Life Unfiltered - The Opening Chapter

Beauty Beyond Barriers - Welcome to my very first Blog post

Beauty is more than skin deep. There is beauty in being open, honest and raw. There is beauty is being supportive and there is beauty is being supported. Welcome to Life Unfiltered, a space where I invite you to join me on a journey.

Wow - I cannot believe I am sat here writing my first blog post, something I've been manifesting for years. I do apologise in advance as I feel like this is going to be quite a lengthy one. I just feel like I have so much I want to talk to you about.

As I sit down to write this, I am filled with a mix of emotions - excitement, vulnerability, and a deep sense of purpose. For years, I have poured my heart and soul into perfecting the art of beauty, helping others feel confident and radiant in their own skin. The beauty industry has been my canvas, where I have painted stories of transformation and self-discovery. I’ve been talking and thinking about it for so long, it's finally time to start. For as long as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to create my own space on the internet as an outlet to share my creativity, whether it be through my profession as a makeup artist, or as special needs mother just wanting talk about my experiences. To share with you my new findings & learnings, tips and techniques, my honest reviews & products that work for me and that I truly believe in via my blog, Instagram and YouTube channel.

Me in a nutshell. I am 39 years old & a special needs mother to my beautiful daughter, Amber. By profession I am a Hair and Makeup Artist. Academically I have 2 Degrees. A BA Honours and a Masters in PR, Communications and Events Management. I am based in Berkshire & London and I have recently qualified as a Travel Agent, specialising in special needs travel and honeymoons.

My journey began in 2010, the birth of my most precious gift - Amber. A make-up artist at the time & becoming a special-needs mother at the tender age of 26, make-up was a hobby and an escape for me as I navigated the new and now even more complex world of motherhood. There were and still are many hurdles but in all of it I didn’t want to let my passion for make up artistry go. My passion became my career which became my escape. Call it my therapy. Meeting new people and sharing my story gave me reason to continue pursuing what I absolutely love. Slowly, I found the courage to share Amber’s story on Instagram as an outlet & a way to reach other parents who were in the same boat and uplift them, make them feel seen and heard. With Amber being loved and admired for her courage and strength, our story resonated with so many families. Using this as motivation, I powered on, taking my online presence from strength to strength and has since amassed an organic following of 9 thousand plus people who engage with both the professional make-up artistry content as well as Amber’s story.

Over the 15 years that I have been a make-up artist and 13 years that I have been a mother to a special needs child, I have experienced and crossed paths with many strong and likeminded individuals. So many mothers reach out every time I put a post up to tell me that they too are in similar situations but are actually scared to talk about it publicly. I very quickly realised, through what they were telling me, that they would come to my page because it uplifted them, give them hope and strength. I’ve met mothers who I’ve have done make-up on and during our glam sessions they talk to me about some of the Trauma that they had been through. All of a sudden I realised I wasn't alone. This led me to wanting to create a safe space on my platform for others.

So here we are, Paven - the brand & Life Unfiltered - the blog is born. With the aim to drive, inspire, uplift and empower through storytelling and transparency. By promoting realness and embracing imperfection. in addition, Paven is a lifestyle and beauty brand that aims to inspire individuals to embrace their unique selves, feel empowered through hair and make-up and live their lives with confidence, while also making a positive impact on their lives and society as a whole.

I’ve asked myself over and over again what has inspired me and each time I arrive at the same conclusion. My Amber. She inspires me every single day. With all the complications and challenges she faces; she wakes up smiling every morning and goes about her day the best she knows how. She has made me want to work on myself to become the very best version of me. Our journey didn’t go as we planned. Shit happens. Plans change and most of the time are completely out of our control. Sometimes in life you just have to ride out the wave. And what a ride it’s been.

For those of you who know us will know that Amber is special needs with various complexities & whilst it’s true that this has been the most difficult journey we’ve embarked on it’s also true that watching her grow and experience a whole new world with her has been the most meaningful part of my life. I have learned and grown more since Amber than any other time in my life. She’s taught me patience & resilience and I get to witness first hand all those miracles that I would’ve been too busy to have noticed otherwise. I’ve learnt acceptance and that there is a thing called unconditional love. So although those plans that changed were completely out of my hands, the one thing that I can control is how I react and respond. More importantly, what I make of it. Being divorced and being left to manage a medically vulnerable child, running a household single handedly, is probably the worst nightmare that anyone can possibly face. And believe me when I say at times I thought I would never make it but looking back I wish there was somebody to tell me that this is going to turn out to be the most beautiful chapter in my life. Hey, I guess my experience has told me that sometimes some of the worst things imaginable that have happened to you will in actual fact be the most beautiful things that has ever happened to you.

As you can imagine, things have not been easy & one thing I will say is that this is not a ‘feel sorry for me’ sob story. In fact it’s far from it. This is my true life story and experience so far and something that I feel will help and inspire others. I want this to be an honest, open, trusted and safe space for everyone. One thing I’ve learnt is that no matter how hard things are, mindset is everything. I have been at that point where I didn’t want to carry on but I have found ways to overcome these thoughts and feelings & I know I am not alone. It is what it is and when I was up against a brick wall there is only way I wanted to go. Forward. So if there is anyone I can inspire, anyone that I can help even if it’s in the smallest way possible I will know that this space would have done its job.

My love to you always, speak soon x