Meet Nikkia Washington of Unplanned Perfection in Lithonia

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nikkia Washington.

Nikkia, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve always been a fashion lover. When I was a little girl, I would change my clothes 20 times a day because I loved putting outfits together and dressing up. I just thought that I liked clothes. I didn’t find my purpose until my life got completely turned upside down a couple of years ago. I was married and a stay at home mom to my one-year-old son. I was also pregnant with my daughter when I found out I would be going thru a sudden divorce. Over the next few months, I watched my life fall apart while I simultaneously carried my daughter thru a high-risk pregnancy, cared for my 1-year-old, put myself back on the job market, and fought thru a divorce.

I lost myself in what I thought I wanted in life. The degrees, the marriage, the house, the picket fence. I discovered my purpose during the darkest time of my life. Unplanned Perfection is simply a platform developed to show that there is hope beyond the despairs of life’s unplanned moments.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road has been anything but smooth. Lol. But it’s been worth it, that’s for sure. My struggles have been two fold. The first would be the fear that I had in launching my blog. I wanted to be brutally honest and open. I create my blog posts from my actual journal entries so they’re raw. I don’t think people are open enough about their journey. I don’t think we say it out loud enough because it’s uncomfortable. If you don’t say it then how will it help the next person? So, everyone is silently fighting battles and no one knows. But with vulnerability comes judgment and opinions and that wasn’t an easy hurdle for me to jump. Sometimes, I still hesitate before I publish a deeply personal blog. I just don’t allow fear to stop me anymore.

The second would be learning to balance life in addition to Unplanned Perfection. I have a 3-year-old and an 18-month old that I take pride in being a present mother to. I work full time as a Behavioral Analyst with severely Autistic children. I have an amazing group of friends and family that I value time with. It can be overwhelming to give my all to everything. If I’m out of balance, mom guilt sneaks in. I’m learning as I go and I’m practicing being ok with not always getting it right the first time around.

Unplanned Perfection – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Unplanned Perfection is a platform I created to demonstrate that there is hope beyond the despair of life’s unplanned moments. My “unplanneds” may not look exactly like yours but we all have them. They’re the pivotal moments in our life that can either refocus or deter us further from our purpose. I believe that we get stuck in the unplanned moments because we don’t fully heal and do the work it takes to discover the purpose of it. So, life continuously brings us back to the same place over and over. I am far from perfect and I haven’t arrived but I hope to inspire others to face life’s obstacles head on and be better because of them. Unplanned Perfection is broken up into three categories. All things womanhood covers everything from mental health to self-care. All things Carter and Cadence covers everything about mom life. All things fashion includes my favorite fashion tips and style advice.

I also offer services as a children’s stylist and a wardrobe consultant.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Actually doing it. This has been in my heart for years. I made so many excuses and allowed fear to keep me stagnant for so long. So, the actual act of pushing past my fears and doing it has been my proudest. What happens from here will always be because of that decision and I won’t ever forget that.

Contact Info:

• Website: Unplannedperfectiononline.com
• Email: info@unplannedperfectiononline.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/UnplannedPerfection
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/Unplanned-Perfection-1350324908475925/?ref=bookmarks
• Other: Instagram.com/SimplyNikkia

Suggest a story: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.