The result has been that I have been invited by the director of Nashville Star and Wynonna's glam squad to help redesign her look for eight episodes using any designers I feel are appropriate. Talk about an opportunity!! If we can remake her image and really allow her to become a stunning example of a stylish and contemporary full-figured femme, we all benefit from that elevation. As I write this, her stylist is coming to visit New York next week and view all of the presentations from each of the designers. Renee has convinced Wynonna that this is the right direction to take…to spread her wings, get a whole new look and reach another level.
In the meantime, Renee sent me all of Wynonna's material to familiarize myself with this new "client." I received her new book "Coming Home to Myself".
Reading her book is like reading the diary of her life with all the bruises, bumps and blemishes inherent therein. Wynonna's rise to fame is a fascinating tale which endears you with her honesty and matter of fact description seen through the eyes of a young woman who became a country western superstar as part of a mother/daughter singing duo. Wynonna is right there with us, revealing her pain and doubt and doing the best she can to live a well-rounded life.
We obviously don't have to work out our worst fears in the public eye, but by her doing that and courageously opening up to what she went through, Coming Home to Myself, is a reflection of all of our wants and desires and an honest assessment of where she is now and where she wants to be. She refers to women who have influenced her profoundly as (s)heroes and I absolutely love that. One of her songs is 'Peace in this House' and it is a wonderful ode to living a life of serenity and respect and open communication. She has become one of my (s)heroes now and I am extremely honored to be able to lend whatever skills and abilities I have to get her to a place where she is appreciated and acknowledged for her true beauty. Isn't it amazing that I was in Nashville just exactly when I serendipitously needed to be to meet her people? As Wynonna says, "Coincidence is just God's way of staying invisible." |
Kadene modeling in the MonifC.com Fall 2005 Show
And on a final note, it was with shock and disbelief that we all learned of model Kadene Kerr's passing on December 15, 2005. Kadene had suffered a seizure and by the time her family was able to discover her 'friend network', it was December 22nd and the holiday season was well underway. Going through her personal papers they found out that she was active in the plus model community and finally posted on the websites about her untimely death. I had just seen her at Curventures and was so happy she was there to lend her usual help and support to everything I did. Kadene was a wonderful resource, always shooting me emails with links and information she thought would be of interest to me. She even would send me electronic greeting cards on my birthday. I was astounded by her thoughtfulness.
I got to know her over the past few years and knew she was also a nurse and sang in the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir. She was cheerful, cooperative and so appreciative of being included in a TV fashion segment that I was doing. On the way back, we wanted to drop her at her place in Brooklyn. We were all hungry and she insisted on treating us to her favorite Jamaican restaurant somewhere around Willoughby Street. She told me that she was so proud that she fulfilled two of her life dreams…to be a nurse and to model.
We will all miss her terrific support and her way of always making you feel that what you were doing mattered so much. A memorial service is being planned in the coming months and our prayers are with her family and friends. With her sudden passing we all have lost a loyal and dedicated full-figured diva who knew the importance of getting out there and just including yourself.
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