Today we’d like to introduce you to Ericka Durant.
Ericka, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
In 2012, while I was living in Tampa, Florida, I started a blog called Shoes with a View. In 2014, I stopped blogging because…well, life. Now, we are in 2014, I am back home in Jacksonville, FL and my life getting back on track. My hair is flourishing, my skin is clear, my child is healthy, and life is good. While scrolling on Instagram, I came across a post from @MoKnowsHair for a Hot Head deep conditioning cap. I entered and guess what? I WON! (One thing you will learn about me, is I win a lot of contest. This wasn’t the first thing I have won via social media). I was excited. I did my 3rd big chop, so I was looking forward to using my new cap to deep condish my hair. Let’s fast forward again, this time to 2017. I’m growing out my big chop and my hair is the healthiest it’s been in a long time.
When I’m out and about, I’m getting asked almost daily for product recommendations, what I think about a particular product, or what can I recommend for a child/mother/sister/grandchild’s hair. Also at this point, I’m getting asked if I have a blog they can refer back to. No, I don’t, but should I? The wheels begin turning for me again. ‘Ericka, you should blog again’. I kept hearing a voice tell me. Anyway, I’m back n Mo’s page and she has another giveaway going. This time, it is for a $150 Sally gift card. I read the rules and think to myself, why not. I am also thinking, what are the chances that I would win another contest of hers again. Yall, the odds were in my favor because I won! I see this as a sign from God that I am supposed to be blogging about natural hair, so the day the gift card comes in, I head straight to Sally, and I buy everything I’ve ever wanted to try. That night, I took blog-worthy photos of each of the products, I recorded an introduction video, edited the video, and then, I did nothing. Something inside of me was still hesitant.
Time passes and now its December 2017. I entered a contest on Naturally Curly’s page for the New Mielle Organics Pomegranate and Honey line. We know what happens now, I won the new line. Now, I am hype. I understand that voice I heard was God. He placed these things in my path letting me know that this was his doing, and I needed to act on this now. Yet, I was still hesitant! I didn’t want to limit myself to just hair. Then I think back on Shoes with a View and decide, ok, fashion. Hair and fashion, that’s what I will do. So start thinking of names. While I’m thinking, I kid you not, here is that voice again…talk show. What?…talk show? Ok, I’m not sure what that means. I think some more, and I say to myself, you do like to talk. I also had a list a mile long on my iPhone of different talk topics.
Just there, wasn’t sure why, but over a span of two years, anytime a topic would pop into my head, it would go right into my note. I remember this and I say out loud in my living room, Conversations. Now, this part ‘m fuzzy on. A bottle of wine may or may not have been involved in this process, so bear with me with these details. I remember my thought process, and I think it went something like this:
I like things in threes.
I have curly hair.
I’m a curvy girl. Oh, curls and curves begin with C.
C is the third letter of the alphabet. Your favorite number is 3 Ericka, that’s cool.
Oh, Conversation. That’s too long tho. Who is going to type that in their browser. Nah.
Convo.
Curls, Curves, and Convo. December 17, 2017.
I went straight to Canva and created a graphic, and there Curls, curves and convo was born. February 6, 2018, I launched on Facebook and Instagram. I am a blogger. I did it, and I incorporated everything that makes me, me into it. Except, I wasn’t sure STILL! (I know, what other signs do you need?) Well, I got another one in March 2018 when I entered another contest, this time via Made Beautiful and I won the latest collection Pure. I can’t believe it either. You know what though, I still didn’t do anything with it. I tried the products, I recorded the videos…and I sat on it. Something still was just not right. Then it happens. June 2018, I was in a terrible car accident. My car was hit so hard, it caused me to flip three times down a hill. I could have died. As I am being wheeled into trauma on a stretcher, I hear that familiar voice again. You are supposed to be here. Ok, God. While I’m recovering, guess what I did? Yes…entered another contest, this time it is for the product line for the Doux. Oh, a new product. I want to try this, I think to myself. So I enter.
Do I have to tell you what happened next? I won, AGAIN! If you have lost count, that is three full product lines and $150 to Sally where I racked up on new products. I no longer needed confirmation (I didn’t need it after the accident, but that last win really got to me). At that moment, I knew I am right where I am supposed to be. God has placed these free products in my path, placed the vision in my heart, now it was time for me to execute the dream. I mean, who wins 4 natural hair product lines in a one year span?! (5 contests in general if you count the Hot Head, and speaking of the Hot Head, 2 contests by the same influencer!) It was this series of fortunate events that led me here now with a clear vision of what my mission is, what my gift is to you all. SO, that is how Curls, Curves, and Convo came to be. Crazy, right?!
Has it been a smooth road?
They say nothing worth having comes easy, right? It has not been a smooth road, but every bump along the way had a purpose greater than I could see when I was going through it. The biggest struggle for me was internal. I kept going back and forth with myself on whether or not I could create and maintain a sustainable platform. I was worried that people didn’t want to hear what I have to say. I worried that I wouldn’t be taken seriously. I had so many worries that I was second guessing everything that I first took as a sign. Then, in June of 2018, I was in a terrible car accident. My vehicle went down a hill three times. I could have died. Except, I didn’t. I heard a voice say “you are supposed to be here”. All of my internal struggles were released. That isn’t to say that I won’t have other struggles, but my mindset in tackling any struggle is, “I can’t wait to see what I am going to learn from this”.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Curls, Curves, and Convo – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Curls, Curves, and Convo is more than a personal blog, but a platform that allows me to share everything that I love with those around me. I have always been known to be fashion forward, I have returned natural almost 15 years Viewers can expect total transparency from me. I share the good, the bad and the real. I pride myself in that. I have built that rapport with my audience, so they know if it is something I am talking about or posting about, It is something I truly believe in. CCC also includes fun elements like #stairbae, where I showcase my #OOTD on various staircases, #poselikeyonce where I re-create my favorite poses from my favorite artist, Beyonce, and #shoeswithaview, where I showcase my first love in fashion, Shoes. All of these elements birthed original hashtags that I have shared on social media and have set the brand apart from others. Another fun fact about my blog, is I take 95% of my own photos!
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love all of the amazing restaurants in Atlanta! There is no shortage of great places to eat. I think what I like the least is also everyone else…THE TRAFFIC.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.curlscurveesandconvo.com
- Email: curlscurvesandconvo@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/curlscurvesandconvo/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/curlscurvesandconvo/
Image Credit:
Ericka Durant.
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
