a black woman?
I don't know, just in a woman in general, we're always so suppressed, innocent, or piped down, toned down.You're too loud.You're too this.You're too that.And it's just like, no, babe, you're just not enough.You can't get on this level.
So I think part of it is just part of my self-expression.I personally know that I am a rebel. I don't, if you going left, I want to go right.And it's for no, I don't even have to have a reason.
It's just that if the majority of the crowd is going this way, that can't be the way I'm supposed to go.That's just the way that like my mind works.So even when I look at things,
Especially when it comes to style and fashion, I'm kind of attracted to the chaos or the unexpected or that unique thing that just makes something so interesting.Cuz everybody, to me, gives me copy paste, copy paste, copy paste, copy paste.
It's like, how many versions of this can you give me?It almost has become robotic, especially in the world. The style piece is just missing.
I think that prior to social media, people had style because you just didn't have access to what everybody was wearing in the world.So depending on what region you were in, people dress differently.People talk differently.But now,
we're just this big conglomerate.Everybody has access to everybody.And you start to see trends across the world, or you can't talk to people and know that they're from New Orleans.The accents are gone.
The things that made us different have been washed away and we're just very robotic.And I don't like that.It's just, it's like, it's boring.
Yeah.Oh, yeah.I, I saw, I know I've talked about this before, but like, it's a lot of copycat.And it's, and it's like, I just don't want to look like people.I just don't.I think that I innately don't.It's very natural for me not to.
But if I find myself slipping, I'm like, hold up.I don't want to look like everyone.I want to be my own person.But I think what has happened with social media is that everyone wants to be
an influencer, a creator, and something once something's trending. they feel like that is the key to growth, is to hop on that thing, because everyone likes that, so let me do it.And so it just kind of takes away what makes you you.
And so, no, I think that that part is OK.I think it's OK to be trendy, but I still feel like you can put your own sauce on it.It doesn't have to be fresh off the mannequin. Just you pick something that was trendy.Cool.It's no issue with that.
Now, how are you going to flip it and reverse it and make it you?You want people to question it.Like, is that the same dress that I saw on?Yeah.Why yours look like this and hers only look like this?
Yeah.Yes.Yeah.That part.Because I mean, we're shopping.Even when you shop small, even you shop a smaller business, someone, they're not making one. Right.Someone else is also buying it, hopefully.But what do you do with it that makes it you?
So I think that's important and spot on.My last question is, thinking about today, where you are now, and for the listeners that we have now or that I have now, what style of advice would you give the listeners of Black Style Anecdotes?
I'm gonna just put it on, nobody cares.Nobody cares for real.
And if they do care, it's because they almost feel inferior to you because they look at you basically being yourself, expressing yourself, wearing what you wanna wear with confidence and they envy that.That's like a trait that they want to have.
But outside of that, in reality, nobody cares.They're gonna look at you, wildly for a minute or two, and then it's on to the next thought.So it doesn't matter.
I think that we focus, the world in general, we focus so much on how people perceive us, on how people digest us, and you're not meant to be digestible.Like, whatever it is, go forth and be great.
It's really, it's just not that cool. I love that.We are not meant to be digestible.I ain't got to follow none of that, because that was good.I felt that.We are not meant to be digestible.
So we are going to close this episode out with a quick round of this or that.I'm going to name two things, and let me know which one that you pick out of those two things, OK? OK.Here we go.Navy or black?Black.Mini skirt or maxi skirt?Oh.Maxi.
Leopard print or zebra print?Leopard.All of it.Fresh prince or a different world?
I'm like, hold on now.He's like all yeses.He spins across the board.Solange or Rihanna?Solange.OK.Handbags or shoes?Shoes.She's like, mm, that's a hard one.Are you an introvert or an extrovert? I dibble that and dabble.
You're a little bit of an introvert or something like that.Would you rather go on a beach vacation or a vacation in the mountains?Beach.Beach me, please.Red or blue?Red.Kelly Rowland or Teyana Taylor?Teyana.OK.And last one, night out or brunch?
Night out. OK, Lee, this was so fun to catch up with you.If the listeners want to find you on the internet, see your fire style.And I also enjoy your hair videos, all the things.How can they find you on the internet?
I know, Lee, on just about any platform that you could think of, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, everything.I'm not really on it.
But threads, you can find me on threads.OK.I will include links to all the things in the show notes, as well as Leigh's first episode.So y'all can go back and hear what she said in 2021 versus now.
Halicia, thank you so much for being a guest on BSA today.I appreciate you.Thank you. Thank you so much for listening to today's episode.I really, really appreciate you.If you haven't already, hit the subscribe button and give BSA a five-star rating.
Then head over to the Black Style Anecdotes website to learn more about BSA and its hosts, shop BSA merch, and join the new BSA Plus membership community, among other things.
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