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Natural Awakenings Twin Cities

Dawn Stebbing: Transforming Women’s Lives through Personal Branding and Styling

Mar 30, 2015 12:25PM ● By Michelle Hamburger

Dawn Stebbing

Image strategist Dawn Stebbing began working in the beauty industry more than 20 years ago, focusing on cosmetology. She loved the nature of her job, which was to help women look and feel beautiful, but she noticed the end result was often temporary. “I could make them look good for a short period of time, but could they do it again the next day? No,” she recalls. “There is more to women than skincare, hair and makeup. We have to feel good inside about who we are.”

Stebbing started her image consultation company, Dawn Stebbing (DS), LLC to help women "get their sexy back". Collaborating with women across the nation, she helps clients enhance their personal brand, professional presence and overall style. Her consulting programs delve deeply into character quality and natural aptitudes long before any shopping or hair styling begins.

“First of all, the process is really about grasping who they are so we can dress them accordingly,” Stebbing says. “I resonate with your uniqueness, your personality, what you do for a living, and help you show up as the authentic person you’re supposed to show up as.” Personality and core-passion assessment tests are the primary tools DS uses for this stage of the program.

As clients progress through their sessions, Stebbing especially likes when they begin to understand why their previous style habits didn’t work. “There are some big ‘Ah ha!’ moments,” she explains. “Most people realize they’re in a rut, but they don’t realize why.” Stebbing helps clients address themselves from a different approach, focusing on their strengths and the beauty which lies within their unique physical attributes. “We will say something negative about ourselves before we say something positive. I really try to focus on the positive. And soon, their previous frustration now makes sense and they go, ‘Oh, now I understand why I never like what I wear!’”

Stebbing believes image consultation is an invaluable resource more women should tap into, especially those in a professional work environment. “We try to do things ourselves, and you can do it by yourself,” she says, “but if you went into a dressing room and tried on five different dresses and none of them fit, you might walk out of that dressing room and leave the store.” Stebbing won’t give up on her clients; her job is to try until she finds the right fit. “I can guarantee that when you have an expert like me who knows what she’s doing and is honest and upfront and can tell you what works and what doesn’t, you’ll be a happier person.”

Investing in a personal stylist might seem extreme, but Stebbing argues that money—and time— spent foolishly or incorrectly wastes much more in the long run than any short term expense paid for an educated styling professional. “When it really comes down to spending quality money on themselves, women won’t do it because they don’t think they deserve it,” says Stebbing. “Or women hate shopping because they can’t find anything they like or that fits properly. I don’t want to spend your money. I want to invest your money.”

Looking back, Stebbing is thrilled with where her profession has taken her, expounding that her business model is a replica of her own journey to understand her personal brand and style. The road hasn’t always been easy, but she believes the process is life-changing, both for her and now for her clients. “I wish it was just as easy as the lipstick or the skirt we’re wearing, but it goes a lot deeper than that. When we look good, we feel good. When we feel good, our confidence increases. But that’s all surface work. We have to feel good inside, about who we are as a woman.”

For more information or to set up a free 30-minute consultation, call 651-307-0342 or email [email protected]. Order Stebbing’s new book, The Power is in The Pearl: Enhance Your Uniqueness and Dazzle Your Audience at DawnStebbing.com.

Contributing writer Michelle Hamburger can be reached at [email protected].