First of all, I wanted to take this time to thank those of you who follows my blog. As you may or may not know, I'm not consumed with the number of people who actually "follow" me here on blogspot. I know there are some of you who are members of blogspot while some of you who follow me via facebook or per your bookmark. Whatever it may be, I am so appreciative that you spend your quality time with me and reading my thoughts I scribble here.
If you know me personally, you'll know that I love to talk. What can I say, I was born this way.. hehe. I guess it would make sense that I also love to write. One of my favorite things to do in college was to write essays. Yes, crazy I know, lol. I love to write because it's a form of expression for me. It's therapeutic and a great way for me to be in my very own zen mode... just me, my office, some soft music and my Macbook Pro.. What else can I ask for?
I'm so grateful for all the comments, emails and responses I get from those of you who follow me on facebook and here on my blog. I read every email and I will always reply to all of you (even if I'm a little late). I'm just so happy to have so many new and existing friends and family. I am no one important, just someone who happens to love life and loves meeting new people. I'm also known to many of my close friends as "Mamma Sheng", "LA Mamma" and most recently "Mimi Sheng" which I love to hear. I love all the compliments and positive comments I get on a daily basis. I am ever so humbled by every positive feedback I get because I am just... me....so thank you!
This giveaway is more geared toward HMF and your experience whether you were there or not. If you were there, you'll know that my Fashion Show was focused on specific themes and messages from each of the designers. If you weren't there, I will list them below. Let me know which one you can relate to and why? That's it.... Leave me a comment here and the drawing will be done from here.
I was going to do this giveaway during my "Styling Session" at HMF but since I had cancelled it, I'm doing it here. If you are not ready to open up, don't worry.. just read, observe and share your own story when you are ready. I will also start first with my own story..
Rules:
1. You must "like" my BFA page on facebook (www.facebook.com/shengmouabeautyforashes).
2. Comment below with an answer to this question: (If you are responding as "Anonymous" then you have to give me a name (doesn't have to be your real name, although I prefer that you do) so I can use it for the drawing).
Question: Which designer's message can you relate to and why?
Messages from the HMF Fashion Designers:
1. Fashion Designer 1: Sendy Lauj
Message: "Chasing Dreams"
** Never stop chasing your dreams
2. Fashion Designers 2: Collaboration segment with Tazme Moua, Pa Kou Xiong, Pang Sophie and Yer Vang
Message: "[Extra] Ordinary"
** We are perfect exactly the way we are but with an EXTRA touch of individuality
3. Fashion Designer 3: Amy Yang
Message: "I am hero"
** Celebrating our personal battles we overcome everyday
4. Fashion Designer 4: Stacey Lo
Message: "Embrace"
** Accepting ourselves for who we are meant to be
5. Fashion Designer 5: Aroosa Shaikh
Message: "I am free"
** Find yourself and be free
6. Fashion Designer 6: Song Vue
Message: "Truth"
** I am Hmong American and this is my Truth
7. Fashion Designer 7: Vam Moua
Message: "No Bullying"
** Don't judge a book by its cover. (NOTE: Hurt people hurt others)
**** Please do not feel obligated to respond if you are not ready to open up. My blog is an open forum for those who wants to share their stories and also for those who just wants to read and learn from other's stories. We can all learn and support one another and I hope my site is that safe haven for you as it is for me.
DEADLINE:
Thanks everyone and good luck. The giveaway will be open for a week starting tonight and by next Sunday, June 10th, I will do the drawing from random.org and post up the winner along with photos of the gift(s).
We are one another's soup for our souls.
The Designer message I relate to the most is Amy Yang: I am hero. I am celebrating my own battles I overcame for over 30 years now. I finally found myself and am slowing learning to love who I am meant to be. I am my own hero and I am worth it.
- BFA
*** NOTE: I still owe my first 5 blogspot followers a gift.. I didn't forget :)
I can relate to Amy Yang's message: I am hero. I often forget what a hero really is, we often think of super heroes like superman and spiderman. It may seem weird, but my son is my hero. His innocence, honesty, and vulnerability always remind me to be a better person. I constantly try to be a better person everyday because of him.
ReplyDeleteit didn't post correctly, it cut the end of my post out. :( But the ending was .....He is my hero, but I am also his hero, in return.
DeleteSteph, I love your message. I'm glad that your son is your hero because he should be. My little man is mine too and through him I can overcome my inner battles... so to us, We are hero!!! I love you!
DeleteI most relate to... 2. Fashion Designers 2: Collaboration segment with Tazme Moua, Pa Kou Xiong, Pang Sophie and Yer Vang Message: "[Extra] Ordinary" ** We are perfect exactly the way we are... I spent many years trying to be other peoples' perfect vision,but my husband taught me that i am perfect and lovable the way i am. Be who you are, your imperfections make you the perfect you. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Melanie, thank you for your story and your comment. You were always one of the most beautiful (inside and out) that I could remember from high school... but what made you stand out was that you were EXTRA-ordinary.. You always smiled and was very friendly with everyone. I always enjoyed being around you and I'm sure you're even more amazing today as a wife and mother... Good luck and thanks again!
DeleteHi Sheng! I wished I was there at the fashion show, it looked amazing from your photos.
ReplyDeleteSo, I can relate to the message of "chasing dreams." Growing up, my parents have their own expectations of me. My dad wanted me to go into computers and my mom wanted nursing. I didn't meet their expectations because I chose to choose my own path and what I want to do. Never stop chasing your dreams, even though I haven't found my path yet, I'm still chasing my dreams and not what my parents want of me.
I can relate to "chasing dreams." We aren't chasing the dreams that others have for us but our own dreams. My parents may have expectations, but they accept my choice of chasing my own dreams then the dreams they planned out for me. Although I haven't turned my dreams into reality, I am still chasing my dreams.
ReplyDeleteNano
Bravo Nano, I'm so proud of you... We have to chase our dreams otherwise we will be stuck doing what we hate... and life is too short not to love what you do on a daily basis.. Thanks for sharing your story and your comments. Good luck!!
DeleteAnother giveaway? Fun!!
ReplyDeleteI can relate to the message of "Chasing Dreams." Sheng, you've been with me for as long as I can remember and with me as I take all my big a small steps. You've been my support all along and if it wasn't for you routing for me (okay and BCIL too) I don't even know if I would be where I am today.
You continue to inspire me and by chasing your dreams you've shown me it's okay to step out of the norm.
Hi Mace, Yes, I was going to do this at HMF but since I wasn't able to, I'm sharing it here. Thank you for your kind words.. You are my heart and I will never let you go... I love you so much and am soo proud of you! Good luck and never stop chasing your dreams!
DeleteHi sheng i can relate to "find yourself and be free" because when i was younger being hmong american i was always in between. grew up with no hmong friends. Raised in moreno valley with other white people. it was hard finding myself and accepting who i am. Because when i meet hmong.people i wasnt accepted since i didnt use hmong as my first language. its hard but now i am feeling more comfortable and trying to be set free ;) love all tour inspirational desires of expressing myself -sarah yang
ReplyDeleteThank you Sarah, you are soo beautiful, always have been... You will always be my little baby Sarah with the cutest smile ever.
DeleteAw you are so sweet ;)
DeleteHey Sheng!
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I can enter this since I'm one of the designers LOL, but here's my two cents to those who wants to read it.
I can relate to my own theme, Avante Garde [EXTRA] Ordinary because I'm just not ordinary, I've never been ordinary or will ever ordinary. I have that bit of [EXTRA] in me with will always make me EXTRAORDINARY! I've never wanted to be that person "in the box" limited to what I can do with the boundaries that were drawn around me. I rather be that person looking in and being different. And I love myself being me. Being ordinary is too boring so why not be EXTRAORDINARY!!!! =D
Yes you can and I love your reply! You ARE Extra-Ordinary alright lady! :) Thank you for commenting!
DeleteIs my comments working? Lol
ReplyDeleteI can relate to Vam Moua "no bullying" don't judge a book by its cover. I simply think that everyone is unique and different in their own ways and we shouldn't judge anybody of how they look or dress. Growing up I wasn't always in style because it just wasn't my thing and didnt really caught up on styles but I do understand that I was looked upon on differently and didnt fit in. Of course I would feel awkward and all. So I try being in style. I think we shouldn't be treated because the person may be better on the inside than the outside.
ReplyDeleteHi Candi, Its so nice to meet you. Vam's storyline is so personal to me too. I've always been a short person and I love it but I didn't even know that I was short until the 6th grade when someone asked me "How does it feel being short?" and the first thing I thought was "What? I'm short?" - Isn't it crazy how society fills our head with what their ideal person should be? Peer Pressure is the name of my life... I'm the oldest and the pressure of just being that alone is hard enough but I also had the pressure of not being a boy (Hmong Culture for you huh?) I was also bullied all my years for not being skinny enough, tall enough or pretty enough.... You know the part that hurt the most? Although I too dressed different and was also labeled by my own relatives as "the bad one" solely because I didn't want to look like anyone else, I eventually believed them. I guess when you hear so much, it somehow becomes your reality and you end up believing that maybe you are what everyone thinks you are... So I became my worst critic and I did not know who I was for the longest time. I ended up hating myself too... I still can't believe I did that to myself! But Candi, I later found out that I am created exactly the way I was supposed to be whether someone else likes me or not. The only person that mattered to me was my father, my creator and I know for a fact that he loves me because of John 3:16. It's a verse that only ties me to my heavenly father and the only person that matters to me... After I found him and understood his love, no other judgement was able to pierce through my shield of armor that god has given me. I slowly saw myself and wow, I am so beautiful. I never saw it before nor would I ever think of saying that I was beautiful.. but today I am free and I can say to you, the world that I truly am beautiful and I love myself more then anything. Only through that revelation Candi, can I also share that love with everyone else. So with this Candi, I thank you for your story and know that you are different because you were created differently. You don't fit in with everyone else because you weren't meant to fit in with everyone else. You have Style, because the word "Style" doesn't only relate to clothes but it relates to who you are and the style you carry with it... If you think of a slang then translate Style into "Swag" and honey, you've got Style, The Candi Style! Know that you are beautiful and always have been! God Bless and thanks again
DeleteHi Sheng,
ReplyDeleteThank you for allowing us this space to freely expression ourselves and our stories. I can honestly say that I can relate to all the themes, but one that stood out the most is Aroosa Shaikh "I am free." My mom once told my aunt that I am a person who is afraid to disappoint anyone. Now that I am reflecting back on her saying, I did often punished myself for not being that perfect person. All these years I've carried these disappointments as if they were boulders chained to me. But not anymore. I've made mistakes. I've done wrong. And I might do it again in the future, but that's because I am a human being. I may disappoint others, I may disappoint the ones I love, but mistakes are there for people to learn from. I've come to realize that will never be perfect so today I am freeing myself from those weights that have held me down. I will learn from them and let them go so I can go on to do better things. Today "I am FREE."
Hi Sheng,
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I just want to thank you for providing us this space to share our stories. I think it's a wonderful idea. To answer your question, I can honestly say that I can relate to all of the themes. However, one that stood out the most is Aroosa Shaikh's message: "I am free." I once overheard my mom telling my aunt that I am a person that is afraid to disappoint others. Now that I'm reflecting on that saying, I do often punish myself when I can't be that perfect person. I would carry these mistakes and disappointments like they were boulders chained to me. Sometimes, I would let them bring my self esteem so low to the point that I myself can't even accept myself for who I am. But today, I am letting them go. I've made mistakes, I've done wrong, and I probably will do it again in the future, but that's only because I am a human being. Mistakes are made to be learned from. Today I realized that I can't and will never be the perfect person. I'm letting go of these weights that have held me down for the longest time. Today "I am free."
-Susan Her
Hi Susan, thank you for opening up your heart. I hope a little piece of you was set free from just that burden alone. I know what you are talking about because I am the oldest in my family and there was a time where I felt I could never make a mistake because my parents would be so disappointed in me. When I found myself, I allowed myself to set me free from all pressure of life and I also allowed myself to make mistakes because they truly do mold us into who we are today or will be tomorrow. Humans make mistakes, but the best part of being human is being able to correct those mistakes, learn from it and become an even better person. God created us exactly the way we are supposed to be and in his eyes, we are perfect! There is no other way Susan but it took me a long time to finally except myself for who I am meant to be... I'm so proud that you were able to set yourself free because its such an invigorating feeling and I'm so glad you know that feeling! Thank you again for your story!
DeleteOh no! I entered twice. I wasn't sure if the first entry went through because I found myself at an error page so I re-did the entry just to be safe. =] Sorry about that. But thank you Sheng. Your words are truly words of wisdom.
DeleteThe Designer message I relate to the most is Sendy Lauj: Chasing Dream. I been wanted to become a fashion designer since I was little. I got married at the age of 16 due to having my baby girl, Evelyne. I graduated at a high school that I know nobody except for my husband. I got into Sac State but I got married in Modesto so my dad say that I shouldn't go and just stay in Modesto with my in law so I didn't go. I have to follow the hmong tradition that my in law still follow. My father in law want me to stop going to school. He said to my husband that I'm just a girl and if later I make more money than my husband then I'm gonna control him, which it is a lied to keep me from going to school. I sacrifice so much for school. We moved to Sacramento to stay with my parent when my daughter turn 2. My husband and I both attended Sacramento City College for two semesters until I got pregnant with my second daughter. We move out due to hmong tradition about the girl can't labor and still stay at her mom's house. We moved out and live on our own. I got very sick with my second pregnancy so I took the third semester off. Our cash-aid from welfare only paid off our rent and most of the time we have to borrowed my mom and older brother money to paid electricity bill and gas money . I really appreciated their help. Then in September 2011, my husband got tired of living like this so he took the job in Fresno. He stay with his sister and brother in law while me and my two kids moved back to Modesto. He come home every weekend but now we moved back in together to Fresno since April 18, 2012. Found out that Fresno City College don't have fashion so decided to do business major and minor in Fashion. Where ever I am, I'm still chasing my dream. Sorry had to write a whole long story. :D
ReplyDeleteMy legal name is Mai Xao Yang but my display name is Tiamee Yang from Facebook. :)
Hi Tiamee, thank you for your lovely story.. Its so hard to be a Hmong girl sometimes I know. I grew up with this as a label "You are just a girl" - and I lived for so long believing it. I love that you have such a passion for fashion. Remember that although a degree is great, if you are a great designer and can illustrate and make garment pieces, then you just need to do it on your own and have people wear it for you. All you need is one person to love it and spread the word. There are so many ways to go about Fashion Design and not worry too much about the education. I'm glad you are still in school and majoring a business and minoring in Fashion.. Bravo to you for chasing your dreams and still going through what you did. I'm so proud of you. I am a nyab too but I'm very fortunate that my inlaws don't pressure us to be who we are not.. but I know how it is to be with traditional inlaws.. I have alot of friends and even some of my relatives are like that... Just know that at the end of the day, its how your kids look at you and you do whatever you need to do to be their role model. I can see that you are already doing so... I have faith in you and I look forward to hearing from you again when you graduate! Thanks again for sharing Tiamee!
DeleteThank you. Sorry for the long boring story, lol.
DeleteAll this time I was looking for a like button on this page hahha lol. I have two... first is Chasing Dreams because I'm afraid to chase mine. Afraid that I might succeed and afraid that I might fail. And second, No Bullying. I can stand a lot of things, but I will not stand by to see people I know of love being bullied. When I was younger, my sisters and I were bullied. I like to believe it was where we lived, but I know it can happen anywhere; as we see too often. I now understand why I was never a person loved by the crowd. It is because I tend to stand up for those I feel were being push aside or bullied and that made me less popular. However, I am okay with that because in the end, I have gained their respect.
ReplyDeleteMy Lo aka Tina :)
Maixee
ReplyDeleteThe designer I could relate to was Stacey Lo. Her message is simple but impacting to the individual. I embrace everything in my life, whether it be good or bad. I learn from it. You will face many obstacles and choices. The best thing you can do is to accept it, learn, and then be able to teach that to others. I also have many interests in life. I especially have a hard time deciding what career to go into but I value my options and i embrace my interests and hopefully it'll one day lead me to a path of contentment.
Maixee
ReplyDeleteThe designer I could relate to was Stacey Lo. Her message is simple but impacting to the individual. I embrace everything in my life, whether it be good or bad. I learn from it. You will face many obstacles and choices. The best thing you can do is to accept it, learn, and then be able to teach that to others. I also have many interests in life. I especially have a hard time deciding what career to go into but I value my options and i embrace my interests and hopefully it'll one day lead me to a path of contentment.