A RED DRESS ON CHOCOLATE IS THE BOMB|| LUXE GAL

Hello there, thank you for stopping by today. It's a beautiful stormy rainy day in my neck of the woods. Hope you're having a great day wherever you are reading this.
I woke up in the wee hours of the morning to the LOUD blasts of thunder and lightning. It was very thunderous indeed. The whole house was vibrating and I couldn't help by thank God for nature🙏.

In today's blog post, I will be sharing some of my new pieces from Femme Luxe Finery. As you may or may not already know, I am always excited to try new pieces that I find interesting and out of my comfort zone.  It's like playing dress up for my own enjoyment. Lol! A plus to this, is sharing it with you all who may be looking for inspiration or looking to try a different clothing store or style. Just allow me be your manicon😁😂.

Let us begin... This beautiful Red Belted Bodycon Midi Dress is simply the showstopper and highlight of this blog. It's beautiful! Here's where to get it: https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/red-belted-bodycon-midi-dress-angelica.

Red like this, goes very well with chocolate skin. The contrast is so beautiful and captivating. I love it! It's one of those dresses that seems to put a spell on you lol...

I love how it hugs my athletic figure so well. No wonder my sweet man said he would like to take me out on a date wearing this dress😊. A dress does have a way of influencing your experience doesn't it?😁.

Next... my Mid Wash Distressed Ripped Jeans.

Here's the link to get it: https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/mid-wash-distressed-ripped-mom-jeans-cora. I like this pair of jeans. It's a piece that can be dressed up or down.

I paired it with this Black Cargo Jacket and it looks great!

Here's the link for the Jacket: https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/black-long-sleeve-belted-utility-cargo-jacket-abril.

Last piece I want to share is my Black Belted Hoodie. I prefer to wear this hoodie without the belt. You can style it however you want. It's completely up to you. Remember your style is as you define and want it to be.

The belt I am holding above my head came with the hoodie. I prefer the hoodie unbelted. You may prefer it with the belt.

Here's the link for the hoodie: https://femmeluxefinery.co.uk/products/black-belted-long-line-hoodie-dress-theo

I am very excited to see what pieces I share next. I will be picking new pieces that I haven't tried before for sure. Femme Luxe Finery has a variety of clothes that you may like. Check them out today and see for yourself.

See you soon!
Maryam

MY MORNING ROUTINE WITH A CUP OF SPICED TEA

Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely friend. I hope you're having an amazing 2020 and are guarding your energy field from energy vampires. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life. Today is a beautiful day!

Before we go into today's topic. I met an amazing person the other day. He is about to be 85 but doesn't look a day older than 50. I started a conversation with him and he told me that one of the secrets is exercising and eating the right stuff. Thank you Jack. Your energy was beautiful and I am so thankful to have met you and talked with you.

What is my morning routine? For starters, my morning routine is flexible and dynamic. The only part I can tell you that is 99% of the time the same is my tea. I love tea. Do you like tea? I'm always on the search for a new type of natural tea that could give a blast of natural flavors to my tastebuds. There's something calming and glorious about a hot cup of tea in the morning. I can't really explain it like I'd like to, but I'll try anyway.

A cup of natural spiced tea in the morning, is like walking out of a negative atmosphere into a very positively charged atmosphere, which removes every ounce of negativity from you. It instantly leaves you feeling invincible, like you never had a negative experience. That's it! It's absolutely miraculous.

In short, I love teas. I also enjoy making my own from fresh ingredients such as ginger roots, garlic, cinnamon, mint and I could go on and on.

This morning, I made me a glorious pot of fresh ginger tea. It was amazing! I still have some left and you bet I'll be enjoying it through out the day.
I make my ginger tea by slicing up my ginger root into smaller bits and pieces. Place the pieces into a teapot and add about 2 cups of water into the pot and let boil. I then turn off the stove and let simmer for about 10 minutes. I get a cup and pour me a glorious cup and add a bit of honey and enjoy!

I recently came across a mini granite mortar and pestle on Amazon. Many years ago, in my father's house, I used to use wooden mortar and pestle to pound spices and yams. We also had a granite grinding stone for our spices. I was very surprised and intrigued to see a granite mortar and pestle. Of course, I wanted to check it out. I must say I'm very glad I tried it. I pounded my ginger roots in it and it turned out amazing. All of the spicy flavors expanded and when I boiled it for my tea. OMG! The tea was glorious! You need to try this mortar and pestle for yourself. It's a multi-purpose item for your pantry.

Here's the Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07S4KKH9Q
They are currently offering a 15% off coupon. Great deal for a great product! I have so many spice ideas that I am currently playing with in my mind. I can't wait to blend my own creation in my new mortar.

As always, I enjoy sharing products I am currently loving with you. The goal is to share because you might just find inspiration in it.

Thanks for reading.

Maryam💖

HOW REDUCING MY CONSUMPTION OF BREAD HELPED MY WEIGHT

Happy New Year wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely friends. I hope you had a fun celebration yesterday. I wish you a 2020 filled with love, health, bliss and opulence.

It is always exciting sharing with you what I am learning or enjoying at the moment. On the last post, we talked about how to start your weight-loss goals and I shared some personal tips with you. I hope your journey is going well thus far.

I have discovered that it is also helpful to be specific when sharing weight-loss tips. It is my goal to share specific tips that have helped me, hoping that it helps you also.

I love bread! Do you love bread? I have traveled a good bit and in all my travels thus far, I'm yet to visit  a place where bread is not served as starter. Bread is truly a staple in most places. At every location, whether it be a restaurant or home bread is usually served with a personal touch. I also have a multiple variety of ways that I serve bread in my home. Whoever invented bread is a genius!

Bread is usually the hardest to give up, by those who are trying to lose weight. When the discipline is applied to cutting down on the quantity that is consumed, the impact is almost felt immediately. If you are in the habit of eating a lot of bread, whether in form of pizza, doughnuts, subs, sandwiches, or pasta, you may want to start your journey by reducing how much of it you eat. If you are in the habit of eating bread during every meal, try cutting it down to 2 meals and reducing the size to a smaller portion.

When I first started my fitness journey, I cut bread from my diet completely for a period of 1 week and I could tell the difference. Bread is digested in the body as sugar. It is carbohydrate. Too much sugar in the body can make you lethargic. The body gets fattened from the increase of carbs and a decrease in physical activity. There's only so much carbs that the body can metabolize at a certain amount of time. If you consume more than the body can metabolize without any kind of physical activity, you are going to gain weight.

Whenever you plan on eating a lot of bread, make sure you follow it up with a high level of physical activity afterwards. I do this whenever I splurge. I can usually tell after eating too much bread. My body feels lethargic and I get a buzz in my head that I don't like. I usually find a good run afterwards very helpful.

I know it can be very challenging to go for a run if you're not used to being active. But don't be discouraged. Every great journey begins with a step. Try putting on your headphones while taking a 15 mins walk up and down your driveway or to/in the park. It does wonders. Try making walking a habit and watch how your body begins to enjoy it.

Do you want to know a secret? I ate a lot of bread before making this post. Can you guess what is happening after this post? I'm going for a run😆!

Thank you for stopping by today. I hope you have an amazing New Year!

💛,
Maryam

Sandwich bread picture is from https://butterwithasideofbread.com/homemade-bread/
Other pictures are from https://redrosebakerynj.com/fresh-breads/

MY CANDID ADVICE ABOUT WEIGHT-LOSS IN THE NEW YEAR|| Feat Femme Luxe

Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are y'all doing today? I hope y'all are having a great day today and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life. Today is a beautiful day!

It's New Year's Eve and there's this craze about weight-loss goals. I have been receiving questions about my weight-loss journey. While there are millions of posts and advice on social media about weight-loss, I didn't follow any particular advice. I have learned that the best way to be the ideal self you aspire to be is to start right where you are. You can be inspired by someone but never let your goals be someone else. The real success is being better than you were. In essence, you are your own inspiration. You want to weigh lighter, start working on being lighter. Don't be discouraged that you are not like Maryam or somebody else. You're always your best self! I hope you see that. Don't think of someone else as a competition or idol because that can be dangerous.

The journey to lose weight is not just a physical one but more so a psychological one. You must understand that your weight can be increased or reduced by you! If your issue is binge eating anything and everything, you must know that discipline is very important. If your consumption is more than your physical activity, you're going to gain weight. Here's my simple formula for starting on your journey. I must say that you should get rid of the mental pressure to lose weight fast, first!

Try eating less portion and the frequency of your eating. For instance, if you're used to eating every hour, try eating every two hours and less quantity. Next, if you're not used to taking walks or going for a run, try walking 15 minutes everyday. Combine that to eating less frequently, you should start seeing some improvements in your weight-loss within 14 days of starting.

Here's a most important tip: Don't be discouraged if you don't notice any difference. Don't compare your journey to somebody else's. You are your own unique person. Approach life from the perspective of complete love and appreciation for yourself. be conscious of you, my friend and your journey will get easier, better and exciting!

I hope this helps you in some way.

Are you in the market for fashionable affordable clothes? Check out these pieces from Femme Luxe Finery

This beautiful Mauve Satin Long Sleeve Shrilled Waist Crop Top is a change from my regular wardrobe pieces but I love it! The color goes very nicely with my shiny chocolate skin.

This gorgeous Black Mesh Panel Wide Leg Jumpsuit Wendy  is my very first black jumpsuit. I love how easy it is to put on and take off.

This  Silver Metallic Long Sleeve Bodycon Mini Dress is a night-out in the town kind of outfit. It's shiny and glittery. You sure will be like the stars in this number.

This Black Iridescent Gold Strappy Bodycon Midi Dress is my favorite out of all the recent pieces I ordered. It fits perfectly and it's soft on my skin. The glitter gives it an added character that makes me my own favorite eye chocolate 😊.

I enjoy dressing up and sharing pictures of my new pieces with you all. If you like any of these pieces, check out Femme Luxe Finery today.

I hope you have an exciting New Years Day and a very successful 2020!

💖,
Maryam

YOUR HAIR PREFERENCES AND LIFE LESSONS FROM THE MASTERS

Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are y'all doing today? I hope y'all are having an amazing day today and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life! Today is a beautiful day!

My hair is just what it is "hair!" It has nothing whatsoever to do with who I am and what I decide to pursue. Choosing to braid my hair or go bald has no effect whatsoever on my wellbeing. I have seen many a woman, who is convinced that her beauty and relationships are influenced by her hairstyle. These areas of your life are only influenced by your hairstyle choice as long as you let them. If you have subconsciously accepted yourself performing certain tasks or enjoying certain relationships in a certain way, only when you have a certain type of hair (long, short, straight, afro, curly, kinky, weave or braids), then that's exactly what you get.

 Throwback 6 years ago!

Our lives in the physical plain are the concepts we've accepted from our internal voice or subtle suggestions of others. Your identify or concept of yourself has been strongly influenced by an accumulation of concepts from daily lives, families, backgrounds and societies we've been a part of.

You may ask how this has anything to do with your hair. Here's the connection; your hairstyle is your choice. Don't spend hours thinking about how differently people will respond were you to cut your hair or grow it. Were you to wear a weave or braid your hair. Were you to go natural or straighten your hair with a chemical. It's all up to you at the end of the day. It's important you know this.

Your beauty is inevitable and undeniable. Beauty is you! Your outward appearance and masks, can't add to or take away from your beauty. This is for my sisters thinking that beauty is one thing and usually physical described by a hairstyle, length or texture.

Back to being bald😍

No snowflake is the same intrinsically. Your preference for hair shouldn't be influenced by your perceived reactions from people. Life is a play. We all take on different characters depending on the scene and situation presented. You are the central character. Don't live it being an extra in your own show!

If you're feeling like chopping off your hair, do it! Don't overthink it or worry about it. If you don't like it, wear a wig or grow your hair but make sure you have fun because it is that easy. Most people suffer immense psychological pain because of the fear of what might happen and this is usually worse than what actually happens. Don't let fear control your life. Make your decisions as though there was nothing at stake. Be free in your heart from judgements from people. Most people are in a prison that they created for themselves. Life is constantly changing. Getting a new hairstyle when you feel like it, shouldn't be such an ordeal my sister.

Throwback to 3 months ago!

The superstition that hair makes a woman beautiful is not correct. You are beautiful because you are beautiful. All women are beautiful. All people are beautiful. We have freewill to choose what we prefer to express. I consciously want to make choices that I want, not choices someone suggests, whether intentionally or not. Life is meant to be lived being your authentic self. This concept changes as you go through the stream of life too. However, live each moment consciously by being in the moment and taking responsibility for every decision and action you make and take respectively.

I have been studying the materials and discourses of many masters and teachers from the Hamalayans and the more I study, the more I learn about myself and the more I understand about the universe. One of the most profound things I have understood is that we are beautiful! This beauty can not and should not be in comparison to what someone else looks like or what has been defined as beauty by society. Society is an illusion. Don't live your life based off of an illusion. Look within my sister!
Sister, your hair is not that serious. If you want to experiment with different styles, don't let anything stop you! You go girl!

My own journey has been different. My hair has never really been a big deal for me. I could grow it like I did recently or go bald. I like simplicity and don't like spending time combing my hair and styling it. The easier choice for me is to go bald. You know what works for you. Are you the type that likes to spend 30-60 minutes styling your hair? I can assure you that I am not! Determine your answer and make sure it is not influenced by other people's unrealistic expectations. You're beautiful regardless! That's your true SELF!

I hope you've enjoyed this reading.
I'm sending you a lot of love and light!
Merry Christmas!
Maryam💖

SPICE UP YOUR HOLIDAY COOKING WITH MCCORMICK'S OLD BAY SEASONING

Hello, wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely friends. How are y'all doing today? I hope y'all are having a great day today and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life! Today is a beautiful day!

I love cooking! I love cooking! I love cooking! I can't say that loud enough. I love cooking for a small crowd and a big crowd. It really doesn't matter who I'm cooking for. I just love it! Cooking is very therapeutic and fun for me. I can cook in any space small or big, but cooking in an open kitchen like this one, pictured below is amazing!

If you like open spaces, this one would put you at another level. Or maybe it's just me. I love this picture, makes me want to jump in the kitchen and start cooking.

Cooking for me is about flavors. I love a rich mixture of spiced flavor like McCormick's Old Bay Seasoning. Old Bay represents a rich outburst of food beauty on my tastebuds. Your tastebuds activate richly when you take a bite of my Old Bay seasoned fried or baked. It's delicious!

I love Old Bay Seasoning soooo much! There's no time I make my signature Old Bay seasoned fried chicken for my sweet man,  that he doesn't shower me with complements.  Who doesn't like complements right?😏 It is really goooood!
I have been using Old Bay Seasoning for over 6 years and I am convinced that I will use it forever!

 If you don't eat meat like me, not to worry. You can use Old Bay Seasoning to spice up your veggie diet too. It's very good on vegetables too. If you are a pescatarian, you're in great company too. Old Bay Seasoning is great for that too.

Old Bay Seasoning is great on BBQ chicken too. Clean up your chicken and marinade it in your Old Bay Seasoning. Add your BBQ sauce over it and let sit for about 2 to 3 hours. Then bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Let cool for 10-15 minutes and serve.

I hope you enjoy your Christmas season, cooking it up in your kitchen using Old Bay Seasoning.

Thanks for stopping by,

Maryam
💖

A HEARTY CONGRATULATIONS TO ZOZIBINI TUNZI CROWNED MISS UNIVERSE 2019

Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are y'all doing today? I hope y'all are having an amazing day today and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryam's Joyful Life. Today is a beautiful day!

Zozibini Tunzi former Miss South Africa was crowned 2019 Miss Universe a couple of days ago. I dedicate this post to her and the inspiration she's brought to young girls all over the world. "It is always deemed impossible until someone does it."  Your success is NEVER the result of being born in the perfect skin, race, country or family. It is born from knowing how much of God you have in you and how to access God in you!

Zozibini will serve as an inspiration for every brown girl and woman who has had to deal with self-esteem issues and derogatory remarks for the color of their skin. I hope that young girls and women all over will see this as an inspiration to believe in themselves.

In today's social media age, women and young girls compare themselves to highly edited images of other women that they are deceived to strive towards. While many of them are unaware of the negative energy that saturates these images, they are however, very well influenced by them. This negative energy shows up in different subtle ways. The most common way it shows up is in their minds. It may appear as a harmless little thought about losing an extra pound or getting plastic surgery in order to measure up...  It could show up as a mindless thought of feeling inadequate.

Anytime you feel negative about your skin, size or appearance, I want you to remember that you're perfect! The God who created you didn't make a mistake. Strive to be a better version of you each passing day. Don't let somebody's poor image they hold of themselves, affect how you feel about you. Anyone who condemns you because of how you look, they are expressing how they feel about themselves not you. You're simply perfect sister!

Don't let negative thoughts creep into your mind. Embrace yourself and speak positive things to yourself.

Thank you Zozibini for inspiring young girls and women everywhere. Your reign has brought a new vibe to what is beautiful. All that God created is beautiful and thank you for reminding us all of that.

Until next time,
💖