We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Comfy Stennis a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Comfy, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I’ve always been an artist. When I was a kid, I burned my nose playing with my mother’s curling iron. When I was a young teen I filed my press on nails with a piece of concrete to make them less sharp, that was around the same time I began writing poetry. When I was 17, I went to cosmetology school for hair and nails. When I was 21, I learned to do makeup and began my love of fashion. When I was 25, I begin to learn the art of locs/dreadlocks. When I was 27, I began coordinating fashion and poetry events. When I was 29, I lost my overnight full time job and had to rely on those gifts to sustain my life. The year was 2018, pre-covid era, lol at the time, starting a business was heavy on my heart but I wasn’t ready ( no business plan, no business account, no article of organization, no direction, just all these gifts that I needed to use to live and survive during a pandemic) In 2021, Thee Creatives was born and I decided to dive fully into my beauty and fashion endeavors.

Comfy, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Comfy Stennis, I am a small business owner and artist of words, beauty and fashion. I got into beauty and fashion because was born to create. I’m a visual-serial creative and can usually learn new things quickly. Fun fact, I’m currently learning to sew and do alterations, In addition to being a cosmetologist, I have written a poetry book, a play called Built by Blood, coordinated/hosted Klout at Krave Open Mic, WCW at Legends and Curves and Confidence Fashion Shows. My love of beauty and fashion go hand in hand so I amplify my skillsets through continued education to solve problems for my ever growing clientele. Thee Creatives is a collective of artists that offer services like braids, locs, and makeup but sometimes a client may need you to dress them, hence personal styling or lookbook services with Klout Company or my assistant Tyree of Surreal Styles. Of all the services we offer, I have an intern or assistant to help fulfill orders, request, bookings, Xi’leah specializes in braids and locs, Zaniya specializes in braids and locs, Lilly specializes in locs and organization, Tenavia specializes in wig installs, makeup and organization. Each artist is a young person learning their skillset and perfecting it with my assistance, Having a team helps carry the duty of making our clients feel renewed and beautiful after a service/shopping experience with us. I am proud to be helping guide some of the next generation of beauty and fashion professionals as we continue to cater to and educate our community. Thee Creatives and Klout Company’s mission is to make nouns more beautiful and to inspire people to be a good vibe, a positive influence in whatever space they enter.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My mission is to be a master educator in beauty and fashion. My business mission statement is making people, places and things more beautiful while cultivating a safe place for our community.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is the ability to make my own schedule and freely take on projects and/or volunteering. Work is never the same, it is never mundane as a hair stylist. My team Xileah, Zaniya, Tenavia, Tyree, Lilly and I may have braids, locs, makeup, weddings, or event planning work throughout the same week. Klout Company is my brand that invites people to be a good vibe with us through words and fashion. We host a monthly open mic night at Krave KC in Raytown, Mo. We also participate in fashion shows, hair shows and pop ups in different cities. Another perk of being a creative is that you can create from anywhere. Sometimes while on vacation, I schedule performances, writing or artsy experiences that renew my creativity and expand my network. I believe that we must make the most of our time and learn as much as we can to be better in any skillset. I encourage readers to write it down, make steps to execute whatever it is, do the work and indulge in the feeling of accomplishing those great things you set out to do. Start now and begin again every time you need to start over but don’t give in and sure as hell, don’t give up. As my grandmother Eddie Ruth said, “keep doing the damn thing.”

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @TheeCreativesKC
• Other: Instagram – @KloutCompany and @YoFaveCreative

Image Credits
Martinique Miller Photography