“Fashion chose me. It’s always been in me. It’s always what I’ve done,” says Diary of Queen Esther founder Shelena Racquel. “I don’t get dressed in the mirror; I get dressed in my mind. That’s just how my mind works. I’m always thinking about how something will look.” Racquel, a designer, model, e-commerce entrepreneur and now boutique owner takes pride in dressing women both fashionably and functionally with her designs.
She uses the terms “dope, regal and quality” to describe her fashions, and says those terms were chosen to represent her brand because they represent the women she’s dressing. “The women I dress are leaders, are public speakers, are doing presentations in front of large groups of people- they want to look good, but they need functional pieces that can easily bring them from day to night,” said Racquel.
Many of Dairy of Queen Esther’s fabrics are sourced or inspired by traditional Ankara Cloth fabrics that originate in Africa, India and Switzerland. A signature DOQE item, designed exclusively by owner Shelena Racquel, are the DOQE Jacket Collection. The colorful peplum-style jackets are named for women of the bible and crafted with precision, elegance, and class in mind. “From the stitching of the threads to the cut of the fabric, everything about this garment had to be in point,” said Racquel on the DOQE website.
Along with designing unique fashions, Racquel also creates and sells all-natural soaps and body care products. DOQE soaps are handcrafted herbal soaps infused with oils, natural healing herbs and a variety of detoxifying clays. Along with the soaps, whipped shea body butter is available in a variety of scents- made with unrefined shea butter originated in Africa. The DOQE body products started as a personal project for Racquel, who created her first soaps after her father was diagnosed with cancer and she began to research diet and the elimination of toxins in cancer care. “I found how simple it was to create natural, toxin-free body products with very few ingredients. That’s what I wanted for my family, so I started making them,” said Racquel, who also teaches natural soap making as a form of self-care- especially for children.
“Dairy of Queen Esther is more of a ministry than a business,” Racquel offered. “It was birthed through purpose, and I hope when people use my products and wear my fashions, they encourage people to do what God created them to do- because that’s how you find your purpose and feel fulfilled.”
Original source can be found here.
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