This is a blue wall in Woodbrook that I pass all the time. I stopped to look at it for longer than the usual 3o milliseconds a couple weeks ago and truly appreciated its vibrant colours along with the purple bushy things.

That’s what this blog is about, really, finding beauty in unexpected places, and where is more unexpected than the place we have become so used to…our own home.

A post I read last week on the page of one of my favourite black travel bloggers, @asiyami_gold, really resonated with me.

She wrote:

I’m passionate about creating more beautiful images for women of color on the internet. When I look at the women whose lifestyles inspire me I also envision more women of color living that lifestyle. Living a beautiful life is not this obscure, impalpable, herculean mystery that only the special among us will attain. We are all capable of living beautifully, whether we choose to share it with the world or not. Decide what the perfect life looks like and go after it despite the challenges, learn to improvise and work around them.
I’m always willing to go the extra mile to make sure my photos are well documented. I love beauty and although my life isn’t perfect… I always find beauty and in all the imperfections. That makes life worth living for me.

She pretty much stepped into my head and transcribed my thoughts about how I want to live my life. My obsession with beauty takes a tangible form (my career and my business, Immortelle Beauty) but I also seek it out in every area of my life, and especially when I’m not travelling, when I’m stuck in Trinidad and sometimes get uninspired.

Last week, again, I read a post of a traveler’s review of a trip to Trinidad that also helped me see the beauty of Trinidad again with new eyes. El Camino travel is a travel group that goes to off the beaten path destinations (think cigar rolling in Nicaragua, exploring markets in Mexico City or soaking in a mud bath in a Colombian volcano) with a focus on local social entrepreneurs and artisans. They have added our very own Trinidad & Tobago to their list of locales this year. I was lucky to meet and have dinner with the group while they were here and was very excited to hear their feedback when they went home. Take a read of blogger Arielle Vey’s testimonial here and stop for a few milliseconds to see our beauty reflected back at us.

Photography: Kyle Walcott Photography

Dress: Nor Black Nor White purchased at Exhibit A, Shoes: Sam Edelman (similar on sale here), Sunglasses: Quay Australia on Asos.com