Sephora

This post came from the "Gay Star Business" site:

"Beauty retail giant Sephora will offer specialized makeup classes to trans and non-binary people.

Called ‘Bold Beauty for the Transgender Community’, the classes begin next month as part of Sephora’s Classes for Confidence program. The program’s aim is ‘to help inspire fearlessness in those facing major life transitions’.

Sephora’s official Beauty Advisors with specialized knowledge about the trans community will run the classes. Trans employees at Sephora helped created the workshops’ content.

One of the people teaching the class is Dominique Anderson, a color consultant at Sephora in New York City.  Anderson said they want to help people find confidence.

‘There was a time that I felt as a trans person I had no idea where I fit into beauty,’ Anderson told Them.

‘It was when I began shopping at Sephora that I knew it was a place where I was free to be myself. Sephora welcomed me with open arms and it’s why I work at this company.

‘During these classes, I hope to teach clients tricks that I use myself to soften up features and achieve certain looks.

‘I want to instill confidence in my clients so that when they walk out of Sephora, they feel comfortable letting the world know who they are.’

The classes will run for 90 minutes and will create unique skin care plans and product recommendations for each person. During the classes, advisors will teach people make-up application and foundation matching.

People of all gender expressions, friends, families, and allies are welcome to attend.

Free make-up workshops.

‘We stand with all members of the LGBTQA community and are committed to providing these individuals with the tools they want to feel confident and beautiful every single day,’ Corrie Conrad, the Head of Social Impact and Sustainability for Sephora told Hello Giggles.

‘At Sephora, we believe beauty is yours to define, and ours to celebrate. We are honored to be a beacon of support and part of each beauty journey through our new class offering.’

The free classes will run at certain stores across the United States."

Off to See the Wizard

Or...at least off to attend another Veteran's Administration transgender support group meeting.

It will be interesting in a sense if I can relay what I learned at the Trans Ohio Symposium. Including feminizing vocal sessions and free wigs and breast forms. As I wrote before, with the increasing numbers of woman vets the VA is seeing now, wigs and breast forms aren't so surprising.

Hopefully, the meeting will be attended too by the person who always complains about the VA not doing more for it's transgender veterans. Basically, you can get help with HRT and not much else, such as surgery. I can hear her now...she doesn't need breast forms, has already bought a wig, so where are the make-up classes???

Regardless, I think I am going to wear my tight jean style leggings along with one of my new lightweight gauzy tops for the trip.

Plus, in case you are curious, the car is back and no (Connie) it isn't old enough to have the the side "wing" windows. It's a warm day though, time for the "270" air conditioning.   Roll down two windows and drive 70 miles per hour. I may have to wear my hair pulled back today!

Monday, Monday

Here it is, another brand new week and again I am starting it with no car. I think I told you Saturday, when I went to pick it up, the shop said it was fixed but they were kidding. Hopefully, it will get done today.

Sunday turned out to have it's interesting ups and downs. We ended up having our monthly Witches Ball meeting at a large well known fast food place since the park we go to was closed for construction. After Liz and I ordered, the cashier said "thanks ladies." which was nice.

Not to be out done though was this red neck jerk at the grocery store who couldn't/wouldn't stop staring at us. For once, I was in my little world (it's nice there) and missed it. He could have been staring too, because Liz and I were holding hands and he could have been homophobic not transphobic. Not that one is better than the other.

Other than those two incidences, the day was very mediocre and summer like. I was able to wear my new gauzy two layered top which I dearly love!

Maybe I can sneak in another wear tomorrow when I go to another of my support meetings at the VA.

Breaking Necks?

I know in the public's eye, at the least I am a big woman. Transgender, cis, or whatever.

Plus I know I have privilege in the fact I am white and live in a fairly liberal part of Ohio. Also, my partner happens to be a cis woman and like it or not, she provides a sense of security. Every once in a while though, I do journey out of my comfort zone and check out reality.

Mine came this Saturday at Liz's karate tournament. The event is held in a Northern Kentucky middle school and approximately 500 people attend...including many kids. To put  it in perspective for you,  the school and the territory we were in was getting into the heavy red necked area of Kentucky. Out of the area just south of Cincinnati across the Ohio River is fairly liberal.

Once we got into te venue, my goal was to find a seat and try to make myself as small as possible. Initially I did fairly well. I was able to move about the venue with very little notice from the other participants. Not many people were turning to stare so fast I thought they were going to break their necks. My confidence was growing.

As we were leaving though, I experienced a dose of reality from ignorant bigots on their way into the venue.

A group of four cigarette puffing Kentucky rednecks walked right towards me. I had no where to go as they about stopped to snicker and stare.

I suppose the silver lining was I needed the reality of how the world can really be.  And, how fortunate I have it.

That Pesky Sunday

Before I know it, it's Sunday and another week has come...and gone.

It was very much an active week, as you may recall. It started Monday with a visit to one of my cross dresser - transgender support group's "beauty" meeting. It included visits from a skin, hair and make-up experts.  I especially liked the hair and make-up ladies. In fact. I have found the salon where the hair person works, so I can schedule and appointment. Plus, I am working to to get an individual appointment with the make-up person. I especially like her because she does not try to sell you anything, only recommends.

Monday was also travel day, when I went to my two therapists at the VA in Dayton. Ohio...a total mileage trip of approximately 250 miles. It turned out, all I really did with both appointments was answer a ton of questions about myself for a new VA computer program.  It will be interesting to see if I ever get any feedback in the future.

One day on the blog, we found ourselves in a mini alphabet quandary over the LGBTQ mythical umbrella and it's relation to cross dressers.  You can find it here.

The rest of the week was quiet in part because of not having a car to drive. Until Saturday, which was a whole other case.

Which I will discuss in a future post.

A First in Guam

From the Kuam News:

"Lasia Casil is ready to run. As Guam's first transgender candidate for public office, Lasia says she knows that the road to where she stands now hasn't always been easy to travel on.

 “I was met with discrimination, bullying, violence – for the person that I am, for identifying as transgender,” Casil said.

Casil says she has gotten used to dealing with it, but she's concerned that Guam's youth are more vulnerable – especially since many of them feel pressure to conform to society's so-called norms."

"If Casil has a familiar face, it's because she's made headlines for her work with Save Southern Guam – an environmental group calling for responsible development. She's also the founder of Guam Pride – an LGBTQ pride and rights group teaming up with GVB to tap into the region's billion-dollar LGBTQ tourism market.

As a Democrat, Casil hopes her platform of progressive values will help the party retain the Legislative majority.

“People want a change,” Casil said. “A real change. I'm here to work for the people, with the people. I've already been doing it – I've been very active in advocating for land rights, for LGBT rights and equality.”

“I advocate for women's rights, the #metoo movement – all these people, they're our resources here on our island – and they need to be protected."

For more, go here.

Wiggy?

Of course, the best way to ruin the wonderful outfit and make-up look you have carefully crafted, is by having a less than attractive wig.  Back in my wig days, I am sure I tried all the wrong wigs before I settled on a couple I wore quite a bit. The one I wore most was a long straight blond wig, which I actually have a couple pictures of to pass along.  (Circa early 2000's))

I am far from the expert to ask but I know I always washed my wigs in baby shampoo and was careful to make sure the caps were dry and they were properly brushed out before I wore them again.

Another friend who knows much more about wigs than I wrote in to pass along her ideas:

FABULOUSCONNIEDEEMay 16, 2018 at 1:17 PM

I might add that, as far as wigs are concerned, a good, moderately-priced wig will last just as long as an expensive one if it is properly maintained. All synthetic wigs will wear out and start to frizz at the tips after some time. Just as the fibers in clothing break down, wig fibers will, too. Imagine how long a T shirt might last, if worn every day (I hope you'd have to only imagine that). A cheap one from Old Navy might not hold up well to the everyday wear and the washings it would require. A good shirt will fair much better, but not any better than a designer T shirt.

I have a wig on my head about twenty hours of every day. I usually wear a worn-out one to sleep in, as I am too vain to be seen with my naturally bald head. I am fairly active during the day, so I literally glue my wig to my bald head. I started doing that after an incident where a low tree branch grabbed the hair off my head while I was getting out of the car in front of a busy Starbucks. The glue residue takes about a week off of the life expectancy of my wigs, but it's a small price to pay for the security. Normally, a wig will last six weeks for me before it starts to frizz and lose it's soft texture. Of course, I would recommend having two of the same style, and to rotate them between washings. When I can afford to do so, I keep a third wig to wear for special occasions, and then put it into the daily rotation after about 10 wearings. I usually wash mine every 5-7 days of wear. Putting product into a wig will make it dirty faster, and perspiration is a texture killer.

The wig style I am wearing these days is $60.00 when on sale. Ten dollars a week is a bargain when compared to keeping ones real hair colored, cut and styled. I'd gladly pay more to have my own real hair, but it was not my fate (damn testosterone poisoning).

BTW, use Woolite to wash your wigs. It's much cheaper than wig shampoo.

Thanks Connie and if anyone else would like to share their wig story, please make sure you send it in!

I might mention I finally found the salon location of the woman I want to cut my hair and she donates twenty percent back to a prominent transgender organization here in Cincinnati.  Now I have to get up the courage to go and do it. Back in my wig days, I also lost my wig to one of those pesky tree branches. Didn't do much for my confidence!

Damn! That's a Lot of LGBTQ!

I must admit, I saw another short post I wanted to comment on. It comes from Terri Lee Ryan (Shades of Gender) on cross dressers and their chances of being added to the "Q" of LGBTQ.  "Q" by the way, stands for "questioning."

I for one, think cross dressers should include themselves within the "Q." Why not? I agree with Terri Lee, there have to be more cross dressers out there struggling with their gender identity than trans people.

After all, unless your crystal ball is better than mine, it doesn't stay real clear  Who can really tell what tomorrow is going to bring anyhow? Someday you may wake up and think it's time to fully transition into the transgender world.

Which leads me to one of my favorite soapbox speeches: we all should attempt to vote for pro transgender or LGBTQ candidates. Why? What if you decide years from now you are transgender and need better laws to protect your rights? Those pesky non discrimination laws could come in quite handy for you if your job is at stake! Or if you want to enlist in the military or even have health insurance.

For many, many years, I considered myself a cross dresser before the "Q" category was added to the LGBT. As I was searching as hard as I could for solutions to my gender issues. When I started "HRT", I finally thought I had joined the "T.s"

It's just too bad the "Q's" can't be more visible and no, I don't have anymore letters to add to this post!

Hair and Make-Up Visit?

Finishing off Monday's fun and games was the nightly meeting of  the cross dresser - transgender support group get together I go to. I made it fashionably late in time to hear a skin expert speak and later a hair person, followed by a make up expert.

I found I do about half of a required skin care regimen required to help my skin. I am always careful to cleanse at night and apply a moisturizer. As of yet, I have not yet delved into the scary/wonderful world of items such as serums.

In the "should have - could have" department, I should have taken less time watching the make up person perform her miracles on the two youngest attendee's and sat down with the hair person. In fact, she asked me why I didn't. The reason I didn't do it was, I was ashamed of the way my hair looked after a day in the car. I didn't even have a chance to brush it out. I was shocked when she asked me why I didn't do it!

As far as writing about hair or make-up, it was evident to me, both are too personalized to make many generalizations. An exemption was the ideas the hair person passed along about the care and maintenance of synthetic hair wigs. How often should you wash them, etc. Plus, how you should never try to color a synthetic wig or use any heat over 325 degrees (F) to style it. A washing regimen of course is based largely on how oily your original hair is and how long and often you wear the wig. So, even the care of wigs is highly personal.

As I understand it, both women are going to try and return for another meeting and perhaps even set up individual appointments. I already told the make-up person I would be interested and definitively the hair person too.

My statements to both will be, since I have been living in a feminine world for so long now, I need to learn how to do it easier and better.