Lessons in Personal Style (ft. Kelly Augustine)

Summary

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Gettin’ Grown: "Lessons in Personal Style" (Feb 4, 2025)

Host: Jade & Kia (Loud Speakers Network)
Guest: Kelly Augustine

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Overview

In this lively and affirming episode, Jade and Kia invite trailblazing stylist and content creator Kelly Augustine to the kitchen table for a rich, honest conversation about finding and refining personal style—especially as Black women and plus-size consumers. The trio unpacks the reality of the fashion industry’s promise of inclusion, the journey towards radical self-acceptance, and practical advice for curating a wardrobe that empowers you. Along the way, expect laughter, solidarity, and timeless wisdom for grown folk trying to embrace style that’s personal, sustainable, and joyful.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Community Check-In & Collective Self-Care

• The opening (05:51 – 10:50) centers on mutual support and strategic community engagement in tough times.
• Jade emphasizes:
  • The need for Black women to return to safe spaces for intentional community building.
  • Developing resilience through strategic action, not just reaction.

  “We have to be intentional about preserving our emotional well being… not let it take us over. Because I mean, we not gonna make it that way.” (Jade, 09:31)

• Reference to Brittney Cooper’s idea: Information is not knowledge; knowledge is generated in community.

2. Setting Boundaries with the News & Self-Preservation

• (10:06 – 15:00) Kia openly discusses the ongoing fatigue from heavy news cycles, the emotional toll of advocacy, and the importance of unplugging for well-being.
• Encourages listeners to be strategic and avoid burnout:

  "Otherwise we gonna be out here sleeping on a park bench with an unopened can of beans." (Kia, 12:45)

• Self-care through gratitude and daily routines: Acknowledging it’s normal to struggle, especially with focus.

3. Intentional Living & 2025 "Bingo Card"

• (15:04 – 18:24) The hosts advocate making an intentional "bingo card" of experiences and goals for the year.
  • Prioritizing joy, rest, and authentic connections.

  “If not intentional about that, you just sort of doom and gloom and sad your way through the days. And that’s not...what God wants.” (Jade, 16:14)

4. Kitchen Table Talk: Welcoming Kelly Augustine

• (26:23 – 28:51) Jade introduces guest Kelly Augustine:
  • NYC-native, fashion and celebrity stylist, media personality, plus-size advocate, and community influencer.
  • Pushing for diversity and inclusion in fashion.

5. Kelly's Journey to Style & Purpose

• (28:51 – 35:39)
  • Kelly describes a path from business and architecture, to PR, to education, then falling into fashion blogging by need.
  • Authentic about not having formal fashion training; career evolved through sharing lived experiences as a plus-size consumer.

  “Fashion kind of happened for me. I did not…come out the womb…doing fashion. Like, I…it just kind of happened.” (Kelly, 28:41)

• Transition from "selling clothes" to wanting to create images and representation she needed growing up.

6. Body Positivity & The Evolution of Plus Fashion

• (36:44 – 39:43)
  • Reflects on the shift from limited, shapeless plus-size options to a body positive movement with real impact—driven largely by millennials leveraging visibility on the internet.

  “The image was not controlled anymore…Now I can see people every day that look like me.” (Kelly, 38:14)

7. The Pitfalls of "Inclusion" in Corporate Branding

• (41:47 – 49:45)
  • Open discussion on performative inclusion, empty promises, and exploitation in fashion, referencing Kelly's experience with Old Navy’s “inclusivity” campaign (42:04).

  “...over the next year those plus size was pulled from the store altogether. What was the point of wasting money?...For me, it felt gross. I felt very used in that situation.” (Kelly, 43:09)

• Importance of consumer choice, access, and being an informed, discerning supporter.

8. Access, Fast Fashion, and Shopping Ethics

• (49:50 – 55:01)
  • Nuanced take on why many still use fast fashion due to affordability and access—even if production is problematic.
  • Quality has sharply declined by design; intentional to drive consumption.

9. Cultivating Personal Style

• (60:48 – 65:43)
  • Tips for closet clean-outs; one-on-one wardrobe editing as a transformative exercise.

  “Watching people realize something…break a system right there…is transformative. It changes how you dress, spend money, value clothing and material possession in general.” (Kelly, 62:01)

  • Building a wardrobe is a skill, not an instant gift. Personal style is wisdom acquired over time, informed by self-confidence and life experience.

10. Practical Style Wisdom

• Personal Style Q&A:
  • Developing style: Start by identifying what you feel best in, recognizing power colors, and what you reach for when needing confidence.
  • Trends: Don’t feel pressured to follow every trend—know what works for your shape, your comfort, and your life.
  • Wardrobe staples: Focus on quality over quantity; "older people are the prime example of keeping pieces, not just outfits" (Kelly, 72:22).
  • Tailoring: Room for tailoring; find local tailors to make affordable adjustments for perfect fit.

Notable Quote on Body Acceptance:

“I'm gonna love and dress the body that I have. Like, I love it because I feel like for so long, I've been wanting to change my body to make it look like something else so that it will look like this in certain clothes. And it's like, I don't have time for all that now.” (Jade, 75:58)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On resisting capitalist burnout:

  “We live in an information rich society but a lot of us are knowledge poor. So now it’s time for us to get our weight up...so that we know how to negotiate these times.”
  — Jade (08:47)

• On work–life winds:

  “I thought I was gonna be a backup dancer when I was little… or a video girl. I was gonna be in the club with it.”
  — Kia & Kelly, tongue-in-cheek (29:36)

• On fast fashion and access:

  “If you want to get the stretchy jeans that will disintegrate after three washes, do that. And, like, don’t feel bad about it… I shop at Fashion Nova, and I don’t feel bad about that.”
  — Kelly (50:48)

• On over-consuming:

  “Why do I have 25 hats? I don’t wear a hat every day. I don’t have 25 heads.”
  — Jade (55:59)

• Closet clean-outs as revelation:

  “It really makes me emotional…watching people realize something…because it not only changes how you dress, but it changes how you spend money, how you value clothing and just, like, material possession in general.”
  — Kelly (62:09)

• Classic pieces for every wardrobe:

  “A leather jacket, denim jacket, white button-down shirt…a good blazer…a turtleneck.”
  — Kelly’s top five timeless staples (86:21)

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Key Timestamps

• 05:51 – The importance of community and strategic engagement
• 10:06 – News fatigue and self-preservation
• 15:04 – Building a “2025 bingo card” for intentional joy
• 26:23 – Introduction of Kelly Augustine
• 28:51 – Kelly’s journey into fashion
• 36:44 – The evolution of plus-size and the body positive movement
• 41:47 – The reality of “inclusion” and being used by corporate campaigns
• 49:50 – Ethics and practicality of fast fashion
• 60:48 – Finding your personal style and wardrobe wisdom
• 86:21 – Kelly’s top 5 timeless closet staples

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Top 5 Timeless Closet Staples (Kelly Augustine, 86:21)

1. Leather jacket (moto or otherwise)
2. Denim jacket
3. White button-down shirt
4. Good blazer (preferably one that pinches in at the waist)
5. Turtleneck (navy/black, good fit)

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Final Takeaways

• Building personal style is a process and a practice: Focus on self-acceptance, comfort, and discovering what makes you feel powerful and at ease.
• Inclusion in fashion must be backed by real action, not empty promises: Be an informed consumer, advocate for genuinely inclusive brands, and remember access and affordability shape people’s choices.
• Declutter and tailor: Let go of pieces you don’t love, invest in quality, and don’t hesitate to get things altered for the perfect fit.
• Style is both personal and political: It can affirm your identity, resilience, and joy, especially as a Black woman—claim it on your terms.

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Connect with Kelly Augustine

• Instagram: @kellyaugustine
• YouTube: Kelly Augustine (search on YouTube)
• Website & Consults: kellyaugustine.com
  • Offers 15-minute free virtual style consultations, wardrobe audits, and event styling.

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“Prioritize your care, keep your mind and skin moisturized. Your Black will crack if it’s dry.”
— Jade (117:29)

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Transcript

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[Kelly Augustine]

All.

[Commercial Announcer]

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[Jade]

For a limited time at McDonald's, get a Big Mac Extra Value meal for $8. That means two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun and medium fries and a drink. We may need to change that jingle. Prices and participation may var.

[Kia]

Now. This mountain I must climb Feels like the world upon my shoulders through the clouds I see love shine it keeps me warm as life grows colder in my life it's been heartache and pain I don't know if I can face it again can't stop now I've traveled so far to change this lonely life.

[Kelly Augustine]

I wanna know what love is.

[Jade]

Watch.

[Kia]

I want you to show.

[Jade]

That's right. Take it away K. I want to be with.

[Kia]

I know you can show me Listen nurses off way that I really.

[Jade]

And I have the fun story so that I remember that music video because there was the New Jersey mass choir sung that song with. With that man. For whatever reason, my mom. My mom had had that album. And. And I remember. I remember seeing the video and recognizing the man, like, that's the man from New Jersey Mass.

[Kia]

You're like, I remember that.

[Jade]

And weirdly, Bobby. I love Bobby Bunny.

[Kia]

Oh my God so much.

[Jade]

Randomly.

[Kia]

I don't know how we were talking.

[Jade]

About it, but there was a New Jersey mass choir song called hold up the Light. Bobby used to sing that song. I think. I think that somebody used to. Maybe it was like high school or something. But he always used to sing the song. And he would like. It was. He would close his eyes and like, get lost. And I'd be like, bobby, go to church.

[Kia]

Hold up the lie.

[Jade]

Hold up.

[Kia]

Oh, not you. Not you. I didn't have. No, not mercious.

[Jade]

Oh, yeah. If I call Bobby right now and start singing that, he would really like I mean, launch into it in full chest voice.

[Kia]

Wait, here it goes.

[Jade]

Yes. Very.

[Kia]

Notice I don't like the top of a Luther song. 1987 Light Records.

[Jade]

I'm gonna just send it from the.

[Kia]

From the album New Jersey Mass Quiet. Let me go through.

[Jade]

Yes. Yeah, I'm going to find that song and I'm just gonna send it to Bobby on Apple Music.

[Kia]

It just.

[Jade]

I just can't wait for his response. But random.

[Kia]

Not Foreigner singing with the New Jersey.

[Jade]

They were in that video. I wanna know Love is.

[Kelly Augustine]

In my life.

[Jade]

I know I'm not crazy.

[Kia]

I. And I don't even know why that, you know, I'd be playing all kinds of stuff in my car. You don't want to know what's so crazy. My child. Like, I know we always talk about how I birthed me, but it really. It does not matter what I play. This joins in. You know, the other week I sang the Turtles. What did I sing? So Happy Together. It played in the car. This sings with it. And then. And then today, Skilo, I. So I told her, I said, I'm gonna play a playlist of all the songs that came out when I was in sixth grade. And. And then because you're in sixth grade and like, you know, just. I'd be trying to find our little moments or whatever. So I've been playing that playlist and Skilo comes on. I wish this starts singing the song. I was like, how do you know that I don't even play that in the house. Because your child played Foreigner. This start. I'm like, okay, this is a little. This is a little strange at this time. I think you were in my class. I think I went to school with my kid. I think you were my best friend. Oh, praise the Lord. We. Five minutes.

[Jade]

How is everyone doing?

[Kia]

Why don't you take. No, no, no. I want you to do the intro. I want you to take them into the test. Like the intro that has lived.

[Jade]

Welcome back.

[Kia]

Welcome, blacks. We're so glad to be here. We want to welcome you all to.

[Jade]

The kitchen table where we discuss the test, the trials, the twist, the turns, the temptations and the taxes of being a real live adult in the year of our Lord now 2025. Wow. When we started saying that, it was only 2017. Whoa.

[Kia]

Well, that is nutty boots.

[Jade]

But I hope you all are doing well, taking care of yourselves and one another.

[Kia]

I'm.

[Jade]

I'm so glad. I'm so grateful for this community tapping back into our community very heavily and intentionally and purposefully during the coming months. I welcome you all to, to join us in that endeavor because we have to come back to tables like this. Okay.

[Kia]

And we have to do it strategically. I know, I know, I know I sound like I'd be ready to burn the roof off this. Burn off the roof off this. I know I sound like that every week, and I do feel that way. But also in my big grownness, I know that we also have to do things strategically organized. We got to come together and actually plan. And so we want to focus on things that are productive, you know, because we can't. We can't, we can't.

[Kelly Augustine]

I mean.

[Jade]

Yeah. The truth of the matter is we're only five days into this. Well, one week, one full week. Jesus. Into this thing. And pretty crazy, right? Because it feels like we've lived 12 lives since the last time we were all together. But the truth is we have to pace ourselves. We have a long road before us, a long road ahead of us. And I think right now, what is the aim of the people that are in whoever, wherever they are? What they're trying to do is. What I'm trying to say is they want us to be overwhelmed and fatigued and stressed out and frantic and panicking because then we're not thinking logically. We're not utilizing sound judgment, wisdom, disciplined. We're not thinking critically. We're not. So we have to be intentional about preserving our emotional well being and our mental health and all of the things that keep us, us out here. And we have to come together and think collaboratively and strategically about what our next moves are because we cannot afford to fall apart every time another something rolls out. Yes. So. And I know it's hard, so what? To the extent that we can create space for us to process and react in real time, safe space for us to do that, that's what I hope that we can do. I want us to come together and, and Brittany Cooper, the brilliant Britney Cooper, friend to the show.

[Kia]

Oh, yes.

[Jade]

She, she said something so that this has been resonating in my spirit. She said something over the weekend on social media that's like, you know, we want to bear in mind. It's really something I've been trying to keep at the forefront of my mind. Right. We live in an information rich society. There's information all around us. But just because we have access to information doesn't mean that we have knowledge. Having information doesn't mean you have knowledge. Knowledge is generated in communities of learners. Knowledge is generated when we come together to process information and Draw conclusions and think about next steps when we have context and we can and call on people who have subject matter expertise and experience and we bring all of that together to think. That is where we sort of generate knowledge. We can be. We live in an information rich society but a lot of us are knowledge poor. So now it's time for us to get our weight up and understand what's happening and aim to understand what's happening to the best we can so that we know how to negotiate these times. So shout out to Brittany Cooper. Yeah. Encouraging us all to sort of keep our feet on the ground here, do all the things that we can to sort of keep our minds steady and focused so that we can engage what's going on around us and not let it take us over. Because I mean we not gonna make it that way.

[Kia]

Agreed. Hard, hard agree. And then actually in that, in that vein, there will not be any news this week because I've had to take a, a little bit of a respite in general just kind of pull away from news because it just be it I felt like I was in a what's the batting cage and it was just like coming, it was just coming non stop. Somebody turned the up to fast and it's already been that right. Even reporting this news every week I have to, I have to read through and consume that and break it down because I you know I'm reading so much of it so I'm like okay, what, what bullet points am I hitting like and so in the effort of, of just trying to take care of myself for the past week week and some change, I just have kind of logged off for a little bit. So there will not be news this week. That does not mean that I do not want to stay informed but I want to stay informed in a way that is going to be productive and healthy. And so and it's been a lot of news, you know for over a year at this point for actually you know, for my hit my hood geriatric. But, but the past year and a half with the genocide, the multiple genocides and becoming aware of all of the different aspects of those genocides has been informative but also extremely overwhelming and spirit breaking. And so I, I said you know, sometime mean I don't care about the causes or, or that I'm not going to stay informed but I do need to pull away for a couple of days just to recalibrate myself and so I hope that that is helpful and you all are doing the same and whatever you need to do I know we talked about it last week and I feel like this is going to be a repetitive message as things continue to crumble. But I don't want to be like Selena Gomez on the Internet balling my face out, you know. Oh, just bawling she's. And listen under. For, for reasons, for reasons that are valid for, for the deportations already starting and what's happening to, to the little Mexican babies and it. All those that are affected. Howsomever I don't want to hear y' all who have all lives mattered and, and you know, been silent about every. I just, I don't want to be up here on the Internet balling my face out on the Internet. Like, how are we going to do this in a productive way? I remember when I was watching that Killer Mike show some years ago and Killer Mike was like, I'm going to have a day where I only consume black owned items and I only stay at black owned hotels and I only do. And the sentiments were in the right place and I understand what the message was and why he did that. To show, you know, that there is more that we need within our community. But also from a capitalism aspect, I guess. But also that was. Ended up sleeping on a park bench with an unopened can of beans from a black owned farmer because he couldn't find a black owned can opener. There was no black owned hotel and so forth and so on. And yes, that there is a greater conversation to be had there, but also we have to be strategic. Otherwise are we going to be out here sleeping on a park bench with an unopened can of beans. So that's, that's the energy in the message that I keep reminding myself of and what I'm trying to take into this dumpster fire of a life. But anyway, I'm grateful to be here and how are you? How you doing?

[Jade]

You know, a marathon. But we're, we're making it through. I'm safe and I have what I need. I say that out loud and to myself as much as I can. And I am practicing gratitude and having my prayer time. Admittedly, I struggled a little bit this week with focus, like to the point. I feel like. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. What I'm saying in the beginning of the show is not me sort of preaching down from this, this, this place of just peace and, and control. That's not what I'm saying. I'm speaking to myself because this is, you know, these are the things that I'm trying to say aloud and Practice, cultivate, practice for. Because I think it's a natural response for us to be troubled by all of the trouble that is in.

[Kia]

Seize up your.

[Jade]

I mean.

[Kia]

Yeah.

[Jade]

And so, like, so I've been struggling to focus since all of this is happening. I'm trying to get back on track, get back to, you know, trying to move forward. I remember one of the things that maybe we could talk about this on the show coming up soon. I want to make a bingo card for 2025. I think I have allowed all of.

[Kia]

The.

[Jade]

Dark and depressing news in the news cycle for the whole month of January. Sort of knock me off my square in that I realized that I had not been thinking about this year from a place of like, well, what do I want to do? Where do I want to go? And it's not like I'm not just checking off sort of like, you know, professional goals or things that I want to accomplish, but what are the things that I want to make sure that I'm doing? Like, I want to see. I want to have in person time with my friends once a quarter. I want to plan a vacation. Yeah. I want to. You know, there are things that I feel like we should mix.

[Kia]

Let me put that.

[Jade]

Let me make.

[Kia]

Let me write that down.

[Jade]

We need to make a 2025 bingo card. What are the things that I would like to see? See places I would like to go? I still want to go to Greece. I want to do. You know, there's things I want to do, moments I'd like to have, experiences, like I said I'm gonna do. I've been doing those dates with myself, those things, like, you know, what are the things that I want to do? You know, goals I want to accomplish, but also, like, experiences that I want to be intentional about having this year. And so I'm trying to sort of get back into that space, because if you don't. If you're not. If not intentional about that, you just sort of doom and gloom and sad your way through the days. And that's not. That's heavy and hard, and I don't think that's what God wants for any of us. So I'm actively working myself out of that.

[Kia]

Yes, in. In the words of xd.

[Jade]

Oh, yes.

[Kia]

In the words of xd, slaves had.

[Jade]

They did.

[Kia]

And so, you know, we had that. I carry that with me all the time. Honestly, like, he's not wrong. Our enslaved ancestors still, they big pots of okra and danced, you know, when they could. And so you had to. They was, you Know what I'm saying? So, like, we have to. Like, I have to pull that as well, you know, into my own. Like, these are how my prayers. I was like, I know you all. Like, you all went through hard, and I was like. But y' all really, like, you really lived through it. You know what I mean? Was happening. Lyndon Johnson was in office eating cottage cheese and ketchup, and you all. You all can look that up. He actually was. And. And, you know, there's so many things that were happening, awful things through so many decades, and yet there's always. There are. There are clear examples of not just our heartache and pain, but also our resilience and our joy and, you know, taking those moments where we can. And so, yes, I think the 2025 bingo card is actually a wonderful episode that's coming up.

[Jade]

Yeah, that's good.

[Kia]

Thank you, sis. Like, these are. These are conversations we're gonna have to continue to have, and we're gonna have to continue to have strategic conversations with one another. So, you know, we can't just be mouthpieces. We got to figure out what we're gonna put behind that and how we're going to organize that as a community. Remember, the operative word for the year in our lives, honestly, is and should be absolutely community. I have a little story to tell you all before we get into our kitchen table. I think I. I think I told you all.

[Jade]

I think I did. I don't know if you told everyone, maybe.

[Kia]

Okay, well, we have a guest, and I would just like to say that I ran into this guest last year at a backyard bashment. Not really. It was a patio off. Shout out to you, Rondo. But I. I ran in, like, I went over a friend's house, dropped by. You know, I can say it because she's been public with it. I was at Antoinette's new house. No, I love him. I love him. We stopped by there. Yeah. Hello and love you both. And I was in his backyard, met this person. And so she and I are. I mean, we are chatting it off. We are cheating and chatting. Hit it. Hit it off immediately. And even though it was a backyard full of people, I'm. You know, that we just kind of locked in and honed in, and I don't even know how the conversation came up, because I don't. I was like, yeah, because this girl, Kelly Augustine, and she was like, I'm Kelly Augustine. I mean, and I looked at her, and I was like, what? For real?

[Jade]

Were you telling her? Like, I don't remember Were you telling her about like, I don't even remember how it came up. I think you were telling her that you had a podcast and you. We were going to have conversations.

[Kia]

Oh yeah, Rondell. Yeah, I think we were. I was like, we're looking for somebody. I was like, I want this girl Augustine to come on the show. And she was like, that would be me.

[Jade]

Hello. No you're not to meet you.

[Kia]

And then the next day came across this. I'll read this to you all before we get into it. I came across this post and I had to send it to her, so. Oh wait, where's my messages? Oh, here.

[Jade]

Okay.

[Kia]

Yes. Cuz you know how I am. Is that okay off the screen? Okay, wait.

[Jade]

Ah.

[Kia]

Okay, here it goes. So I found this post and it said once I told a man he looked like Jeff Goldblum and he was like, who's that? So I pulled up a pick and he said, oh my, what a compliment. He's very handsome. Then as he was walking away, my friend walked up to me and was like, I'm pretty sure the guy you were talking to is Somebody responded to that and said. Someone once introduced Jeff Goldblum to me at a party by saying, this is Chris Kelly. And he exclaimed, my God, of course. I couldn't believe it. He knew who I was. Then he proceeded to say my God, of course to every person he was introduced to. I love Jeff Goldblum, but I had to send that to her and we had a good crack up but cozy stage. Rub the log Is Kelly Augusty to sit with us at the kitchen table and talk about yes and all things in between DEI and all the things. So come.

[Jade]

Of course it's going to be a great time. Please join.

[Kia]

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[Jade]

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[Kia]

Yeah, I'll let you get back to your food.

[Jade]

So are you just gonna watch me eat? Get more than just savings.

[Kia]

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[Jade]

Welcome back, everyone. I know we say this every time, but we are genuinely excited every time because listen, the kitchen table is a place that Jade and I take very seriously. So we don't just be allowing people to come in and sit down at our kitchen table unless they are welcome. And we are excited to share with them. And today is no exception. So we're gonna talk today with the brilliant and the beautiful Kelly Augustine. If you do not know, Kelly Augustine is a fashion and celebrity star, stylist, content creator, media personality, and lifestyle expert. She's a native of New York City and a strong advocate for diversity. She's actively pushed for inclusion within fashion and lifestyle spaces. And that is what we love about her and her work and the imprint that she's making in spaces that were not conventionally cut out for all of us. Right. But Kelly is helping us see and celebrate ourselves in every possible way. And she's here to hang out with us for a little while. So everybody welcome Kelly to the kitchen table.

[Kia]

Hey, Kelly Benveno.

[Kelly Augustine]

Thank you for having me. That was such a nice intro. Thank you.

[Jade]

Thank you.

[Kia]

I mean, it's you, is it not you?

[Jade]

We are only. We are only stating the facts and the reality about who you are and how you got here. So for those of our audience who are not yet familiar with you and your work, tell us a little bit about yourself. I mean, above what I just shared, like, let us know who Kelly is.

[Kelly Augustine]

This question is always so hard for me, but I mean, essentially in any.

[Jade]

Way, don't feel pressured to answer. Just professionally, like, you can just say, I am my mother's daughter. Like, you can say I am.

[Kelly Augustine]

I am 1,000%. But, you know, I mean, I'm just mad. I feel like I'm very regular and I, like, I don't know if I should be saying it out loud, but, like, I just feel like I am me. I'm here, I'm doing my job. You know what I mean? I'm from New York, I live in Brooklyn. Like, I don't know what else to say. I do like to say, like, I. Fashion kind of happened for me. I did not. This was not like, oh, my God, I came out the womb like, you know, doing fashion. Like, I. It just kind of happened. And I get questions all the time about, like, how did you get here and what. And I'm like, I just work.

[Kia]

Listen, that's honest.

[Jade]

I work hard.

[Kelly Augustine]

Work.

[Jade]

Yeah, we love it, we love it. That's.

[Kelly Augustine]

I need to find hobbies for you.

[Jade]

Work your work. We know your work. You've worked with a lot of our faves, everyone from Gabby Sidibe to Danielle Brooks, Robin Lawley. I've also saw Samara Joy, the brilliance. Yes, yes. And so, I mean, we love that though. We talk about all the time how a lot of us, some we were, we were sold a bill of goods as children, thinking, oh, you're gonna know exactly who you wanna be in this world at whatever age. But the truth is, we all just. Just figuring it out. So thank you for being transparent about that.

[Kia]

Absolutely. I think that's. I thought I was gonna be a backup dancer when I was little. That's what I wanted to do.

[Kelly Augustine]

So. And I don't know if it's like a 90s 2000s thing, but I thought I was going to be a video girl for a second.

[Jade]

I was like, we were all flying up. We were like, I'm a be in.

[Kelly Augustine]

The back of the video with my champagne. Like, you know, like, I was going to be in the club with it.

[Jade]

Yes.

[Kelly Augustine]

Just. That was my destiny. 4,000 people, like, 80 years ago.

[Jade]

We grew up in the era the video Vixen. We did models. Yeah.

[Kia]

I remember I walked past Buffy the Body one day, and I was like, she was very tiny, very small. Expecting a very small lady.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah.

[Kia]

But I was like, it's true. It's all true. And I could do this if I really. Yeah, I could do this.

[Jade]

I love it.

[Kia]

Alas, that was not our journey. There was none of our. Nobody on this show right now.

[Jade]

But.

[Kia]

Okay, I know. So you said, you know, because some people do. They're like, I came out the womb singing and, you know, jazz hands. And I was a theater kid from gestation. But you have already stated this was not, like, foreseen earlier on. So talk to us about your journey and how you got to this iteration of Kelly.

[Kelly Augustine]

You know, I was always, like, kind of a creative kid, but my mother was very business driven. And so, like, when I was in school, my mother was like, you're going to business school. You're going to get your mba. You know what I mean? And that was kind of the path that I was set on. Somewhere along the line, I just was like, I don't want to do that. I actually took up architecture in high school. Really loved that. And I thought that I was going to be an architect for a second, but I'm really bad at math, and so that didn't work out.

[Kia]

You need that.

[Kelly Augustine]

You need that, right?

[Jade]

I was like, just a little bit.

[Kelly Augustine]

I'm going to build a bridge and it's going to fall apart. I don't know. So I left that alone. And then I went to school for hotel management for a second. Okay. I really love that, actually. And that's part of, like, the lifestyle. I kind of, throughout school, picked up all the things that I'm using now. Absolutely.

[Jade]

Say that again. Yes, I did host for a second.

[Kelly Augustine]

Nothing is wasted. I did actually do business school, but I got too many. I was too alternative for them. I don't know. So I stopped doing that, and I ended up back home at City College. I did public relations and advertising. Ended up finishing with a degree in that. And I thought that I was gonna work in journalism at the time. Like, it was brown sugar. I was like, I'm gonna be Sydney Shaw. I'm gonna be Khadijah James. Like, I was so convinced. Like, I'm gonna be a magazine editor, maybe editor in chief, like, this is it. So I actually. I minored in journalism and then ended up working in that field for a little bit. I did music pr. I did food pr. Like, I worked in PR for a Little bit. And then I hated was so toxic. Music PR in general felt kind of dangerous for me. Like, hello, Being around. I can't. You know, obviously we won't say names, but like, being around, listen rappers all the time, I was like, ooh, I.

[Jade]

Sister.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah, okay, sister. So we moved off from that and I actually went to work in education.

[Kia]

Fuck you, Memphis. I'm sorry. I could resist.

[Jade]

Safety issue. It's a safety issue.

[Kia]

It really was a safety.

[Kelly Augustine]

I was just like, it was too much.

[Jade]

I feel you. Yeah, that's fine.

[Kelly Augustine]

I felt that. Okay. Went to work in education. And while I was in college, I started a blog. And then it picked up steam. And while I was working in education. Yeah, while I was working in education, it just picked up. I ended up getting plucked from my education job by a fashion company. I thought I was going in to like, meet people. I ended up being a job interview and they gave me the job on the spot. And then I just. It just went from there.

[Jade]

Come on.

[Kelly Augustine]

So I have no formal training in fashion whatsoever. I just started writing about fashion as a need, as a plus size person. Like, as I was shopping and I was posting, people wanted more information. And at the time, like, that industry was really building up. You know, you had. It was just explosive. Kind of like Ashley Graham and all of this. And a body positive movement. We were all a part of that. So I was like, really, really a part of that. And then the pandemic happened. At that point, I had been working in like the body positive space for.

[Jade]

About.

[Kelly Augustine]

I want to say, 10 years by mistake. It just was happening. And then one day I looked up during the pandemic and I was like, you know, I don't really want to be selling people, like telling people at the time, click on a link. I didn't want to have people clicking on links for the rest of my life. So I'm like, what is my legacy going to be? What else can I do? Like, it just really came to me. Like I wanted to produce images and be a part of a world that I needed to see as a child.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

And it was really important to me, especially because, you know, we're all on the Internet. I'm watching people and I'm like, ah. I just wish she had worn something different, you know.

[Kia]

Why don't somebody tuck that nip? Very real.

[Kelly Augustine]

And so that's. I just woke up one day, I was like, I think I want to be a stylist.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

And I had been working in the space, so it just kind of Made sense organically. And it just took off. It took off. And I've been doing this since 2020.

[Kia]

Wow.

[Jade]

That is such a beautiful story. And just sort of like, the natural progress. No, it's a natural progression of just sort of, like, how things work out. But the key and a lot of it's like, what I hear is purpose and sort of you finding it in terms of, like, what you're passionate about. All of us are passionate about an issue, a problem, something we want to provide a solution for. And like you said, so many of us were socialized in a world that did not look like us and felt like we had to opt out of certain things. Fashion being sort of front and center of that. If you had any sort of natural curve into your body. Hello.

[Kelly Augustine]

And it's crazy because as I think about it, I'm like, you know, it was never on my radar because I just didn't see it. Like, I hadn't even thought about being a stylist because I didn't even see anyone that looked like me doing it. Anyone serving my community. Like, I just didn't see it. So I wasn't even thinking about it until I was in it. And I'm like, oh, okay. Yeah.

[Kia]

Even the girls that they called curvy, you know, that we saw.

[Kelly Augustine]

Don't get me started.

[Kia]

We're not. We're not curvy. You know what I mean?

[Jade]

So come on here with it.

[Kelly Augustine]

Now.

[Jade]

Listen, because I recently just over the holidays, went back to that.

[Kia]

Can we talk about it? Can we talk about it?

[Jade]

That cycle? Because it's down to the Hulujah, and you can watch any season you'd like. And I watched that.

[Kia]

What was she attending?

[Jade]

I'm like, at best, Takara.

[Kelly Augustine]

Not even a time. She just busted.

[Jade]

She was an eight. She was busty. She had big titties. But, like, she had, like, at 8, at best. She was an 8.

[Kelly Augustine]

8.

[Jade]

Maybe a 12. When you considered, like, you know, fuller, whatever. But child, it was nothing. Plus, about the size.

[Kia]

Yeah, no, it wasn't. Compared to the other waif ladies, you know, no shade, I guess, whatever. But Takara was not. She. She was. She's just like, whatever you want to average. I don't know what the word is. But so in this body, positive movement, Kelly, that. Because we've all kind of seen it happen right before that, you know, all they thought that we could wear were Lane Bryant or Torrid, you know, or drapey things. And then I feel like it happened very quickly where there was a shift where, you know, curvy women and bigger women say, you know what? That I want to put my midriff out. Like, I'm gonna wear these hoochies. I'm gonna wear these. These poom poom kuchi cutters. Like, all of those things. And it feels like it was just kind of like a boom that happened overnight. Where do you think that came from?

[Kelly Augustine]

I think a lot of it had to do with millennials realizing that the way that we were raised was incorrect. And so a lot of us, it was also the Internet gave us the visibility that we didn't have before, where all we had were, like, Top Model and those kinds of shows. The Internet made the world significantly bigger. And it was like, okay, now I can see people every day that look like me, and it's not being controlled. Like, the image was not controlled anymore. So I think it was just, like, mind blowing for all of us at the same time. Like, wait, I don't have to dress like that, and I shouldn't be ashamed. And, okay, we don't have options. How do we make the options now that we all are feeling the same way? Like, how do we demand those options? And so we started boycotting Target and telling people that they need. You know, it just was. And we all really mobilized, and it was. That was. I think that was the reason why it snowballed so quickly. It's just like, everybody was like, fuck out of here. Like, why are we all living like this? We don't need to live like this. This shit is crazy.

[Jade]

Oh, go ahead. Sorry.

[Kelly Augustine]

No, no, no, go ahead.

[Jade]

No. What I'm hearing, and I think this is such a timely conversation, sort of given where we are in the world and all of the ways in which inclusion is being misrepresented. I noticed, you know, from your bio, and one of the things that you've been involved in is, you know, in 2021, did, like, an inclusion rebrand project, and it was all about, to your point, everyone just feeling, like, fed up with, you know, the standard convention of what it meant to be. What's your question?

[Kelly Augustine]

Because I could talk about things specifically.

[Jade]

What's the question? Go ahead.

[Kelly Augustine]

That. Yeah, I'm gonna talk about it. So.

[Jade]

Yes, please.

[Kelly Augustine]

This experience in particular, I think, was the beginning of what we're seeing now.

[Jade]

Yes.

[Kelly Augustine]

Where people are saying that they want to do something. Said a lot in 2020.

[Jade]

Yes.

[Kelly Augustine]

And then pulled back.

[Jade]

Yes. Yes. That's where I was headed. Right. Cause I'm seeing. I'm saying that what we're seeing is that being actually inclusive, like the word, the branding of inclusion was really thrown out there. But what we're seeing now is that not being reflected in action, corporate action, cultural action, political action. And so I wanted to sort of get your take on, sort of given that sort of us, like, I feel like people, we were promised something that we never actually received. And so like, wanted, wanted to sort of get your take on, given that, what are some of the things that we can now do to sort of call for, like, you know, put some feet to the fire of the people who claim that this is all about inclusion and belonging and all of that in their words, but it hasn't necessarily shown up in their actions. Is that, does that make sense, what I'm saying?

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah. I think the biggest thing you could do is stop shopping somewhere. And for me, I felt, can I say this?

[Jade]

Say what you need to say.

[Kelly Augustine]

So a lot happened in that period, specifically with that brand. Like, I went to LA for work and I was walking down the street and I saw someone painting my face on the side of a building. I went to 34th Street. I was at Macy's shopping for work, and I looked across the street and my face is on the side of a building in Herald Square. So it was like this massive, massive push that they said that they were trying to do in this effort. They said that they would have plus size in the store. They go up to, I believe, a size 30 or 32. But they said anything past, I believe it was a 24 wasn't going to be in the store over the next year. Those plus size was pulled from the store altogether. What was the point of wasting money? Like, I just don't understand. For me, it just, it felt gross.

[Jade]

Interest. Interest. Conversion. Yeah, interest convergence.

[Kelly Augustine]

And I, I felt very used in that situation.

[Jade]

Yeah, yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

But for me, and I, you know, I had conversations.

[Jade]

I'm sorry, I didn't, I didn't bring it up. I did not know that. But I didn't bring it up to.

[Kelly Augustine]

Well, you wouldn't know. Cause I don't. I don't talk about it. This is honestly, this. That's why I said, should I even talk about it? Because this is my first time saying it out loud. But I think the thing that you can do is decide whether or not you want to support. And that's it. Right. And so where their umbrella company is Gap Inc. I work with Banana Republic. This is a Banana Republic sweater I have on right now. I love Banana Republic. You know what I mean? And they are working actively Pushing towards inclusivity. And I know that because I'm working with them. And I keep that conversation going. And all you can do is try to have conversations with, like, Target right now. And all the conversation happening around that. Some people are saying to continue to go there and support the black businesses are there, and a lot of people don't want to do that. And those are decisions that we just have to make for ourselves. Like, I don't necessarily shop there anymore. It wasn't because of that situation. It was simply because they chose not to be inclusive in that way. I can't even go to the store. I can't go to Flatbush and go to the store and find clothes in my size. So y' all made the decision to not cater to a community you said you were going to cater to. So therefore, I. I literally cannot support it. I refuse to be only shopping online.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

Yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

So that's the same thing with what's happening right now. You can choose to go to Walmart or not. You can choose to wear skims or not. Like, ultimately, I feel like. I feel like skims is. That was a rough one.

[Jade]

But I just feel like we have.

[Kia]

Been summoned for advertisement before.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah. The thing for me, as a PLUS consumer, it's one of the only brands that comes in my size, so I may not necessarily like what this person does and says and who they are affiliated with, but I have another set of circumstances on top of that. So I can't tell somebody not to shop at Target if that's the only store that's in their neighborhood. You know what I mean?

[Jade]

Right. That's true.

[Kelly Augustine]

Or if we're all making less money than we used to. So if you can only go to Target and get a $20 bathing suit or something, I can't judge you for that.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

You know, it's just. It's up to us to decide who we want to support. For me, I'm like, okay, let me go find Shape with somebody somewhere else if I can. Let me go buy from Rihanna or let me, you know, like, it's all decisions that we have to make. But that Old Navy shit was crazy. It was crazy.

[Kia]

It's. I. And I think it's. It's disappointing with all of these companies. Right. As we've been talking about. Like, this is such a timely conversation because we've. We've done quite a few initiatives over the last couple of years with a lot of these companies and have been summoned for so much work, obviously under the umbrella of dei and it's just interesting how immediately, like immediately. And this is not just the announcement. This is not just from the other day or the other week when we were all hearing this. Like this has been in the works for a while now. But like the whole last year, not one phone call from a company.

[Jade]

Oh yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

And.

[Jade]

And cause it's. I think we have to think like broader and bigger. Right. To your point sis and so this is more. I think a lot of times there was a lot of over promising and in the time post George Floyd where there were companies were feeling a lot of pressure to be respons and they made a lot of promises. But if we. And I think we were all excited and appreciative of some of the things that were being extended to communities that had been marginalized for so long that many of us failed to read the fine print. Right. And so I think there was always a timeline on a lot of these things. Right. And so honestly if we think about the part the people we've partnered with SIS like this whole $2 billion investment was slated to conclude in 2025. Yeah. Anyway. And so I think, I think the lesson that I'm taking away from all of this is to be a more informed like you know, I think there's bigger and there are more. There are different ways that we need to think about how we engage in support. So there is sort of like are we going to be customers? That's one thing. But to your point Kelly, access is an issue for everyone. So it's not that, it's not that we can just decide. I'm not going to because if I can only. I mean eggs is $10, you know what I'm saying?

[Kia]

Pasteurized.

[Jade]

This is what I'm saying. So. So I think that there are other ways that we're going to have to come together and align and think strategically about how we develop infrastructures of accountability and call attention to the promises that have not been delivered on the lies that we have been told. I think there are other ways to do that. So again I didn't. I mean I was literally asking that question to just sort of get your perspective on sort of like the need for inclusion even as it relates to something like style and fashion. Because you know the conversation right now there's all the different ways they only try to limit inclusion to just certain things. But being inclusive represents so many more identities and it's so much bigger than race and class. And so I'm glad that that you know, I'm sorry to have, you know, Struck a nerve or triggered. But I'm good.

[Kelly Augustine]

It's just I've actually not had this conversation publicly, you know, so, yeah, I'm going to have to at some point because I'm working with Banana Republic and.

[Jade]

People need to know, like, you know, so we all are conformed so we can be informed consumers as we negotiate this space. There's so much that we're only shown, but there's so many things behind this background. Like, I read this in your bio. Never had any idea that there was any static until you. You know what I'm saying? But now, you know, hearing from your mouth, like, I'm going to engage differently.

[Kia]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah.

[Jade]

And I hope that other people will do the same.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah. The thing is, again, like, is also another one of those brands where that's what people have access to. It's true. You know, it's a. It's a price issue. It is a proximity issue. Like, if that's the only place that you can shop, I can't knock you for that. You know what I'm saying? For me, I literally can't go to the store and get clothes. So, you know, it's just up to people to decide how they want to do it. But, you know, I feel bad because a lot of people, you know, when people judge people for. For doing, like, for shopping at Shein and, you know, fast fashion, I'm like, I. Yes, there's so much wrong with, obviously, the way that they do production, the way that they steal from designers, et cetera, et cetera. But ultimately, the cost of living is so high everywhere, you know, and they've.

[Kia]

Done this on purpose.

[Kelly Augustine]

It's all happening on purpose. It has been happening. It's been not only in a pressure cooker. If you want to get the stretchy jeans that will disintegrate after three washes, do that. And, like, don't feel bad about it. Like, I. I'm a. I shop at Fashion Nova, and I don't feel bad about that. Like, it is what it is. I just got this ring light that I'm using on Amazon, period. And I'm like, I don't have time to go to B H or Best Buy or whatever. You know, like, it's.

[Kia]

Well, child, being a. You giving your dollars to bnhs.

[Kelly Augustine]

Exactly.

[Jade]

Like, you know what I'm saying? We're running out of options.

[Kelly Augustine]

Exactly.

[Kia]

And that's intent. That's intentional.

[Jade]

Right.

[Kia]

It's the same way where we could only have, you know, cable vision for however long. If you wanted cable because there's a monopoly or how Con Edison is the, you know, the only light company available. Like, it's a monopoly on everything. And I find it interesting too. I was talking about this the other day, how not only have they made access to things hard, but they've lowered the quality. Right. Do you all notice how when we were younger and we would go buy jeans or what have you, or even a pair of pants from H M in 2000, right. Would you might have those pants for 15 years and say, girl, I've had these pants and guess where they came from? H M, I got them 15 years ago. There's no way you could go and buy a pair of pants now from a lot of these places. And they last 15 years. And that is by design. Because they, they want us to consume, consume, consume. And being a person who is a stylist, a person in fashion, what's your take between over consumerism at this point, but then also, you know, wanting to judge, like, what's your take on that?

[Kelly Augustine]

I personally, I'm in a very specific space where I've actually stopped shopping as much because we don't need it. A lot of it is just like, unless you have a special occasion, we don't really need a lot of the stuff that we buy.

[Kia]

Say that again.

[Kelly Augustine]

I've watched so the documentaries on clothing waste have dragged me. And so, you know, I am someone who does obviously promote clothing and, you know, all of that, but I've been a lot more mindful about what I promote. So, like, my partnership with Banana Republic was very intentional. They've expanded their size range, but also the quality of the clothes is there. Like, you can get a cashmere sweater for less than $100. Like, okay, that is something that is going to last you. You can hand wash it and hang it. Like, okay. So I try not to do, like, hauls. I don't do hauls anymore. I think the whole economy was a lot of the issue for years. It was like hyper consumerism to the point where when you think about the number of boxes, the amount of plastic that the clothes are wrapped in.

[Jade]

Jesus.

[Kia]

The emissions to get them to where.

[Kelly Augustine]

They'Re going, all of that stuff you just have. It's all personal choices. I personally just don't. I don't shop as much as I used to, which has kind of put me in an interesting position because I am a stylist and I'm a content creator. And the mindset of being like, you know, I gotta look like this all the time, blah, blah, Blah. But like the past couple of years I've been on jeans and T shirt flow. Like I had the pants I have on. I had a man on 38th and 8th make em in like this little room at the top of a tourist shop. Like I paid him $200. We went to the denim store, we picked some fabric and I wear em like every, all the time.

[Kia]

And I would imagine it allows you to have to be a little bit more creative too. You know, I think a lot of this outside of the mindset of like I can't be seen in the same outfit twice, which where the from. It's like you should.

[Jade]

Exactly.

[Kelly Augustine]

It's actually irresponsible to not because.

[Jade]

Come on.

[Kia]

Hello.

[Jade]

Wear your clothes.

[Kia]

You know what? I love that you did recently. You went on a work trip. It was must have last year sometime. And you styled yourself every day with just a few items, whether you repeated a shoe or what have you. And show people how you packed minimally and changed up your looks. And I think even from that vantage point from helping people to shop from their own closets and cuz like you said, when I look at all that I have, why do I have all of this? Yeah, why do I have 25 hats? Like I don't wear a hat every day. I don't have 25 heads.

[Jade]

What am I doing?

[Kelly Augustine]

Why do I have so many jeans? Why do I have 17 shirts?

[Jade]

Like I think so. I think what I've appreciated about your content, Kelly, is it's helped me to embrace body type. Like the relationship between body type and fashion. So like in my mind I feel like my programming told me that, you know, certain things were first for certain bodies. Right. And you know, if I did not have that shape, then I was not able to do that thing. But I feel like I'm learning and I could say and speak for my own consumerism. I, I am making the transition. You know, I feel like the culture where we just, you know, I have something to do this weekend. Let me go buy a shirt, let me go buy this, let me go buy, let me go that. And then you have this wardrobe of pieces that don't relate to each other and that are only tied to like very specific circumstances. And the capacity to sort of build a wardrobe is a skill that I feel like I'm developing. And Jay will tell you, I mean, I spent a lot of time this past year doing a deep, massive closet purge. I got a closet system installed in my house and that was the opportunity that, you know, it was the push that I needed to really go through. And I realized and was disgusted to accept the amount of things that I had purchased during COVID on top of the things that I had. You know, I had stuff in boxes from my apartment that I never touched still boxed up. So it was just like all of this crap. And when I'm going through and, you know, donating and what have you, it's like literally clothes. It's like, look at this polyester skirt from Sister Contempo.

[Kelly Augustine]

No.

[Jade]

No part of me would wear this ever again.

[Kia]

Like, I put on some sneakers the other day and Tristan was like, I've never seen those. I said, I bought them two years ago. They fit in my closet.

[Kelly Augustine]

Just sit in there.

[Jade]

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[Kia]

I'm gonna put you on, nephew. All right, unc.

[Kelly Augustine]

Welcome to McDonald's. Can I take your order, miss?

[Kia]

I've been hitting up McDonald's for years now. It's back. We need snack wraps. What's a snack wrap? It's the return of something great. Snack wrap is back.

[Commercial Announcer]

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[Jade]

How do we, like, I think a lot of the skill. And this is what makes you a stylist. And the rest of us, you know, just trying to figure out how our.

[Kia]

Niggas putting on clothes.

[Jade]

Yeah, yeah. How do we cultivate the skill? First, let me ask, like, is personal style a skill? Or is it a thing that we just have? Is this something that we hone? Like, how do we find it? Because I'm swimming through this boatload of clothes trying to figure out what's the best. What are the best things for me. How do I start that process?

[Kelly Augustine]

You know, I honestly, the. The closet cleanouts are the. My favorite part of my job, really. You can. You can see the light bulb. Come on. Every time.

[Kia]

Right? Are you a Capricorn?

[Kelly Augustine]

I am Scorpio. Sagicorn, though. Me too.

[Kia]

I was like. We had this conversation December 20th.

[Jade]

No, mine. December 20th.

[Kia]

That's Kia's birthday.

[Kelly Augustine]

So you. You get me. You feel me something? You feel me something?

[Jade]

We have the same birthday.

[Kelly Augustine]

Oh, my God. It scratches something, right?

[Jade]

You see?

[Kelly Augustine]

So when it gets embarrassing at a point, people just get embarrassed because that's.

[Jade]

Why it was so embarrassing for me. I hated it so much. Cause it was like, God, this is. This is unreasonable. I'm so wasting.

[Kelly Augustine]

That's the. That's the point. I will tell people every time you put a Get a white T shirt. Put it in a pile. Jeans. Put it in the pile. Why do you have 17 biker shorts? Put them in a pile. Leggings. Boom, boom, boom. And then you just see the piles, and then it's just. It makes me. It really makes me emotional because, like, watching people realize something and you can, like, see it break. And it is, like, something that is so ingrained in us. To watch someone break a system right there is like, I love this for you because we about to really. It's gonna change your life because it not only changes how you dress, but it changes how you spend money. It changes how you value clothing and just, like, material possession in general. And I see it happen for other people, but it's also happened for me. And, I mean, it is so transformative. It is so transformational.

[Jade]

It changes how you see yourself.

[Kelly Augustine]

It changes how you see yourself.

[Jade]

Changes how you see yourself.

[Kelly Augustine]

I. 20. Coming into 20, 23, I was like, you know what? Like, I'm only gonna wear black and white, and.

[Jade]

Oh, my God.

[Kia]

Y' all are the fucking.

[Jade]

We're the same person.

[Kelly Augustine]

Jesus.

[Jade]

Wait, did you do that?

[Kia]

No. That's all she does.

[Kelly Augustine]

I was like, I'm only wearing black and white. I got rid of everything else in my closet. It's a big yikes. No, it's a big yikes.

[Jade]

These are words that I have said.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yes. I was like, I'm only wearing black, white, denim. And I did that for, like, three, four months.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

And my relationship with my body, with textures, with materials, with. I realized in that process, I was relying so much on color to communicate how I felt about myself before anyone spoke to me. And I didn't love that. I'm like, you know, I want people to get a chance to know me as a person, and I don't need my clothes to speak for me in that way anymore, where it just was very loud. And there's nothing wrong with dressing that way at all. But for me, I was like, do I need to do that anymore? And I realized I didn't. Like, I don't need to dress like that for you to know that I am a confident person. And so where people make clothing seem so frivolous, a lot of it isn't. And it is. So it's an emotional process. But also, clothing can give you so much more than you think. And that's why I tell people, just get a stylist, if only for, like, three months.

[Kia]

Oh, yeah. No, you coming over? You coming over.

[Kelly Augustine]

That's what I'm saying. Call Me, you don't. You don't need it for. You don't really need a stylist. Especially like if you're a person, you know, you have a personal stylist, you don't need it for an extended period of time. But go through that big process, get that out the way, because it will change. You won't need me after a while. You won't need me. But to answer your question, personal style is honed. And I think it's wisdom. It's not something that you can just. And some people just have it. You know what I mean? But I think a lot of it is like life experience.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

So when I do my interviews, before I like even go to anyone's house, I ask you, what do you feel the most comfortable in? What do you reach for when you have something important to go to? What is your power color? The power color for me is really important. So, like, what is the color you put on when you have an interview? When you have a date, when you know, like, what is that color that makes you feel the best?

[Jade]

Black you gotta have.

[Kelly Augustine]

So for me it's red. And so I was like, you know what I don't need? I need to just have like a red blazer or like a red pair of shoes or for me is a Mac Ruby. Woo.

[Jade]

Like, I need to all times.

[Kelly Augustine]

You know what I mean? It's very old. So for me, it's just like I know that I need to have that color somewhere. All these other colors.

[Jade]

Think about it.

[Kelly Augustine]

Jade.

[Jade]

Because I would say Jade's power color is like. It's like Jade is like our boho. Like, she is like boho meets the block.

[Kelly Augustine]

Like, I get that.

[Jade]

I see Jade.

[Kia]

You know what I'm saying?

[Jade]

Like, like, you know, now we're having a boho resurgence. Right. The girls are in their boho now, but Jade was wearing mules back when. When we wasn't wearing mules.

[Kia]

Fifth grade.

[Jade]

Do you hear me?

[Kia]

I was in fifth grade. And wooden mules.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah.

[Kia]

It's crazy.

[Kelly Augustine]

I had a pair. I'm not gonna hold you to have them. No.

[Jade]

Very boho mis. Yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

Clocks.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

I've got like six pairs of clogs and I've never. It's. Oh, it's been a forever staple in my closet since childhood.

[Jade]

Like, when I. Your Jade's colors, they're nudes. It's got to be like a terracotta or something.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah.

[Kia]

You know?

[Jade]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Kia]

Greens, I'd like blue a lot.

[Jade]

Earth. Tony, though.

[Kia]

Lots of it's Very earth Tony, Very neutral tones. But I did realize recently that a jewel tone. Oh, so good purples, they go well with me, and I don't know why. I never really gravitated toward those, but I'm like, okay, you know, black women.

[Jade]

Black women do jewel tones very well.

[Kelly Augustine]

Whenever I ask that question, I always get the answer. Jewel tones, stop. It just works for any. Any shade of us. It just works every last.

[Jade]

Cause. Look at me.

[Kelly Augustine]

Look at me.

[Kia]

Winter white.

[Jade]

No, you're not.

[Kia]

No, sister. This is a winter wonderland right now. But go ahead, Kelly. I'm sorry. We. We got. We got.

[Jade]

It's. It's wisdom.

[Kelly Augustine]

I love it.

[Kia]

Yes.

[Jade]

It's so good. I feel like it's also. It's coming. As I'm getting to know myself, I'm getting better, you know, and this is from the person who, like, I've always wanted to be. Okay. This is my. I've always wanted to be myself. Right. But I think cool is a part of my aesthetic, or at least that's why I've tried to have a little cool, little edgy. I want to sort of be on the pulse of things. I recognize that I've always been drawn to trends or like, I'm. I'm aware of twin trends. I will say I'm. I know which trends will work for me and which won't, but I know that. I feel like I've tried a lot of different things, and I feel like the closer that I get, like, the older that I get, I feel like I'm getting clearer on, like, classic things that are just core to who I am. And the trend stuff can show up in any kind of different way. So, like, maybe the edge is not. I have to buy something. Maybe the edge is like, you know, I'll do my makeup a certain way or I'll, you know, it'll be red nail polish or something. You know, I can bring that in, but I feel like that took time. So when you said you have to figure it out, the wisdom of it, like, you develop that, it's not like you. Some people know and have a very strong sense of, like, how they like to dress. I feel like that's. That. That is a. Comes with, like, their self confidence, but those. There are those of us who have to build that muscle.

[Kelly Augustine]

I think social media has kind of flattened the timeline for a lot of people where they're like, oh, I see that this person wore this, and they look like, therefore, I'm going to dress like that person. And it's like, but you're not comfortable in that, so. And it's okay to not be comfortable in that. You just got to find what's right for you. Like, I love denim, but I don't like feeling constricted. So for me, I'm like, I like a wide leg pant. I like a drawstring denim pant. You know, for me, I love a white button down, but I have, like, variations of, like, a bigger sleeve or like, something that's cut up a little bit, you know, like, that is just something that you figure out over time. I love a black turtleneck. I have a lot of black turtlenecks. That is my go to. But I'm like, I like the way that I look in it. I think I look sexy in a black turtleneck. So I'm 100. And it's okay to not have the trend pieces. It's okay to not feel. You don't have to lock into that. So for me, my personal style, I started following a lot of older people who are fashionable, people who are like 55 plus 40 plus, you know, like.

[Kia]

Old Japanese couples and stuff. Yes.

[Kelly Augustine]

I love that shit. Like, oh, my God, I love to see it. And, you know, there's like, a lot of older, like, very distinguished, like, older silver fox black women wearing mics fitted, and they're barrel jeans, and they just look so cute. But it's like looking at people who are older than you makes you realize you don't need to have all of these things that we have, because when you hear them speak, they're like, I've had this since 1992.

[Jade]

Yeah, pieces, pieces.

[Kelly Augustine]

And they're more.

[Jade]

And quality.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah, the quality is higher. And you also just realize, like, a lot of people who have inherent personal cool style, a lot of that stuff is worn in. A lot of it has a story to it, you know? So we're buying all this stuff, and it's like. And then it's turning over, and it's like, but now you don't have a story.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

And I want to be able to tell the story when someone is like, I love that jacket. Where'd you get it from?

[Jade]

I can be like, oh, my God.

[Kia]

Let me tell you.

[Kelly Augustine]

We don't have the stories.

[Jade]

We don't have those stories.

[Kia]

No, we don't.

[Jade]

We don't.

[Kelly Augustine]

Stories.

[Jade]

We got to bring back. Stories we got to bring. That's so true. That's so true.

[Kia]

I used to wear this purple leather jacket in middle school. A purple leather jacket with a big black X on the back of It, Yeah. Malcolm XX, of course. And it was my father's jacket.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

And I would, and I would just, I'll just be in there with my Malcolm X jacket. But they're like, where the did you get that? I'm like, oh, this is my dad.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

Friend made it. You know, I used to have a bald headed black man painted on my backpack because my dad's friend made it. But that was my backpack for school. You know, they're like, where did that come from? But I love that and I love that older people are the prime example of that. They're, they're not, they don't over consume. They buy things when they absolutely want them. When they absolutely call them that they like. Yeah, keep pieces, not outfits like you were talking about earlier. And you made a point about something earlier which made me think you were talking about people getting dressed and how it is very personal. And you're not wrong. And I don't think people put a lot of stock in that because think about how many times you get dressed to go out and you change.

[Kelly Augustine]

Right.

[Kia]

And p. I don't think we think to ourselves, like, we'll say, I don't like this, I don't like this, I don't like this. And it's because I don't think we're leaning into what makes me feel good.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

What's gonna look good out here?

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah, correct. Yep, correct so many times. Oh, I can't wear that. Or buy the things that make you feel good. Buy your jeans. This is something I was just telling somebody, but I buy my jeans a size up.

[Jade]

Say it one more time.

[Kelly Augustine]

Take them to the tailor, and then the tailor can take in the waist. You can take off a pocket if you want. You know what I mean? Like, you can make things tail tailor to yourself so that there is no putting on clothes and being like, I don't like this. Yeah, you like it because it's made for you. You know what I mean? So you can shop anywhere. Like I, I have, I'm talking about Fashion Nova a lot for some reason. But I have a few things with fashion Nova because you have to dig to find good things. But I have some really good things from them that I've had tailored that look so expensive, but it's because I got them tailored for my body.

[Jade]

How do you find it?

[Kia]

That does make a difference. Yes, that's a good question.

[Kelly Augustine]

A lot of my tailoring, a lot of my tailors have been word of mouth. Now that I'm thinking about it. You just Gotta ask.

[Jade]

Yeah, I need more Taylors.

[Kia]

Bring Taylor's back.

[Jade]

Yeah, bring Taylor's back. Please. Please.

[Kia]

What are you doing? Somebody become a tailor. I need, like, a. Like a black girls find.

[Jade]

What is Dr. Joy. Yeah, I need.

[Kia]

Black girls need their back. Black girls need tailors. I need y' all to put a.

[Jade]

Database and the tailors. Yeah, we need tailors.

[Kelly Augustine]

My. My personal styling clients. I have, like, a tailor in every city just so, like, these are the three that work. This is someone that I've used before. You know what I mean? And, you know, it just comes with time. It just comes with time. But ask the people. Ask the stylist that, you know, Ask your aunties, your grandmas. They all have tailors. They all know where to go. Anytime you see someone who looks really nice and looks like they have had something painted on their body, they usually have a tailor. Ask them where they got their stuff tailored.

[Jade]

Okay, I want to have. I have a question. I want to talk body type for a moment, okay? Because like I said, I've been on a journey thinking very intentionally about, you know, radical self acceptance. And, like, I'm gonna love and dress the body that I have. Like, I love it because I feel like for so long, I've been wanting to change my body to make it look like something else so that it will look like this in certain clothes. And it's like, I don't have time for all that now. I just. This is the body that I have. It's mine. I love it. It's not a bad body. Let's dress that body the best way possible. But I think my frustration is when you mentioned jeans and sizes, I got a little triggered. I have to just be honest, because it's hard and I struggle, and this is my own. And I've talked about this on the show before, but I come from a family. I was put on my first diet in the seventh grade. And bigger clothes was always. This was. Was said to. It was like a threat, like, you gonna get big, and your clothes are gonna get big. And so, like, I'm constantly, even in my great big adult age, resisting this narrative that if my clothes are a certain size, I'm failing in some way or I'm not doing something right. All of that to say I'm recognizing in my work with my therapist and everything else that, you know, this. It's not the sides of the body, the shape of the body. All these things factor in matter. And so, like, I'm now digging and learning into, like, thinking intentionally about Like, I am. I am. I sort of in between fluctuate depending on how the. The weight loss and the training is happening. The. My weight training is happening. I. I am between hourglass and pear shape, but leaning more towards pear shape. Like, I carry most of my weight in my hips and my thigh area. And so for a long time, I've wanted so badly to be a part of these wide leg jean trends. But, like, I buy jean thinking it's going to be wide leg on me, but they fit. Like, if you don't stand, the legs are not wide. Yes. So I've been having such. If you look at my closet now, we talk about consumerism. I'm embarrassed at the amount of jeans in there. Most of them don't fit. Because I've just been trying to find the right. The right fit. And my question is, is it just like you just doing this? Is it just the process of, like, trying to find it and that's what's taking so long? Or am I doing something wrong? Like, is it hard for everyone or is it just like, in terms of learning your body type and learning how to dress it? Like, how do we make progress in that way?

[Kelly Augustine]

Jeans are the hardest thing to shop for. For literally anyone.

[Jade]

Okay.

[Kelly Augustine]

I have clients who are size 4 that hate Jean shopping. I have clients who are 24 that hate Jean shopping. I hate jean shopping. It's really all about finding the brand that works for you.

[Jade]

Okay.

[Kelly Augustine]

Finding the cut that works for you. And it's also about balance. So for someone who is a pear shape, it's about finding a wide leg pant that starts. So a lot of them will do this. And then the wide leg starts at the knee. Exactly. You need to find a pant where the wide. The wideness starts from your hip, from the, from your waist, like this. So that it creates the hourglass vibe. And then you would need a top that has more volume to create that hourglassness. You see what I'm saying? So you have volume up top and then you have. The waist is snatched and then the pants are coming like this so that it's like. And it's creating that shape. And then they do also make wide leg pants that have, like, darts and pleating coming from the waist.

[Jade]

Okay.

[Kelly Augustine]

That might also be what you need, but all of that is trial and error.

[Jade]

Okay?

[Kelly Augustine]

No one. There's no right and wrong when it comes to shopping. You just gotta figure out what you like. Try some brands. Figure out what. Like, for me, I love a dark wash. I don't usually do light washes. I wear my jeans so much, once I find the ones that I like that light washes don't work for me because then they start to look dingy because I'm washing them a lot. You know what I mean?

[Jade]

Like, stuff like that.

[Kelly Augustine]

So you just gotta find what works for you or find somebody to make you pants.

[Jade]

Sure.

[Kia]

That's true. Have you had jeans made before?

[Jade]

Me?

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah.

[Jade]

Either one of you? No, I've not.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah.

[Jade]

I mean, I didn't know that was a thing, but that's. Tell me about that.

[Kelly Augustine]

You'll be able to see now. Can I stand? That feels really unsafe. But I have on a pair of jeans right now that I have. They are wide leg.

[Jade]

Love it.

[Kelly Augustine]

And we just went picked the fabric and that was it. I kind of drew them. I was like, I want this. I don't want constriction in my waist. And no matter what my size is, because it's a drawstring, it can go in and out. Y' all.

[Kia]

Bring back the seamstresses and the tailors. We need y' all out here making stuff. Because we only got five brands at this point.

[Kelly Augustine]

Exactly.

[Kia]

So what a sad day on a Saturday. And you're not wrong.

[Kelly Augustine]

I was gonna say a lot of brands wear H M or like an Abercrombie and all of that stuff. Before, back in the early 2000s, the Elastane wasn't a part of the equation. So now a lot. Almost every brand puts elastane. I think the percentage you can put up to 3%. So most brands, if you look at the tag, it'll say 3% elastane. That's what they can get away with before it becomes a legging. And so that is what is also kind of diminishing the value and the quality of the jeans. So pay attention when you are shopping, just look at the tag and see what is the percentage of stretch that's in this. Try to find one that's 2%. If you can find 1%, that's going to be rigid, rigid, rigid. But if you can find it, keep it. And then buy a size up and have someone tailor them for you. Or you can go. I had another pair of denim that were too small. I went and found a denim that was comparable to that and just had a panel added on the side.

[Kia]

Oh, smart.

[Kelly Augustine]

And that will change. You can change the shape of your pants. You can change the size of your pants. Like, you can't tell me that it don't fit me because I'm.

[Kia]

And the style of them too.

[Kelly Augustine]

Exactly, exactly. So it's just about being smart. It might. People think it costs more, but the amount of times you are buying jeans, it will just cost you less to just have someone go fix, just go.

[Jade]

Get it for you.

[Kia]

Especially us with thighs. Yeah. Like you say, if you're buying, if you're buying the. The Fashion Novas or the, or the. Even the. What's her face, what's the girl? New American, Good American. Even if you buy those, eventually they'll wear. Yeah, but you know, and it's interesting too, you said it's a very personal journey with jeans and it is because I may, I've met, you know, I've had friends who got asses like me and they'll be like, yeah, you need to go to American Eagle because I found these jeans went to American Eagle.

[Jade]

Them jeans did not work for me. No dice.

[Kelly Augustine]

I have not even tried the American Eagle. Keep that away from me cuz I.

[Jade]

Know it's not going to work for me.

[Kelly Augustine]

Good American is a great brand though.

[Jade]

Good American. I have found some Good American cheese that work for me. I also heard Abercrombie has this curve love thing that I tried recently and that had, that was, that was promising. That was promising.

[Kia]

So my favorite jeans come from anthropology and I never thought I would be.

[Kelly Augustine]

Able to fit their pill crow. They're pill curl denim.

[Kia]

My wide and I have a heavy big ass.

[Jade]

Okay.

[Kia]

Like I'm not coming to you with a little right kid? I'm not coming you with a little.

[Kelly Augustine]

Like all dragon wagons, baby.

[Kia]

It's true. It's true way about.

[Jade]

Life. It's a lot of life in this ass. It's been through a lot, you know what I'm saying? I don't have no shame about that, you know, at all.

[Kia]

But I gotta find the right place.

[Jade]

I want to dress it the right way. And I have had to curate like you know, Paul, I realized I was following the wrong people. Why I'm following these little model girls. It's not gonna do nothing but stress me out. I think they're wonderful people. It's nothing against them personally, but like I have got to start to find inspiration that's realistic for me and that, that takes, that takes time and like you said, wisdom. I'm glad that's like my takeaway from all of this. It's like you, we think about style and fashion like it's a skill. Like you can learn how to do it, but it really is about knowing yourself and knowing what you like and knowing what's best for you. And it takes time to figure that out.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yes, it does. And just like, what are you comfortable in? I tell people all the time, like, you have to be comfortable in what you're wearing. No one wants to be in an outfit that they have to fidget around in all day. Cause you won't be able to go and live your life. So hello, don't buy the low rise pants. Cause that's not gonna work for you when you have ass. So get the high waist jeans. Have them take it in. You know, I don't like, I used to wear crop tops a lot, but I can't lift my hands up anymore because they are heavy. So I'm like, I need a crop top. If I'm gonna wear a crop, crop top, it has to be like a very specific length. It needs to be a fabric. It has to have a band on the bottom. Because what I used to be able to do before, especially now that I am doing a job where I have to be very mobile, you know. So just find what you're going to be comfortable in, what you can live your life in, and then go with.

[Kia]

I think that's such a sound, such a sound piece of advice. I have one more question for you.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah.

[Kia]

Just to round this out. What do give me your top five timeless pieces that will work for any body shape, body type, anything that you think people should have in their closet.

[Kelly Augustine]

Timeless pieces. A leather jacket. Everybody should have some form of a leather jacket. I personally like a moto cut. Yes, everybody should have a leather jacket.

[Jade]

Agreed.

[Kelly Augustine]

A denim jacket.

[Jade]

It. I'm glad you say that because the.

[Kia]

Millennial girls is out here coming for our denim jackets.

[Kelly Augustine]

And I don't forget them little girls. Forget them little girls because what's they going to get cold. They're going to get cold.

[Jade]

They don't have arms. Have something for your arms. Okay.

[Kelly Augustine]

Especially again that comes with wisdom. Because if the more you travel, the more you realize, like, like, I wish I had a jacket right now. I'm on a plane. I wish I had a jacket. Or, you know, the temperature dropped, I'm in San Francisco, the temperature dropped, the sun went down, I need a jacket. Everyone should have a jacket. Whether it, you know, has a little flair to it or whatever. But you should have a denim jacket. Absolutely. White button down shirt.

[Jade]

Okay.

[Kelly Augustine]

Everyone should have a white button down shirt. I like to get a little freaky with mine. You know, I might like have it unbuttoned really far down.

[Jade]

Yesterday I thought it was the girl. Yeah. She had it, like, unbuttoned here. It had one shoulder off. I'm like, yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

And you could, like, unbutton. You can button it like kind of mismatch. You can tie it. You can tie it in the back. You could button two of them together, make a whole skirt. Like, there's so many things you can do with white button down shirts. Okay. I think everybody should have at least one. But I, like, usually I wear it with like a pair of jeans. Tuck it in, have it unbutton pretty low, you know, have the girls up, have mad gold chains on. Put my glasses on, red lip. I'm out the door.

[Jade]

Yes.

[Kelly Augustine]

You know, and I always get compliments when I have a look like that on, because I'm comfortable and I look confident. I'm not worried about anything. I'm just out here moving, shaking. What else?

[Kia]

Moto jacket. I mean, I mean, leather jacket, denim jacket, white button.

[Jade]

Now you got two more.

[Kelly Augustine]

I don't. I don't know if I'm gonna say a good blazer.

[Jade]

Okay.

[Kelly Augustine]

A good blazer. Okay.

[Jade]

Does it need to be fitted?

[Kelly Augustine]

I was about to say, I'm staring at 10 blazers right now in my closet. Right. So I can't talk too, too hard about it, but I think I love a blazer that comes in at the waist because you can also. You can wear that with denim. You can wear it with sweatpants if you want to. You can wear it to an interview. You can wear a good blazer. Literally any. You could wear it. I wore a blazer with a bra to a concert, and it was cute. And I was like, oh, okay. Like, this is working. But a good. A good blazer that is well made can be very versatile. To me, it's like a white button down shirt. Fifth thing. Do y' all wear turtlenecks?

[Jade]

Yes, I do. Absolutely.

[Kia]

Even with no neck? I wear.

[Kelly Augustine]

But the thing is, though, when you. When you don't have, like a long neck, I think it actually gives you some length.

[Jade]

Yeah, because I got too much neck. You can still see your neck too. That's not the look.

[Kelly Augustine]

I think everyone. I think women specifically, especially like a juicy black woman, but women in general look so beautiful in turtlenecks to me. I think they're very sexy. I think it's very classic. And you. Again, you could wear a turtleneck with literally anything. Literally anything you could wear with a leather skirt, you could wear. Again, I wear a turtleneck on my sweatpants. You can wear it with jeans. You can wear it with anything. You can wear it As a layer. You can wear it by self, like. But there's levels. There's levels to a turtleneck. I like turtlenecks that don't have seams. So I don't like a turtleneck that I have to roll down. And I like a turtleneck that's tight. I prefer a turtleneck that has holes for my thumbs. You know, like, there's levels to turtlenecks.

[Kia]

There is, There is. Because I just got rid of some. Because I was like, I don't like how this one is fitting, but I like how these fit.

[Kelly Augustine]

Correct.

[Kia]

These are really beneficial tips, I think, for anybody to carry through life. Kelly. And we're so grateful that you came.

[Jade]

Yes, thank you.

[Kia]

To share your expertise and your wisdom at the kitchen table. Please tell the people where they can find you, what they should be looking for from you, how they can support.

[Jade]

Yes, thank you.

[Kelly Augustine]

Thank you. I am at Kelly Augustine on everything. Mostly on Instagram. I'm off TikTok unless someone asked me to post on there. Don't really love the vibe that happened last week. So I'm all for that. But, you know, you can find me on Instagram. I might be off of that, too. We'll see how the year goes. I do like YouTube. I would like to go back to YouTube. That is my plan. So I believe on YouTube I am Kelly Augustine. B. But if you just search, I'll pop up and then my website is Kelly Augustine, if you have any questions, you want to book a session, you want to talk to me for 15 minutes. I do 15 minute consultations and they are free. And yeah, shoot me an email. I have mad emails. They're all on the link in my bio, depending on what you want to do. I have for collaborations, I have for styling, but I'm questioning wherever.

[Jade]

So for the girlies who are. Because I'm from New York, but I'm not currently based there.

[Kelly Augustine]

Okay.

[Jade]

I'm in the dmv. Do you have virtual clients?

[Kelly Augustine]

I do. I do.

[Jade]

So.

[Kelly Augustine]

I do. Actually, most of my clients don't live in New York.

[Jade]

Okay.

[Kelly Augustine]

I do virtual shopping. I have done virtual, like, closet audits. I'll block out an hour. Some people I have sent, like, tripods. And you just set your phone up and I will make you bring everything to the camera and we will talk about why you have it.

[Jade]

I'm gonna need more than an hour.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah, yeah. So they usually actually take more than an hour, but we'll block off the hour. But it usually takes longer than that. Yeah, but, you know, we'll just soak through the closet, and then you make your piles, and then I'll check in with you to make sure that those piles actually made it out your house. Cause they usually don't read us dragons.

[Jade]

They usually don't drag us dragons.

[Kelly Augustine]

They usually don't. And then from there, if you want to start building out your wardrobe, we can absolutely do that. And because I've gone through the closet with you, I know what you have the things that you do need. And then I have a lot of people will be like, oh, I have a conference to go to, or I have a wedding or whatever, or a vacation. And I'll shop for, like, those occasions for people all the time. I do that.

[Kia]

Okay. And all of that information will be in the description box, everybody. So if you want to have your personal consultation with Kelly and see all of the things she's working on, make sure you click that. Kelly, we are so grateful for you coming and sitting with us. You got to come back because we got more stuff to talk about when it comes to styling.

[Kelly Augustine]

You know where I'm at.

[Jade]

You know where I'm alive. Maybe we can record Patreon. Oh, yes. Get me together. Help. You can help me. Get me together for. For. For. For something or other.

[Kelly Augustine]

You know, whatever you need, I'm here.

[Jade]

My birthday sister.

[Kelly Augustine]

That's crazy.

[Kia]

It's crazy.

[Kelly Augustine]

But the crazy thing is I've been meeting so many people who share a birthday.

[Jade]

Really?

[Kelly Augustine]

That's very. And I never, like, as a child.

[Jade]

As a child, didn't know anyone who had a birthday like mine. Never. I was like, what? Look at you.

[Kelly Augustine]

I feel like we're very particular.

[Jade]

I would agree with person.

[Kelly Augustine]

We are special.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kelly Augustine]

Okay. For sure. We're very close to the end of the year, the holidays. I am very spontaneous and fun, but I'm also super organized, and I will get you together. There's just so many things that happen here. So. No, we're a good time.

[Jade]

A good time.

[Kia]

Y' all are my December 20th babies. Love you. All down. All right, we're gonna see you all for the next segment.

[Jade]

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[Jade]

The gecko.

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[Jade]

I'm always honored to meet fans out in the wild.

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[Kia]

Well, the Geico app is top notch.

[Kelly Augustine]

I know you get asked this all.

[Jade]

The time, but could you sign it?

[Kia]

Sign what?

[Jade]

The app. Yeah, sure. Oh, that means so much.

[Commercial Announcer]

Oh, it rubbed off the screen when I touched it. Could you sign it again?

[Kia]

Anything to help, I suppose.

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[Jade]

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[Kia]

I'mma put you on, Nephew. All right. Un.

[Kelly Augustine]

Welcome to McDonald's. Can I take your order, miss?

[Kia]

I've been hitting up McDonald's for years. Now it's back. We need snack wraps. What's a snack wrap? It's the return of something great. Snack wrap is back. I deserve a time to love on ourselves. Take care of Ourselves. And, and, you know, that's been very hard lately. Very gonna lie to you extraordinarily. Been feeling very unmotivated and, you know, stuck. Even. Even when I get myself like, okay, I'm gonna do this, that I find I'll start doing it. And then I'm like, why can't I go? I can't go on any longer. So it has been very hard to figure out, like, what. I also want to have this conversation because I came across a really good article about self care and the deeper meaning to, like, the, the, the medical meaning to self care and how it was introduced. So I think that's a conversation nice to have. But I was so, as I was thinking very hard, squeezing my brain, I was like, you know what? I just have to keep it very simple. I made a meal that I wanted to have. I wanted some oxtail and cabbage and, and rice and peas and platano. And I wanted as much oxtail gravy as I could get. And so I said, I'll make my own pot of oxtail with extra, extra gravy. And it was just phenomenal. Honestly, it's what we're eating tonight as well.

[Jade]

Yes.

[Kia]

And, you know, I didn't have to. I didn't have to beg nobody for extra gravy. I don't have to get no dirty looks. And it was cathartic. As I continued my binge of the Good Wife while I made it. I'm almost done. I'm almost done. Alicia Florig, really? We talked about a tail and pant. I know that lady in real life is absolutely awesome rocker, but. And Alicia Floric was really the most uninteresting part of the entire series. Howsomever they put that in a pantsuit. And every time she wore a pantsuit, I would sit up there and be like, that is a nasty suit. And it's because of the way that it was tailored to her body. And so I find that to be very tight.

[Jade]

Yes.

[Kia]

That we just had. But yeah, I've been binging a good wife and I made myself some oxtail, and that was all I could do to take care of myself for the week. But that's what I did.

[Jade]

I'm just. Yeah. I'm proud of you and I'm very.

[Kia]

Thank you.

[Jade]

You know, there's nothing like rice and gravy. I had to make myself some rice and gravy last weekend because I just needed some comfort. Because, listen, sometimes that's just what it is.

[Kia]

Yeah.

[Jade]

My self care is just sort of routine. Just you know, I'm just proud of myself for keeping up routine and being diligent. You know, it's been really hard, like I said, to sort of keep moving and feeling very heavy and emotionally overwhelmed. But I'm. I'm grateful that I was able to just continue to move through and keep my promises to myself as it relates to making. Making my workouts and eating my. Eating my meal prep and trying to be as diligent as I possibly can about getting, you know, good sleep every night.

[Kia]

Yes.

[Jade]

And I've been working on really important, so just for the. Just giving myself. I know that's right. Because it was a really hard week. And despite all the hardness of. Of the week, I was able to, you know, I made all. I just, you know, though that's something I'm proud of. I made all my workouts, I ate my meal prep, I kept my promises to myself for my prayer time and getting good, quality sleep.

[Kia]

Yes. You know, I saw this content creator. I really enjoy her, too. It's a young lady. Her name is Taryn. She was Miss New York, and now I think she's just doing stuff, but she's really, really dope, actually. And she was asking people like, how do you. You, how do you. What do you do to motivate yourself? Because I hate going to the gym. She's like. And I feel like I'm never going to find that motivation. And she got a lot of really good responses that she posted back, but one of them that stuck out where somebody was like, it's. You're not, you're not going to always be motivated, you know, but you can pat yourself on the back.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

Dedication. Like, even if it's a matter of.

[Jade]

You going in on the treadmill, sometimes showing up is enough. Like today not to be completely just, you know, I'm dealing with, you know, you know, a heavy cycle, not feeling good in my body. And I had every reason to say I don't feel like it today, but I just went. You know what I'm saying? I went and I did what I could. Now I could not give the girls my best. It was not a day for my personal best. Okay. The girls, you know, I wasn't able to lift hard and heavy today, but I said, I'm gonna do my, my primary lifts and I'm gonna get on this StairMaster for 12 minutes. And I did what I had to do.

[Kia]

I know that's right. I got 15 flights and I'm done.

[Jade]

That's it.

[Kia]

And sometimes that's all you Can. And then also. But also sometimes your self care is opting all the, all the way out.

[Jade]

Guilty.

[Kia]

And saying, you know what? I, I don't even have it after 12 minutes.

[Jade]

And I said it and I thought about it being okay with that. But I made, you know, I sat through it. I made a decision based on like, you know, I know I'm going out of town for work tomorrow and I wanted to front load and get my lifts in knowing that I wouldn't be able to make it back to the gym until I get back on Saturday. So I'll just do cardio. I could just do cardio in the hotel gym but not feel like I've missed my workout. So you know, that that was the sort of the thing that was like, all right, I'll go, I'll do the best I can. You know what I'm saying? Like I wasn't in there pressed to. Sometimes you in there and you. Motivation, like you're saying motivation does sort of, I think motivation. I don't want to say it's overrated because there is a part of it.

[Kia]

I was going to say it's a little over sometimes.

[Jade]

But I think you're right. The person whoever gave that feedback is like, sometimes we got to do stuff we not motivated to do, but we just got to do it anyhow. Right? And it's just about keeping. It's not. My motivation is not to go to, to the gym. My motivation was to keep my promise to myself. I promised myself that I was going to try. And that's your dedication, trying to keep that promise to myself. And so I didn't feel like it and it wasn't, you know, a stellar workout. But I'm proud of myself for keeping that routine because that's a, you know, that, that, that means something. I haven't always been able to sort of keep that say those things. And that's okay because I wasn't in that space then. But you know, just recognizing and it's okay to, to try again.

[Kia]

I, you know, I, I got the real kick in my ass. I know I've been talking about it for a minute, but I was like, I have to stay on this because this 40 is a pro and I'm feeling myself get stiffer every day that I don't. And let me tell you something about to give you all tmi. But we, but we're grown. Tristan pushed these guys back and you said, but one of them, one of them stiff. And I was like, whoa, yoga is necessary.

[Jade]

Hold on. I was like, oh, wait, okay, give me a second.

[Kia]

Just give me one, one minute. I don't want to look like I'm getting my diaper change sexy. So gotta adjust. I was like, you know, for so many reasons, I need to make sure that I am, I am stretching it out. You know what I'm saying? So.

[Jade]

But yeah, I hope you all are.

[Kia]

Honoring whatever you need though and, and, and doing what you need. And I do want us to have that self care coma. Send that, that, send that article to you because I want us to have that conversation about like the origins and the medical origins versions of it. Because I think that's important and necessary. But you know what's also necessary? Letting the steam off. So let's head on over to it right now. And I want to be very responsible of the things I say to my sister because everybody know I can be real petty P E to the tty honey.

[Jade]

All right.

[Kia]

Pull your petty flags out. Parade time. All of that. This is not so much, so much petty. I. I want you to love yourselves more. And I will explain. This is twofold.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

Okay. Cuz I was going to pick Noah up from school and although we are through the darkest time of the year, it. We're not out of the woods. Oh, thank God. Those, those very long winter days that we.

[Jade]

We've turned the corner.

[Kia]

We've turned the corner of it. We made it through, but we're. It still does get dark early still. Right. So I'm on my way to pick Noah up in two instances. It's a good thing I don't hit corners quick. And I am careful of intersections just because be wilding. First it's a young lady walking and she got her coat on and her hood and it's evident she can't see. And I know from wearing my own hood that, that when I'm walking I have to pull it back by my so I can see what's going. You have to be on the video.

[Jade]

Wow.

[Kia]

So I can. You.

[Kelly Augustine]

You.

[Kia]

When you're wearing a hood and you're walking, you cannot see what's.

[Jade]

Yeah, your peripheral, your peripheral.

[Kia]

This lady. It's done. And this young lady almost got splattered because she walked right in the middle of the street with her hood over her head. And I was like, miss girl. The next thing is I can't you in your hoodies because you know they love hoodies. You in your hoodies. We can't see you at night in the street. You are blending in. It is just a shadow as a driver it is hard to see a pedestrian when they do last minute. Do not run in the middle of the street. When the light just turns green and I'm getting ready to go, I can't see you. And if I knock you over like a bowling pin, Imma be the problem. Then they're going to drug test me and alcohol test me and everything else. I don't have time for that. I've got things. Things to do. So I need you to stop running in the middle of the streets with your hoodies and understand that from a driver's perspective as a pedestrian, we cannot see pedestrians at night time in certain things when there's no light around. Be mindful. Love yourselves more nieces and nephews.

[Jade]

Very important.

[Kia]

And. And what in the. Whatever the non binary version is between those.

[Jade]

Yes, I. I agree wholeheartedly. My petty peeve. So I think, you know, just. I want us all. There's just a lot of talking happening on the Internet and I. I would caution us to remain mindful of the things that we say in mixed company. I think we should presume that all of these apps on this inter. On this Internet, like, you know, that stuff. That stuff. It's not just your network. The people that you think follow you are not the only people seeing everything that you're saying.

[Kia]

Yeah, no, you're not wrong.

[Jade]

And so there is something that I'm talking about community, and we're trying to lean heavily into that. I want us to be smart about that. I don't want you. I don't want y' all out here listing where you're gathering and what you're gonna be doing and what time. Like, like, I want us to. To reserve. Know that certain things are reserved for closed, encrypted. Encrypted conversation and discussion, okay? Because the streets are literally watching, okay? And I just, I feel like so many of us are talking and we've gotten accustomed to it because of the ways that we had to learn how to live our lives in the pandemic and otherwise. And, you know, I get it. And it's easy to sort of just like, forget certain things. But, but, but I want y' all to pay attention, okay? Because everyone showing up is not showing up for, With. With good intentions and the right reasons. So be safe and practice wisdom. Make sound decisions. And I know I sound like an auntie for real, but I just want y' all to be safe, okay? I just want y' all to be safe. There's so much going on out here. We have to be safe. In every way. And just remain mindful. Keep your head on a swivel. Okay. Don't, don't let your guard down. We need to be guarded up around here, especially now.

[Kia]

Yeah, we, we do. And you know we got to talk to. We gotta hold the children in your bosom because you know they really do they, you know, their lines are being significantly. Even when that little trend was happening on Tick Tock a year or two. I don't know what time is but where. What was this the song about I don't like my. I don't like like this or that. It's not something along those lines. And it was a bunch of biracial couples doing content to it where people stop. Just stop. Just stop it. Y' all just, just be mindful. I do agree. Be mindful. Especially as you learn that everybody don't.

[Jade]

Yeah, like I think, you know, like. And I think we are also losing sight that these corporations, there are people, there are ghost accounts, whistleblower accounts that are following and monitoring what y' all post, what we're all posting. Not just y', all, but I, I. And this is a word to all of us. I'm taking this for myself. Trying my best to be as thoughtful a consumer of information. Vetting, fact checking. We will keep those fact checking websites in our, our description box. And they're not just there to take up space. Use them.

[Kia]

No.

[Jade]

Now more than ever. Ask questions. Remember what I was saying, what Brittany Cooper shared with us about how knowledge is generated in communities of learners. Ask questions. Ask questions. Don't just, don't just read everything and believe everything that you read on face value and face value. But you are have a responsibility and a right to make sure that people what you, that you know, that people are being legit and straightforward in what they're communicating. And always prioritize your safety and the safety of those around you. Because you know, all kinds of stuff is happening out here.

[Kia]

It is. And we've got to be mindful.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

Swivel. Paying attention. But like we said earlier, not getting so caught up in it that you lose sight of everything that's going on in your own life. You still have to live. And when you're consumed, you don't live. But also when you're not mindful, you don't live.

[Jade]

Switch up.

[Kia]

You know, finding that balance.

[Jade]

Yeah. But yeah, that's all. And I mean not petty, but it is a peep of mind that y' all just be on here running your jibs. Okay. Jibbing and jabbing.

[Kia]

First of all, do you know one girl, I saw this one girl, that girl was. This girl got on the Internet and told all of the world Wide web that she just realized that she accidentally smoked crack in her 20s. And, you know, I'm just like, flabbergasted. But also, first of all, nobody accidentally smokes crack. I don't know if you have ever smelled crack before. It stinks. It stinks. But also, y' all don't have, like, where is your journal?

[Jade]

What's going on?

[Kia]

Where is your diary? Where's your, your shame?

[Jade]

All y' all people, all of the. What about the girls that thought that the clock app was gone and they started to get on there and tell all of their deepest, darkest secrets, only for it to be down for about 47 minutes.

[Kia]

Let me tell you something, sister. My child came to me sad. She was off of school that day, and she came and she goes, mama, Tick Tock is gone. I said, listen here. I said, tick Tock is coming back.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

I was like, I don't know when. I don't think it's going to be long. Little did I know. I was like, I don't think it's going to be long, but it's coming back. I was like, this is a ploy. And then, you know, and then I had to Jade mom her. I was like, you remember what I told you?

[Jade]

Oh, my gosh.

[Kia]

But I, I, I was like, do you, you know, this is all part of the distraction. I was like, you remember the conversation we had about the stimulus checks and how easy it was for these off of twelve hundred dollars? I was like, this Tick Tock are those stimulus checks and they're trying to use easy insulting bait to, to try to attempt to dupe us into thinking that this man is a hero. I was like, and there's going to be people who fall for it because there are. I was like, but I need you to understand this is a ploy. And this is, this is not for real. And literally, I don't even think it was the next day. I don't think it was but a few hours. And, you know, I was like, you see? And the children, so easily bought. She was like, but it's back now. There was no, like, there was no praise for him because it was back.

[Jade]

Yeah.

[Kia]

You know, I had to even show her them. I was like, I need you to look at the messaging as they're bringing it back. Like, I would try to have these conversations so that somewhere it sticks. And later on, you know, she'll be able to take it. But we, we, yeah, let's just keep ourselves guarded in the, in the, in the right ways.

[Kelly Augustine]

Yeah.

[Kia]

Open but guarded. You know what I'm saying? Living but aware.

[Jade]

Yeah, that's it. Yeah.

[Kia]

And we thank you all for listening to us yet again for another week. Eight years is crazy.

[Jade]

We appreciate y'.

[Kia]

All. We really do. Like, we do not take that for granted. We're so grateful for Kelly coming and sitting with us at the kitchen table her birthday. Twin, where have you been? So make sure you all click on the description box, check out all of the things that Kelly is doing, how you can support, if you're looking for your own consultation, and please remember that we also have a support link. Kia mentioned earlier how we have our fact checking links for you to be able to, you know, check the. That's running amok on the Internet. But also ways to donate all of the different causes, the genocide, the victims of the LA fire, etc. Just ways for us to support our community if we have the means to do so. Insist. Take them out and tell them what to do.

[Jade]

Make sure that you are doing your very best to keep your mind moisturized. By minding your business, that means worrying about yourself. Prioritizing your care, your comfort, your safety, your ease, and all the things that you need to have the life that you were promised. Worry about that and let these other people do whatever it is that they doing. Worry about yourself, okay? You also want to make sure that you are keeping your insides as moist as possible. Because that's why, that's when things are growing and luscious and wonderful. When, when everything is moist. And keep. Drink your water. Make sure that your, your body is not craving hydration. That's very important. Don't do that. And finally, you want to make sure that you're moisturizing your skin. Although we have turned the corner in winter, the. The coldest days of winter, you know, are winding down. You know, the ash is ever present. You want to make. Don't. Don't get caught out here looking all scaly.

[Kia]

Okay.

[Jade]

Take care of your largest organ, your skin.

[Kia]

Yes.

[Jade]

Because your black will crack if it's dry. Bye. Bye.

[Kia]

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[Kelly Augustine]

Welcome to McDonald's. Can I take your order, miss?

[Kia]

I've been hitting up McDonald's for years. Now it's back. We need snack wraps. What's a snack wrap? It's the return of something great. Snack wrap is back.