everything changes

So I mentioned a few weeks back (back in December actually) that there would be a few changes in my life... and it's been quite a big one on my part. I'll start this story from the start.

So back in 2011, my best friends would be getting married and I was lucky enough to be a part of their bridal party. I was so excited about being part of my first wedding party & I was so wedding obsessed at the time, that I had opinions about everything and just wanted to help picking EVERYTHING. My friend Suzanne was so great for listening to my input all the time and she really wanted us, as bridesmaids, to have dresses that would suit all of our body types. I did my research and found us some beautiful convertible dresses that could be wrapped differently on each of us. This company, called Henkaa, seemed to have a great selection of colours and the prices were affordable for the amazing quality of the fabric. They were even one-size-fits-most, so we could all get the exact same dress & no alterations were needed. Bonus: they were made in Canada.








photos all by the amazing Tara McMullen

They looked great on the wedding day & we each had a cute LBD that we could wear differently afterwards. Now, in the process of getting these dresses, I had met the Henkaa CEO at The Clothing Show (that was the year that Samantha and I had set up a booth for L&B and shared with our friend, Flora & Fauna. We won for best booth!) and I had applied to work for them in their marketing department but I didn't receive any response, so whatevz.

Fast forward nearly two years... I was contacted by Henkaa with an opportunity to work as their Marketing Content and Community Developer. Within about 2 weeks, I was hired for a full time salary job, which is something I never expected to have.

Much to the chagrin of my parents, I was a Chemical Engineering university degree drop out who decided to pursue a life of sewing, fashion blogging and social media obsession. I'd been working at home and juggling part time retail work and 5 different freelance writing jobs... FINALLY, my strange and seemingly useless skill set positioned me perfectly for an awesome job.

Henkaa actually derives from the word "change" in Japanese, and the company focuses on creating products that are convertible so that every purchase is for an investment piece that grows with you through the different stages of your life. It's a great fit for me because the core values of the company centre around resourcefulness and creativity. That, and I'm totally a bride-to-be and these are awesome bridesmaids dresses.

So what do I do for Henkaa? The "Marketing Content" part basically means that I blog for them and write a bunch of words for the website and flyers and things. Cuz I'm really good at wordz. The "Community Developer" part means that I am their facebooker/instagrammer/tweeter, so you can always talk to me there (because I have to respond... it's my job now).

Now, what does this mean for Syl and Sam? I'm still here. I'm quite busy with my full time job and I'm very focused on the Community Development aspect at Henkaa, so I sometimes feel like the "cobbler's children go barefoot", where I'm focusing so much on my job that I've lost my devotion for this blog, but I'm trying to find a balance... without also neglecting time to spend with my Fiance. And what does it mean for Lipgloss and Black? Samantha has taken almost complete Creative Direction of the clothing and the production, so you're going to continue to see a lot of tight, printed, edgy stuff!

So that's where I'm at & that's why things are a bit slow here. But I promise to find balance. soon.