Where does that transformative journey begin? It begins with my own transformative journey.

My passion is color. It has led me to every joyful crossroad in my life. Color is the great communicator. It speaks before you ever say a word. It has the ability to enhance or excite, direct or divert the eye, impart confidence or create moods. It can project an image or convey a thought. It can heal body, mind and spirit.

It is that passion for color that led me to launch my color and image consulting business LL Style Studio.

My first color connesseur was my mother. Although a registered dietician, public relations professional and stylist for the American Wool Council, she wore many other hats. One of those was master seamstress. As I child I watched in wonder as she masterfully crafted wardrobes for my sister and me. Before the start of each school year we would frequent the local fabric shop and pore over myriad pattern books featuring the latest style trends. Once we selected a favorite pattern or two, we would choose the fabrics that would bring them to life. From my fashionista mother I learned about prints and pattern, cut and color, texture and tone.

As a teen I began stitching and styling my own wardrobe—even being voted “best dressed” in a high school class of 700-plus. Soon after I was selected to serve as a fashion specialist and model for an upscale department store. And during my adult years I was often asked to create capsule wardrobes for friends and professional colleagues. One flew me to New York to help coordinate a dress-to-impress wardrobe that landed her a high-powered job at a national brokerage firm.

Post high school I was offered a journalism scholarship to the University of Iowa. There I also majored in interior design, extending my passion for color to the home environment. It was this dual interest in color and journalism that launched a career as a magazine editor and publishing executive. I worked with Better Homes & Gardens, HOME magazine and Vegetarian Times, parlaying my skills as a “magazine doctor” into helping rebrand and relaunch struggling publications. I also launched Mountain Living magazine and founded my own international, eco-sustainability publication Natural Home, now Mother Earth Living.

During this time, I also worked as executive director of the Center for Health Design, where I learned the healing power of color in healthcare institutions. And as a member of the international Color Marketing Group (CMG), I was a featured speaker at their national convention in 2000.

Through CMG I became reacquainted with Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, who is recognized as “the international color guru.” It was my honor to have Lee certify me as a professional color and image consultant.

And I authored the five-star rated children’s book on the meaning of color, When Glory Got Her Glow Back, dubbed by one critic as “a modern day Wizard of Oz.”

Ever fascinated with color, I currently work with Aura Soma, a U.K.-based system of healing that harnesses the vibrational powers of color to enhance health and vitality.

Today, through LL Style Studio, I bring a wealth of knowledge about color and style to clients of all ages, from all walks of life. It’s an exciting, empowering and transformational calling—the rewards of which can be seen in the many women I work with who now exude renewed confidence and charisma. As a result, they all shine with a light from within.