I had an email out of the blue from Mighty Aphrodite... you may remember them... I will never forget them...
Zena asked me if I would consider sharing my story with their readers... so I agreed!
Here is my story...
At the beginning of 2008 I had a shaggy shapeless mop of hair and had been wearing glasses since the age of seven! I was a busy working Mum with no time for myself and had been that way for over fifteen years!!
So what happened? My daughter happened! She and I both love Gok Wan and his way of making a girl look again at the way she sees herself. As my 40th birthday approached I became obsessed with my age and everything else paled into insignificance! Eventually, my 15 year old daughter, Emily, suggested that I get a grip, have a new haircut and lose the glasses! So I did!
She came with me to the hairdressers and the hair went! I loved it! Why didn't I do this years ago?? Next I saw the optician and swapped my glasses for contact lens… I haven't looked back since! I even bought make-up and used it!
I felt so different that I wanted to have a portrait done ... but that wasn't enough... I wanted more... I thought of Gok… and I found Mighty Aphrodite!
The idea of a naked photo shoot was firmly planted in my head and wouldn't go away! Don't get me wrong - I am rather timid really - but I simply couldn't shake the idea and felt that if I was really going to make a statement then I should just go for it! I bravely dropped it into conversation one day... and got a resounding yes!
There were so many beautiful photos on their website but I just couldn't get away from one particular image ...
... a girl, naked, bound by chains, suspended in darkness ...
... that was it - the more I dared myself the more I wanted to do it…so I decided to be brave and have a go!
If truth be told I never thought I would actually do the whole naked thing and hoped to come away with a few nice lingerie shots ...
... in fact, when the day came, I allowed myself to follow my heart ... I dared to be brave!
Leigh was great - really down to earth and he made me feel completely at my ease! Nothing awkward or forced and it was really rather fun ;-) Zena was fab too and her compliments and easy manner made me completely relax!
The lighting was carefully done and Leigh knew exactly which shots would flatter me! I bravely told him which shot had inspired me and he said that there was no reason why I couldn’t go for it… I was braver than I dared to hope ... and I am so pleased with the results!
My fantastic hubby, John, was with me for the whole shoot and he thought it was fabulous! He was so proud of me and spent the whole time grinning from ear to ear!
It took all my courage but I did it! I got naked in front of a stranger and had him take photos of me! It was the wildest, most scarey thing I had ever done but it was great!!
The photos gave me the confidence to do what girls do best… shopping! Previously I had been a frustrated shopper, looking for clothes which covered me up and hid the parts I didn't want to show! But now... I looked for tops which showed my shape, I wasn’t afraid of wearing things a little more fitted and I tried on high heel shoes - it felt good - really good!
My confidence soared and I started thinking about my life and about other things I wanted to do... You simply wouldn’t believe where this journey has taken me… ;-)
If you follow my blog I might decide to share a little more...
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