Always Believe in Yourself!

Being a breast cancer survivor and a devoted mother inspired me to write and illustrate books to help children see their true beauty. Going through the many difficulties of breast cancer, losing my hair was the one that changed my way of looking at life. I realized that Bald Is Beautiful and I wanted to share that revelation.

I would like you to meet Ella the Enchanted Princess. She is an exceptional little girl. She is a beautiful princess! Princess Ella isn’t any ordinary princess; she is extraordinary and amazingly brave! Ella was born with no hair, and this made her unique. She doesn’t like the way she looks and hates looking into mirrors.

I created Princess Ella and wrote and illustrated a series of books to show how Ella conquers her fears. I wrote these books to inspire children and teach them that they are beautiful in their unique way! People are perfect just the way they are. Children have a special place in my heart, and through my books, I hope to teach children to believe in themselves.

My love for children inspired me to create Ella. Children have always been my life, and I want to motivate them to be positive and happy with who they are. I wanted to create a character that children can relate to and follow, as Ella conquers her fears.

I created Ella with passion and love; I poured all my feelings of how it feels to be different and live in a world with people staring at you. As I was going through the many challenges of breast cancer, losing my hair was the one I conquered. I never wore wigs or hats to hide behind. I would wake up every morning, put on my lipstick, and face the day.

After losing my hair to breast cancer, I realized that being bald doesn’t change who you are. I didn’t hide my baldness because I knew I was the same person with or without hair. It didn’t make a difference to me if people stared. I knew who I was, and I believed in myself. When I did catch people whispering, it would make me extremely sad. I realized how mean people could be. I felt in my heart the heartache that children and adults must go through for being different. Understanding this feeling was when I realized that I had to help children and how they perceive themselves. I decided to create a bald princess to set a precedent! You don’t need hair to be beautiful!

It was important to me to create a princess character, because most little girls want to be princesses. But all children are not the same, so I concluded that all princesses should not be the same.

Fairy-tale princesses all look the same. They are thin, and they have long flowing hair, big almond-shaped eyes, and fair skin. They have full, pouty lips, and they never have smudged makeup or bad hair days. The only difference between any of the princesses out there was their hair color. Who looks like that? Some little girls just can’t relate to them because they don’t feel they are pretty enough to be a princess. That’s why I decided that we need a princess who is just as beautiful as the rest. The only difference is that she has no hair. And she’s not ashamed to show it. She says no to wigs and hats, and embraces what indeed makes her beautiful.

I started with a little girl face that was sweet and innocent. I kept in mind all the little faces that are unique! Everything Ella feels is a part of me. I gave her big purple-blue eyes, a button nose, and pink heart-shaped lips. I love dressing her and having her set an example to Always Believe in Yourself!

Ella’s beauty shines from within, making whatever is on the outside unimportant. Her brilliant heart is full of love, and she shows deep kindness to others because she knows what it’s like to be different. She also has unfailing hope, a gift she offers to all those she meets.

I didn’t wait for Disney to create a beautiful bald princess for all the hairless little girls out there. I created her myself because I know what it is like to lose all your hair and have people stare at you. We should celebrate our differences because they are what make us all special and beautiful.

Children are the most fragile creatures of all. Ella the Enchanted Princess gives them the strength to keep fighting and helps them realize their unique beauty and embrace it wholeheartedly. She can be a role model for both boys and girls around the world. Many children can relate to Ella because she is different, and it doesn’t stop her from enjoying her life; in fact, through her adventures, she learns how beautiful she is.

Previously Published: https://www.ellatheenchantedprincess.com