Beauty. It is a word fraught with passion, anxiety, fear, boldness, confusion, pain, pleasure, happiness, sadness, the downfall of governments, and dare we say—hope? When Oxygen asked me to anchor the Beauty Blog on their new OOMPH.Net! site, I was excited—and more than a little intimidated. Sure, I’m in the business of creating and selling products that promote more beautiful skin, hair, bodies, and lifestyles. I know how to work with product developers and perfumers to formulate a body scrub or soufflé that will soften skin to a delicious glow and emit a long-lasting fragrance that will turn heads when a woman walks through a room. I embrace the power of believing in yourself and have been known to captivate audiences with my rousing speeches about the importance of taking care of yourself and making a difference in your life and the lives of others. But, as a Black woman who is overweight I most certainly have my own concerns and self-doubts about being beautiful. You better believe there are mornings when I flat out do not want to face the world.

I have discovered that success—in whatever form—does not make you confident about how you view yourself in the mirror. I promise you the most successful of women—and men—can look into the mirror and find fault with themselves. Even the proclaimed “beautiful” will admit to a concern about something they feel is less than ideal. How many times have you read about a gorgeous actress or model who expresses disgust with some part of her body? And you simply roll your eyes and wonder how anyone of her caliber can dare to complain, right?

With this in mind, I want to make this blog a dialog about the very essence of beauty in all of its forms. Of course we all want to look great, but I have discovered over the years that to be beautiful is so much more than the physical structure of a body or face. I have looked at older women whose faces are lined with years of back-breaking work and the struggles of raising families single-handedly and I have been enveloped in awe by the beauty of their spirits and the glow that seemed to emanate from their very souls. I have seen frazzled and ordinary young women whose beauty shines the moment they throw back their heads and laugh about some goofy situation they’ve just experienced.

This Beauty Blog is meant to be a place where we can all learn something about beauty in all of its intricacies. It’s a place to have fun, to pose questions, to answer questions, maybe even argue a little bit about our individual definitions of beauty. I want men to join in our discussions. In fact, I’m already posing questions to men to receive their feedback about how they define beauty—the answers are interesting and enlightening—and I look forward to sharing some of these thoughts with you in the weeks ahead.

My plan is to divide this blog into three segments: How we think about beauty; how we feel about beauty; and what we do about beauty. In thinking about beauty we’ll investigate other cultures and their definitions of beauty and how we can learn from them. In exploring how we feel about beauty I’ll be trying out new beauty products and giving you my opinion about them, and inviting your comments about products you love that help you feel more beautiful. And finally, we’ll take a look at ways each of us can experience beautiful moments—like taking “20 minutes Just for You” each day.

So bookmark this site, sit back, fasten your seatbelt, put your tray table in its upright and secure position, and get ready to soar in new and intriguing directions as we explore the world of beauty. If you have doubts about your ability to be beautiful, this is your place. If you think you have some answers and insight that would be helpful to the rest of us, visit us often.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said “Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we will find it not.” My wish for each of you, dear readers, is that you will discover your beauty and carry it with you wherever you go like a torch guiding your path.

Nadine