More Than Skin Deep: Self-Care, Confidence & Community ' with Eleasha Yarde

More Than Skin Deep: Self-Care, Confidence & Community ' with Eleasha Yarde

What does it really mean to look after yourself? On this episode of  Trims and Talk, we sit down with Eleasha Yarde of OMM Makeup & Beauty for a conversation that goes far beyond skincare and makeup. We explore the link between self-care and mental health, and how the simple acts, a haircut, clear skin, clean clothes can shift how we feel, how we move, and how we show up in the world. Eleasha opens up about: * Growing up navigating dyslexia and nearly quitting university * The teacher who refused to let her give up * Building confidence in young people who don’t feel seen * The lack of representation in beauty education for melanin-rich skin * Social media, body image, and the pressure to look a certain way This episode moves like a real conversation from barbershops to classrooms, from laughter to lived experience. Because in the end, this isn’t just about beauty. It’s about confidence, identity, and learning to see yourself differently. 🎧 Tap in. This one’s real. #TrimsAndTalk #SelfCareMatters

Mothers Who Shape Minds: Women, Research & Leadership in Academia

In this episode of the Trims and Talk Podcast, we sit down with two remarkable women from the University of Sheffield, Dr. Stephanie Ejegi-Memeh and Dr. Kate Fryer  for a thoughtful conversation about motherhood, academia, leadership, and community responsibility. Released around International Women’s Day and Mother’s Day, this episode reflects on the many roles women hold as mothers, scholars, researchers, and leaders, often navigating professional spaces that have historically been dominated by men. Dr. Stephanie Ejegi-Memeh is a Research Fellow in the School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations at the University of Sheffield. Her work focuses on mental health, wellbeing, health inequalities, and the lived experiences of illness, particularly how racial and gendered inequalities shape health outcomes. Dr. Kate Fryer is a Research Fellow in the Primary Care Research Group within the School of Medicine and Population Health. She leads the Deep End Research Alliance, a pioneering initiative focused on tackling health inequalities and ensuring that research involving underserved communities is inclusive, collaborative, and grounded in real community participation. Both of these women have also been instrumental behind the scenes in helping create the institutional space within the University of Sheffield that allowed conversations like Trims and Talk to happen, supporting initiatives that centre  men’s mental health and honest dialogue within our communities. In this episode we explore: • What it means to be highly educated women and mothers working within academia• The pressures of research environments that demand constant innovation and intellectual leadership• Why research must be done with communities rather than on communities• How women continue to shape institutions, families, and the intellectual spaces that influence future generations For me personally, this conversation is also an acknowledgement. Having been raised and shaped by mothers, sisters, aunties, and grandmothers, I recognise the profound role women have played in shaping my worldview. This episode is both a celebration and a thank you to the women whose work often happens quietly, but whose influence is deeply felt in our communities, our institutions, and our lives.

The Minds That Shape Minds: Motherhood, Academia & Leadership

In this episode of the Trims and Talk Podcast, we sit down with two remarkable women from the University of Sheffield, Dr. Stephanie Ejegi-Memeh and Dr. Kate Fryer  for a thoughtful conversation about motherhood, academia, leadership, and community responsibility. Released around International Women’s Day and Mother’s Day, this episode reflects on the many roles women hold as mothers, scholars, researchers, and leaders, often navigating professional spaces that have historically been dominated by men. Dr. Stephanie Ejegi-Memeh is a Research Fellow in the School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations at the University of Sheffield. Her work focuses on mental health, wellbeing, health inequalities, and the lived experiences of illness, particularly how racial and gendered inequalities shape health outcomes. Dr. Kate Fryer is a Research Fellow in the Primary Care Research Group within the School of Medicine and Population Health. She leads the Deep End Research Alliance, a pioneering initiative focused on tackling health inequalities and ensuring that research involving underserved communities is inclusive, collaborative, and grounded in real community participation. Both of these women have also been instrumental behind the scenes in helping create the institutional space within the University of Sheffield that allowed conversations like Trims and Talk to happen, supporting initiatives that centre  men’s mental health and honest dialogue within our communities. In this episode we explore: • What it means to be highly educated women and mothers working within academia • The pressures of research environments that demand constant innovation and intellectual leadership • Why research must be done with communities rather than on communities • How women continue to shape institutions, families, and the intellectual spaces that influence future generations For me personally, this conversation is also an acknowledgement. Having been raised and shaped by mothers, sisters, aunties, and grandmothers, I recognise the profound role women have played in shaping my worldview. This episode is both a celebration and a thank you to the women whose work often happens quietly, but whose influence is deeply felt in our communities, our institutions, and our lives.

Still Learning, Still Becoming: A Cultural Injection with Wayne Reid

In this episode of Trims and Talk, the conversation unfolds without performance or pretense just thoughtful exchange, humour, and reflection shaped by lived experience. Wayne Reid joins us as a guest whose presence is quietly grounded. The discussion moves from the familiarity of barbershop culture into deeper considerations of identity, perception, and what it means to move through the world as a Black man in spaces that often misunderstand or oversimplify. What begins with everyday observations gradually opens into reflections on how assumptions are formed and how character is built in response to them. A central theme of the episode is community. Wayne speaks about the importance of spaces such as Storm / Black Men’s Chat, describing them as a form of cultural nourishment a place to reconnect, to disagree without fracture, and to hear perspectives shaped by different generations and life paths. In a society that can isolate men as they age, these spaces offer something vital: connection without demand, belonging without performance. The conversation also traces Wayne’s professional journey and the role mentorship has played in shaping it. He reflects on moments where others recognised potential before he did himself, and how those moments quietly redirected his trajectory. These reflections sit alongside thoughtful insights on fatherhood, particularly the emotional complexity of watching a child step into independence and learning, in real time, how to let go while remaining present. Mental wellbeing is explored not as a fixed destination but as an ongoing process responsive to life’s transitions, responsibilities, and losses. The episode acknowledges resilience not as constant strength, but as the ability to adapt, reflect, and continue becoming. This episode captures the spirit of Trims and Talk at its best: a space where conversation is unhurried, humanity is centred, and growth is understood as a lifelong practice.

Trims & Talk – Part Two: What Comes Next

If Part One was about where we come from, this conversation is about where we are choosing to go. In Part Two, I return to the mic with my co-host Donald MacLean to talk about the next chapter—about intention, responsibility, and what it means to keep showing up as men, educators, and community workers. We reflect on the future not as a blank slate, but as something shaped by what we already carry: our histories, our losses, our lessons. We talk candidly about ageing, purpose, and the quiet work of staying committed to learning, to conversation, and to creating spaces where men can speak honestly about their inner lives. This episode looks toward 2026 and beyond not with grand declarations, but with clarity. With an understanding that progress is often slow, relational, and unglamorous. That the work is not about visibility, but usefulness. Not about having answers, but about asking better questions. We speak about legacy not as something dramatic, but as something lived. About continuing Trims & Talk, continuing the work within the Black Barbers Project, and continuing to hold space for dialogue rooted in trust rather than performance. Part Two is not a conclusion. It is a commitment. A conversation about staying the course.