My Fabulous Inspirations!

Andre Leon Talley
and Anna Wintour

I will never forget as a child the day I was watching the Style Network (back when it was non-stop fashion) and there was this special they showed with Andre Leon Talley from Vogue. I instantly admired him because I had never seen an African-American, homosexual male on TV with a Gucci bag so big before.

In retrospect, I do not know if I admired him or his Gucci bag more, but this set the stage for my fabulous journey to get me where I am today. This one moment changed everything in my life. He served as my inspiration to become who I am today and allowed me to believe I am able to be just as fabulous as him, if not better.

One of the people who have recently inspired me is Diann Valentine because when I met her two months ago, she blew me away with her fabulousness, so much so I had to tweet about her. Here is the tweet:

Daryl J. and Diann Valentine

Even though she is one of the most fabulous people I have ever met, she is so humble and sincere, which made me like her more. She was so eager to take a picture with me which came as a surprise, but I am thankful she did. So please make sure you support her fabulous every week by watching her show “I Do Over” on WE TV.

What I love most about the picture is that even though neither of us has on a stitch of make-up, our fabulous radiates through the picture. It is because she owns her own business, has a TV show, and is fabulous beyond measure, she inspired me to start this blog and pursue my fabulous dreams as she herself has done. 

People are often not aware of it, but being fabulous is a process and the initial steps of the process require you to determine who inspires you in a fabulous manner and to emulate a part of them. It is true that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but being fabulous is more about taking bits & pieces from others while making sure you are not just a carbon copy of the original.

In high school when I was learning about writing style, I was taught you have to study the style of great writers (I used Zora Neale Hurston and Ralph Ellison as my writing inspirations) and merge the style of the writers who inspire you to create your own style. And honestly, being fabulous is no different. It is about taking what you find fabulous in others, combining it, and making it your own.

Trust me, it takes time to find your inner fabulous and there is nothing wrong with experimenting until you get it right. But when you finally determine what makes you fabulous, you will know without a doubt and others will begin to take notice.

Because to be fabulous, you have to know what makes you fabulous!