There are many moving parts to Buff. She’s a mother, an ex-wife, a daughter, a sister, an employee, a motivator, a woman-on-the-go, an inspiration, and a best friend. Most of all, she’s a motivated Christian woman designed to empower and encourage others. In the process, she just wants to make you laugh.
When I met Buff Patterson, I quickly realized that she was an amazingly funny person with an outgoing personality. It didn’t take her long to go into a little of her comedy routine and, yes, she had me laughing.
Her mother named her Buff because she was only 2.5 pounds at birth. Even then, she couldn’t wait to get started putting her mark on the world. Buff said, “What my mother didn’t know was that my name was going to be more than a moniker; it would be a venue to encourage and inspire generations of women in their most honest and authentic form.”
Buff was born was born in Las Vegas, Nevada. She later moved to Southern California with her parents. Her mom is from Mississippi and her dad is from Texas. Her parents were determined to bring southern living to South Central Los Angeles, where she grew up. Her parents bought her a goat to slaughter for her fifth birthday party. The goat got out and was chased through the streets of South Central until it met its fateful end and was roasted at her party. If she is given a farm animal for a gift, you better believe it will it be eaten. After that, she stopped naming her chickens, goats, and duck pets.
Her faith has been fired tested. She has been divorced twice and has given birth to four girls and one son. She also adopted and girl when her best friend died at 40. The last of her children are twin girls.
Divorce is one of the hardest situations to deal with. Nobody goes into a situation wanting to fail and, when it happens, you don’t prepare a plan B. Forgiving yourself and others is an important part of growth. Buff knew that, no matter what was going on with her, she had her children looking to her as an example of what to do next.
Buff found comedy material in raising her six kids. “Each child being different and me throwing the instructions away that came with their box except for my Bible has been the only instructional manual I need,” she said. Buff continued, “You never stop being the parent, even when they remind you they are grown but suddenly need your undivided attention and wallet when called upon. Kids!”
Buff’s love for fashion, writing, and fitness began in high school. She involved herself in these things to escape peer pressure. Appearing in fashion ads, commercials, and fitness competitions
inspired her to begin her In The Buff. She also worked with her husband on starting P-Trains California BBQ Cooking.
Cooking and fashion are her first loves. Betty Crocker and Vogue were the first books she learned to read. She’s catered large events for weddings, festivals, and sporting events. Cooking mouthwatering collard greens for 2000 people is a fete.
Buff was quoted as saying, “Living life in color begins with stepping out on faith.” She started inthebuffmagazine.com at almost the same time as she started her stand up comedy career. She was 50 but being 50 didn’t stop her. She said when most of her friends were slowing down, she was speeding up. Being over 50 myself, I can certainly relate. She goes on to say, “I was learning to be in the best version of myself every day.”
Buff’s love for encouragement and support began with training women to get in their best physical shape. Her training concept is “love the body you are in and never speak negatively about yourself.” She always says, “You are your own best friend.”
The mission of Buff’s pride and joy, In The Buff Magazine, is to unite women globally and inspire them to live as their best selves through food, fitness, fashion, community, finances, health, and family. In The Buff isn’t about fashion; it’s about keeping our closets and makeup bags up to date by investigating true classics with a splash of excitement. After all, life is too short to wear boring clothes”.
Buff continually wants to empower women through acceptance and give them a vision and a unique perspective on how they can get their lives together. The belief that it’s never too late to achieve your desires and dreams is what she’s living.
With most entrepreneurs, it’s scary to step out in faith and do what God has called you to do. Buff believes that she has made it only by the grace of God. She reminds everyone that her dreams have been accomplished only through her faith.
Recently, Buff stepped up her comedy gigs. She wanted to build up her fan base and its moving quickly. She said, “Oprah the person was in effect before O Magazine. I realized that I had to get myself out to be seen and heard. I couldn’t let fear paralyze me.”
When asked about her comedy, Buff responded, “The comedy bug has always been a part of my life. I was always the person at Target cracking people up in line. Making people laugh in Target is totally different than being on stage in front of people that are paying you to make them laugh. The first time I got on stage, I think I passed out in my head. I couldn’t believe I had talked myself into doing standup. I mean, isn’t growing a magazine ambitious enough? Not for me. What made me think I was funny enough to get on stage?” After my first couple of conversation with this amazing lady, I realized she belonged on stage. She didn’t appear nervous at all to me.
Buff continued, “Growing up with my family and having six kids and two ex-husbands alone is comedy! It hasn’t been easy. Creating a platform for my magazine and performing onstage has been insane. God continues to be with me as I grow me.”
I asked Buff to provide some advice for others coming behind her. “Don’t be afraid to step out on faith. Remember, ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day!’ I look forward to building all of my brands and growing my fan base. My goal is to see, ‘ARE YOU IN THE BUFF?’ blinking in New York’s Time Square because we all need to live in our best version of ourselves.”
Follow Buff Patterson
Facebook: www.facebook.com/inthebuffmagazine
Twitter: @in_theBuff
Instagram: @buffpatterson
Check out Buff’s magazine at www.inthebuffmagazine.com