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NIKOL JOHNSON

Beauty Reinvented with Gray Hair

Hello Blog, It’s Me Nikol

November 14, 2019 ·

I realized on a recent flight this month that I have not been writing on this blog as much as I would like for 2019. This post will be a little catch-up and news on upcoming events. Most of the content I upload is here and here, but I view this blog as an outlet to interview other women that are breaking the beauty rules to encouraging you through your transitioning beauty.

Hello Blog, It's Me Nikol

To catch you up to speed on where I have been for the past six months, I have been in the studio filming and producing videos that feature makeup tutorials on women from fifties to eighty-four on my YouTube channel, which hit 80K subscribers. These videos have been such a rewarding series called #FierceAging. The series started as a four-part series but now has turned into a monthly feature. I have an inspiring project coming up that I will be announcing on my YouTube channel and Newsletter, so make sure you tune in and are signed up (find my sign up here).

If you have not joined my private Beauty Reinvented Facebook group, this is the perfect time to get inspiration and support from women all over the world. We are almost at seven thousand women sharing and helping each other through aging and gray hair. I am so proud of this little group, and I have been posting LIVE Q&A’s randomly to answer your questions in real-time.

If you love Fresh Beauty Studio Cosmetics/Nikol Cosmetics or are curious, get ready for Black Friday and Cyber Monday! New beauty products added every week. You don’t want to miss out on the specials that are coming up for the holiday season. Early access will be announced here, so make sure you are signed up.

I hope you ladies are doing well and are enjoying all the content that I am creating for you on all my platforms.

Hello Blog, It's Me Nikol

Posted by Nikol / Filed In: Lifestyle
Tagged: Anti Aging, Beauty Reinvented, bold beauty, boss babe, fierce beauty, Gray Hair Journey, Nikol Johnson, Over 40, over 40 style, White Hair, woman on top, Women Empowerment, women encouragement, women helping women, women power, Women who gray, Women with Gray hair

Silver Sister Spotlight with Hayley

May 18, 2018 ·

Silver Sister Spotlight with Shelly

I am very excited to feature Hayley another Silver Sister from Australia; I am obsessed with booking a flight to this gorgeous country in 2018. Hopefully, I can make that happen.

Silver Sister Spotlight with Hayley

Hayley is from the beautiful Gold Coast In Australia and has two gorgeous kids and happily married. When Hayley was younger, she worried about what others thought of her and suffered from body image issues, but after having a large cancerous tumor removed from her abdomen when she was twenty years old, it made her realize life is too short. Since then Hayley has tried hard to live in the present moment which is sometimes easier said than done. Hayley finds that Yoga helps her with living in the present and she makes practicing Yoga a priority.

Silver Sister Spotlight with Hayley

Before having her kids, Hayley worked as a makeup artist and still uses her make up skills by volunteering with The Look Good Feel Better program that teaches and helps women battling cancer to know how to apply makeup and work with their skin after chemotherapy and radiation. When Hayley is not working, she loves to study Italian, and she currently sings in an Italian choir for fun. Traveling and learning about different cultures is one of her passions.

A few years ago she came across pictures of young women with natural grey hair who looked amazing. She thought, what if Mother Nature got it right? What if my natural hair color suited me? So she stopped dying it and has never looked back.

Silver Sister Spotlight with Hayley

Q: When did you first start seeing gray hair? What were your initial thoughts?

I saw my first grey hair twenty years ago when I was sixteen! I wasn’t too fazed but a little surprised if anything thought it was funny. Being that young, there was never a feeling of “Oh no I’m getting older.”

Q: Being Australian do you feel Australian Society is more accepting of gray hair compared to America?

Australian culture is influenced by America, so I think the beauty ideals are similar. I have had overwhelmingly positive feedback and not one negative comment about my hair but Australians are pretty laid back, and if someone didn’t like it they’d never tell you to your face. I do feel like we see a shift here in what’s considered beautiful and diversity is genuinely embraced.

Q: How did you become a gray hair model with Silver Fox Management?

I read an article about Silver Fox Management and it caught my eye as my husband called me his Silver fox. I thought why not? I sent a photo in, and they replied. Silver Fox Management said they would love to sign me on. I’m also with Extra Edge talent, I’ve been doing some extra work with them they too are big fans of my hair, and it’s uniqueness. A casting director told me recently “Don’t ever color your hair; there’s no one else that looks like you!”

Q: You seem to be very passionate about supporting women, can you tell us how you share and encourage women to embrace their beauty?

I think a woman supporting other woman is powerful; we need to boost each other up. I also have a ten-year-old daughter; I want to be the best role model I can be for her. Embracing and accepting your true self and living an authentic life is a message I like to convey. It goes beyond hair and what we look like it’s celebrating our differences and experiences that make us unique. A few of my friends have recently stopped dying their hair, they don’t have grey hair yet, but they colored their hair because it’s just what they felt they had to do. I’m not against people wanting to dye their hair by any means but if women say to me that they are sick of going to the hairdresser every four weeks I encourage them to give it a go and see what happens. Nothing to lose!

Q: What has been the hardest transition personally for you going gray?

I had very long dark hair, so I chopped it off to above my shoulders. I didn’t feel like me without long hair, but It didn’t take long to grow back. At first, I was worried what people would think, but as I went along, I cared less and less. You have to rock the skunk look!

Silver Sister Spotlight with Hayley

Posted by Nikol / Filed In: Silver Sisters
Tagged: Anti Aging, Beauty Reinvented, bold beauty, boss babe, fierce beauty, Girl Power, Going Gray, Gray Hair Journey, gray hair model, how to get style, international women's day, Mature Fashion, Nikol Johnson, Over 40, Silver Hair, SIlver Linings, silver sister, Silver Sister Spotlight, White Hair, Women Empowerment, women power, Women who gray, Women with Gray hair

You Are Not Broken Just Bent

May 7, 2018 ·

You Are Not Broken Just Bent By On Air Beauty Specialist Nikol

One of the many reasons I love spinning is that my mind runs free. I can think clearly, and many blog posts were created right in the saddle mid-song. I am inspired by music and working on my body so much that I filmed a video on my Peloton Hack if you haven’t seen it check it out, I save you thousands of dollars with this hack, and you get a sexy summer body, you’re welcome.

You Are Not Broken Just Bent

Copyright: Rick Gomez Photography Top: Polo Ralph Lauren (similar here) Pants: Oscar de la Renta vintage (similar here, here and here) Shoes: Frontline 105 by Tamara Mellon

One of the songs on my ride today was by PINK called “Just Give Me a Reason”. I have heard this song a million times but never actually listened to the lyrics. Isn’t that so typical? I am listening to the song and most the time humming what I think are the words, and yet I am missing the entire meaning of the song. Pink sings about being not broken but bent, how incredibly beautiful is this statement?  I go around thinking I am broken because I haven’t been able to conceive, I go about figuring I am broken because I went gray early on in life. Thinking this way is incredibly harmful self-talk a topic I have been researching and found this book to be very helpful. It has shown me ways to understand why choosing healthy positive thoughts is crucial to balance and happiness.

As I was climbing my hills this morning I thought back to a show I saw on how they make steel drums. That captivating sound that only a steel drum can make doesn’t come easy, there are multiple steps from stretching to create enough space for the notes, pounding with a sledgehammer to create the concave shape (sounds painless lol), cutting, burning the list goes on. Without all these steps to refine the steel to make beautiful music, it would just be ordinary steel. I started to think that if I didn’t experience infertility, I wouldn’t have been stretched, refined, put under the fire to ignite my desire to help women with their journey, to get to know myself and what I was capable of doing. Going gray in my thirties was just a little bend in my steel, a refinement if you will.

Ladies, look at what you think are imperfections in your beauty, your life as just a little bend something that makes you different and unique. That is how we each enrich the lives of everyone that gets to know us. No two women will have the same bends in their steel; no two women will have gone through the same process of refinement. Honor that, own that and set yourself free. This summer every time you see or hear steel drums you will think of how one-of-a-kind, special and deserving you are to the world.

You Are Not Broken Just Bent

Posted by Nikol / Filed In: Beauty, Lifestyle
Tagged: Anti Aging, Beauty Reinvented, fierce beauty, girl boss, Girl Power, Going Gray, Gray Hair Journey, gray hair model, gray hair models, gray hair style, how to get style, Over 40, over 40 style, over 50 style, Silver Hair, Silver Sister Spotlight, White Hair, Women Empowerment, women encouragement, Women with Gray hair

Silver Sister Spotlight with Shelly

May 4, 2018 ·

Silver Sister Spotlight with Shelly

For Our Silver Sister Spotlight, this week is on ‘Dr. Shelly,’ a college professor who teaches undergraduate and graduate students in the fields of instructional design, adult learning, and instructional technology at a large Midwestern university in the U.S.  She is married to her high school sweetheart and best friend, whom she met when she was just 14. “We have two beautiful children that I adore with all my heart, both teenagers.” Her latest hobby is training her first-ever pup – a Goldendoodle named Ted – to become a therapy dog at the local Children’s Hospital. “Just looking at Teddie makes people chuckle; I hope he can bring joy to the children and momentarily allow them to escape their illnesses.”  She also enjoys just about anything outdoors, including her butterfly garden, snorkeling in tropical waters, yoga, hiking, boating, and relaxing at the family’s lakefront cottage.

Silver Sister Spotlight with Shelly

I was so taken back when I found Shelly on Instagram because her hair is so dramatic, fierce and tells a story. It takes a strong woman to bravely embrace her gray hair transition. Shelly reminds me of a mix between an extraordinary woman that was in my life when I was a child and Julia Roberts. When you look at Shelly’s gray hair journey documented on Instagram the beginning pictures have a lot of weight and uncertainty to them. As Shelly progresses, embraces and allows her hair to almost develop like a butterfly you can see the pure light that radiates within her. Bold, Fierce and Owning her beauty. Ladies, this too will happen to you. I am so happy that Shelly agreed to be featured on Beauty Reinvented, her hair has a story to tell, and we can learn so much from her journey.

Q: At what age did you start seeing gray hair and what made you decide to ditch the dye?

I saw my first gray hair when I was 18 years old. Without blinking an eye, I bought a hair dye kit, and that was the beginning of three decades of dying. At that young age, it was already programmed in me that gray hair was something to hide. We must change this mindset.  I found my daughter’s first silver hair last month.  I have encouraged her to think about not coloring her hair, should more silvers appear. Let’s encourage our beautiful daughters to love their whole selves to be confident in who they are, not in who society tells them they should be.

Silver Sister Spotlight with Shelly

Q: You have a very powerful transformation. How did you feel when you started seeing the white roots?

I was admittedly horrified. Society has deeply entrenched us to think that silver hair on women is unattractive, yet men are more distinguished with their gray hair. It is ingrained in women that gray hair is ‘old, ugly, shameful and that we should go to great lengths to hide it.’  I have made significant strides in my evolution of how I perceive hair color.  I now see the white, silver, brown and steely gray as unique and now that I am 11 months into my journey, see a complete picture of what the end will look like and I cannot wait! There is no one else in this world that has my unique blend of natural highlights and lowlights. I am 100% unique now! No more hiding, no more shame. It feels so good just to accept it and move on.

Q: Did you find that society was shocked by your decision to be authentic with your hair color?

I was really worked up about what people would think, but the truth is, people truly do not care about other people’s hair. Most ignore it. Some are confused. Some think it is intentionally dyed to look this way. One man said, “Wow, you must have paid a fortune for that hair color!” I have heard a couple of ignorant comments. But what I love most is when I catch another woman glancing at the new hair growing out of my head because when she smiles back at me, I am 100% certain I have encountered another Silver Sister in the making, and I hope I have given her pause to consider accepting her silvers.

Silver Sister Spotlight with Shelly

Q: What do people say to you about your hair?

I have had more compliments in the past year than I have ever had in my entire life put together! One woman chased me down in a furniture store to tell me how gorgeous she thought my hair was, and she ended it with “And I’m a hair stylist so I should know!” Random women and men have stopped me to tell me they like my hair. I stand out now. I am different than any other woman I know in my age bracket. I am a Silver Sister who has broken that bloody awful cycle of dying my hair and feeling the need to dye my hair every week because of the white halo that emerged about five days after every dye. What kind of quality of life is that? Every seven days I was embarrassed to go out because my roots were visible and it looked awful. I have had a humiliating year at times with a really awful demarcation line, but it was worth the trade because I am free now, and empowered. I am no longer held down. I have a greater quality of life, and I have so much more time to enjoy my life because I have broken this vicious dye cycle. I lived for the dye. It dictated my life. It was like a drug that I needed a hit off of to make me feel good. I am coming up on my “Silver Anniversary” – the one year mark of having a healthier body and mind since ditching the dye. I am so happy to be in this place.

Q: You have mentioned in your Instagram posts that your body became very ill from the toxic dye. Can you tell us what symptoms you had?

My body started to systemically reject hair dye in ways one would never directly correlate with hair dye; and now that I no longer dye, my symptoms have almost all disappeared. It started with digestive symptoms and food intolerances a few years ago and then moved to eczema of the eye.  Every time I colored my hair, my scalp burned for days. After my last professional salon dye 14 months ago, my scalp was so damaged that every time I brushed my hair, electrical shocks were sent to my eye.  Within 24 hours of my last home dye on May 6, 2017, my body went into anaphylactic shock, and for days I carried an Epi-pen with me, even slept with it, I was so fearful. I could not eat anything without my body reacting; my body was red, swollen and itchy; my scalp on fire; my heart raced for weeks every time I ingested any food or drink. I honestly thought that my hair was going to kill me. My body was outraged, and it finally drew the line in the sand. Enough was enough.  (And no thank you to all who have recommended the natural, organic hair dyes. I’m done!)

Our skin is our biggest organ, and when you make it absorb the toxic chemical frequently found in darker hair dyes, Paraphenylenediamine (PPD), it can have a dangerous impact. I fear the damage I have done to my body with dying my hair so regularly, and for so long, as it has been linked to cancer (American Cancer Society, 2018).  Educate yourselves before starting or continuing on this journey. There are options!

Silver Sister Spotlight with Shelly

Q: How have you dealt with the anxiety and self-doubt that gray hair brings?

I do believe that “gray anxiety” exists and it can be depressing, debilitating, and frightening for some.  We have started a gray revolution because we want to empower women to embrace who they are, to reform beauty standards, and to learn to accept and love themselves as they are.  I think many women mourn their youth so ditching the dye in a way, becomes symbolic of accepting we are growing older, that we are not immortal. And similar to mourning, I think there are stages we must work through on our journeys – shock, sadness, depression, and eventually, acceptance.

After recognizing that “shaming” my hair in front of my kids was only perpetuating societal views on going gray, I refrained from speaking negatively about my hair ever again.  I relied heavily on my biggest supporter, my husband, who tells me every day how beautiful he thinks I am. I decided to be openly gray this time and never used the temporary hair colors to diffuse the demarcation line; for me, it made going public even harder after hiding and then revealing the hair again.  I also found great strength in the Silver Sisters who are part of my Instagram family. They are the most evolved, loving, compassionate, and supportive women. They are a close-knit group; they accept you when you fail, shower you with love when you need it, inspire you with their confidence; and humble you with their honesty and vulnerability. Many of the Silver Sisters are professional models, who are showing the world it’s okay to age; it’s okay to be gray. Nikol, you are one of these women.  Thank you for your inspiration to the gray revolution and reinventing beauty!

For more inspiring pictures follow Dr. Shelley on Instagram @ Silvertransitions.Silver Sister Spotlight with Shelly

Posted by Nikol / Filed In: Silver Sisters
Tagged: Anti Aging, Beauty Reinvented, fierce beauty, girl boss, Girl Power, Going Gray, Gray Hair, Gray Hair Journey, gray hair model, gray hair style, Grey Hair, How to dress, how to get style, Nikol Johnson, Over 40, over 40 style, over 50 style, SIlver Linings, silver sister, Silver Sister Spotlight, White Hair, woman on top, Women Empowerment, women encouragement, women helping women, women power, Women who gray, Women with Gray hair

How To Get a Gray Attitude

April 25, 2018 ·

How To Get a Gray Attitude

Ladies I get it, going gray is not fun no matter what your age.  All the stereotypical statements go through your head that people say from “I am so old,” “Grandma Hair,” “Frumpy old lady.”  You name it you’re thinking it. So what are you to do? Default to what society says is beautiful and young? Allow your negative self-talk to keep you from being true to yourself? Or keep on dying your hair, so it looks entirely unnatural for your age? Maybe give up and add more toxins every two weeks so that you can feel accepted? I think NOT.

I know gray hair is not for everyone, but I don’t think I need to remind everyone that Beauty Reinvented is all about women that WANT to go gray.

How To Get a Gray Attitude

Photo Credit; Rick Gomez Photography

When you are feeling down, and very unattractive how do you pick yourself back up and get in the game? How do you feel confident when all your peers are sporting golden locks or rich chestnut hair? I have created a list for you ladies to print out and post to your mirror or somewhere you will see it on a daily basis. I am your biggest cheerleader because I felt everything you are feeling. I didn’t have a gray-haired role model that did videos or wrote a blog about it when I was first going through this crazy gray transition over two years ago.

When your gray hair journey gets hard, and you are at your last dark hair strand NOW that’s when you need to push for your gray and own it even more. You need to look at yourself in the mirror and tell yourself “This too shall pass.” Ladies, it’s a hair color that means nothing except for a bold, fierce and downright powerful attitude. If you dyed your hair pink, purple or green like a lot of women, not just teens are doing do you think anyone would care? So why do they care about gray? Think about that for a second.

Here is the plan, read this list below, print it out to give yourself the encouragement you need to get through each day. I promise you it gets more comfortable you have to commit and not look back.

How To Get a Gray Attitude

 

I designed a couple of hats like the one I am wearing in this photo that is available on my website. Perfect for the days where you are just like I can’t take it anymore. It’s a fashionable statement to help you through the growing out period. You have seen me wearing this hat a lot on my Instagram. I love how I make a statement without having to say a word.

How To Get a Gray Attitude

 

Posted by Nikol / Filed In: Beauty, Fashion
Tagged: Anti Aging, Beauty Reinvented, bold beauty, boss babe, fierce beauty, Girl Power, Going Gray, Gray Hair Journey, gray hair model, how to get style, international women's day, Nikol Johnson, Over 40, over 40 style, over 50 style, Silver Hair, SIlver Linings, silver sister, White Hair, woman on top, Women Empowerment, women encouragement, women helping women, women power, Women who gray, Women with Gray hair

Don’t Look Down

March 9, 2018 ·

Don't Look Down, Beauty Reinvented With Gray Hair By Nikol Johnson

I find it very curious that the more I encourage women to allow their beauty to be whatever that is, gray hair, wrinkles, a bold lip color I get passive aggressive comments, nasty comments or just ridiculous negative comments. This post on negativity is going to be my first and last post about this nonsense.

Don't Look Down, Beauty Reinvented With Gray Hair By Nikol Johnson

I cycle three to four times a week, and I am an animal in these classes. I have been cycling since 1996 yes, I know can you believe it? And I honestly am obsessed. It has always been a way for me to release stress, get mental clarity, think and come up with the best business ideas and blog posts. The music and beat just hits me in class in such a profound way that if I were listening to the same song driving, it wouldn’t have the same impact. In this mornings class, there was a song on that just ignited me to write this post.

I didn’t put a lot of thought into how women would react to my Beauty Reinvented website or message, but it seems that it does ruffle some wrinkles out there. Let’s be clear I am not driven by what others think because if I were, I would never have gone gray at forty. I am not here to please everyone, I am here to share my journey, to be bold and fearless in a world that dictates what beauty means, what beauty is and what beauty should be.

Don't Look Down, Beauty Reinvented With Gray Hair By Nikol Johnson

Going gray is like walking the line some days you are on point and don’t fall off and other days you can’t get your balance. It’s all about your mindset, and YES everyone can go gray, but if you don’t change your makeup, hairstyle or wardrobe than you are right, you can’t go gray.  Women write all over my videos saying how they can’t go gray or that gray doesn’t look good on them. I am not sure what that means. Would you decide to be blonde and not change up your style? Do you think you can just rock blonde hair and not change up your makeup? If you are looking to make a significant beauty change and feel that it’s easy and there is no effort required on your part well then I have nothing else to say.

Don't Look Down, Beauty Reinvented With Gray Hair By Nikol Johnson

Life challenges you in ways you never thought possible, and I am not just talking your beauty. Living and having it all together is hard ladies, we all are dealing with something so the next time you say you can’t do something, start complaining as I have been for the past week that has altered my flow take a step back and whip out that gratitude journal. Writing down what is going right in your life will change your vibe and energy. Focusing on what is happening right this second will give you a new perspective and a fresh outlook.

To all the women out there that are lashing out at my bold, fierce message take a look inside and figure out what is lacking in your life. Where is that energy coming from, how can you change? Be a light in this beauty darkness, self-acceptance, self-love journey. You are only bringing yourself down, making your vibe run low.

I only have time for like-minded women in my journey, and I thank all of you that have commented and been so supportive! You are my strength to keep going. I will NOT alter my message because it doesn’t sit right with whoever. I am here to be a bold, unapologetic force of beauty.

Take your focus from looking down and set your eyes on what’s right in front of you.

 

Don't Look Down, Beauty Reinvented With Gray Hair By Nikol Johnson

Posted by Nikol / Filed In: Beauty
Tagged: Beauty Reinvented, bold beauty, fierce beauty, Gray Hair, Gray Hair Journey, negative comments, Nikol Johnson, Silver Hair, White Hair

Welcome to Beauty Reinvented where FIERCE women are being empowered to embrace their beauty no matter what that means from Gray Hair, fine lines and wrinkles or just not looking like everyone else. My mission is to empower you to live your best life on your own terms. It's time ladies to Get This Beauty Started.

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