Natonya Medford from JustNatonya is our SlubBlogger of the Week. She’s a fashion blogger and promotes body positivity. Read on to know how she inspires others through blogging!
When I held my first Barbie doll, I knew I was driving down “Daring Fashionista Blvd”. I took a look at the two-piece outfit she was wearing and knew she needed a style update. I used to cut and design clothes from my closet to give my Barbie a whole new wardrobe. It was then I realized that I adapted the innovative, resourceful and strategic mentality.
My name is Natonya Medford and I live in Dallas, Texas. And I grew up always wanting to help people through the fashion platform. After graduating from the University of Texas at Arlington with a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Relations and a focus on fashion, I can now combine the two worlds of styling and communication.
Being a fashion enthusiast means I am the go-to person for all the latest styles and trends but what sets my blog JustNatonya apart from others is the inclusion factor. I am passionate about helping everyone to love and embrace the body God gave us because we are purposely made to be different and that makes us all beautiful.
It wasn’t always easy, I had to learn the true meaning of style. Style is all about confidence. No trendy handbag or ‘get the look’ piece will make you fashionable. The foundation to legendary style is derived from inner beauty. Loving who you are and being comfortable in your body makes it easy for people to relate to and feel your authenticity. You could be the woman who wears nothing but thrift clothes and become the most stylish person in the world because of your positive spirit. It’s about the confidence, embracing who you are and not trying to conform to the world’s guidelines of fashion.
I recently launched an Instagram page @sheiconic, which promotes body positivity by celebrating all stylish women. SheIconic means the world to me because I’m featuring women on Instagram with different body types, skin, hair and style showing the diversity and reality of fashion because the cookie cutter image is irrelevant this day and age. I want people to know their world is full of beauty and you don’t have to look like the women in the magazines, being yourself is just enough.
My style is always changing because I’m always changing. I’m motivated by the fact that I can wear the same shirt three different ways or mixing two unconventional prints together for a wild look.
When I was fourteen years old, I used to hide my figure under my red knit cardigan until one day my mother told me not to be ashamed of my curves. Today, I dress to emphasize my womanly shape. High-waist jeans, cropped tops, t-shirt dresses, bodycon pencil skirts, combat boots, chunky heels and canvas sneakers are staples in my closet. You’ll never see me without a handbag and funky jewelry to accessorize my #ootd!
One day, I hope to launch my own magazine and clothing line featuring every body type. I want to show that we define fashion, it doesn’t define us. Thank you ShilpaAhuja.com for featuring me in your SlubBloggers Series, it means a lot to have another platform to share inspiration about body positivity.
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Sahana is a Senior Staff Writer at ShilpaAhuja.com. With an experience in fashion and lifestyle writing, Sahana is responsible for Indian and international fashion week coverage every year, and is developing an expertise in apparel trend forecasting. She also writes about health and fitness, having pursued yoga for 6 years now. She’s not a gym person at all but is all for “running in the park” and is an amateur cyclist. Books and coffee are her other passions. She’s also an amateur photographer. She’s a hardcore Bollywood fan and she loves to cover the nostalgic topics on the same. From fashion trends to famous characters, she can make anyone love Bollywood! Her best article has been 90s Bollywood fashion, a readers’ favorite so far! Prior to her experience with ShilpaAhuja.com, Sahana has written as a freelance author for online magazine, Mashup Corner, and interned at EventsHigh as a content writer. Her blogs on basic fashion, makeup, fitness and city’s food joints that gave her a chance to experiment with her writing. She also has voiced her opinions about feminism and equal rights for men and women at PolkaCafe journals and after quitting her job, she decided to take up writing as her full time career.
Sahana is an engineering graduate and has worked in an MNC, Tesco, for more than a year as an Operations Support. It was her sheer love for fashion that made her quit the monotonous 9 to 5 job to pursue a career in the fashion industry. She’s originally from Bangalore and is currently settled in Chennai (she’s loving the city)! For any queries and discussions, contact her at [email protected] You can also tweet her at https://twitter.com/Sahana_17
Whoa, whoa, you’re making me cry. You just wrote my thoughts exactly.