When Stars Align

It can be an almost magical feeling to get dressed up. During the last 6 months of mostly being isolated, those times are few and far between. I’ve only really been dressing up for photos (like dis!) or every 2-3 weeks when I go run more than one errand in a day or go get my nails done.

It’s been interesting to reassess why I get dressed up. Though I’ve always maintained that I get dressed up for myself, being away from outside influences has helped me realize that I was indeed letting the world affect my reasoning.

The main thing driving how I dress currently is COMFORT! I’m pretty sure being at home sitting on the couch a whole lot more has contributed to that. I’m also in this very interesting phase of reliving my 16-year-old life in some ways (I find it to be no coincidence that I also am currently healing a lot of traumatic things in therapy that happened when I was 16) and at that point in my life, comfort was also important. Though I’d often wear some outrageous stuff, like a petticoat over my jeans with some weird kid’s tee from the thrift store, accessorized with a diaper bag I used as my book bag (also from the thrift store...kinda ewwwy, I know!), it was always comfy, soft stuff.

Part of the reason I really enjoyed shooting this set was because the lingerie from Hey Mavens isn’t typical restrictive lingerie. You know the kind...made with beautiful but stiff fabric, so the thong rubs you kinda raw the more you move around...bra complete with an underwire that digs in a bit and straps that aren’t exactly gentle on the shoulders. I used to thrive on wearing that kind of stuff to shoot because I felt so structured and sexy, but these days, I feel really sexy when my body is able to be relaxed.

This fabric really drew me in and I had such a clear vision of how I wanted to shoot it. I wanted it to be in our house to go with our darker tones and the texture of our couch and decor. I think on a subconscious level, I felt like because the lingerie is comfy but still glam and our house is cozy but stylish, they just went together perfectly. I also had a really good time staging our living room for this and probably spent a solid hour on moving things around.

The cherry on top? My husband shooting it for me and being quite good with directing and finding flattering angles for my body, the lingerie, and the set design. <3

😂