You’re not a model? Take pictures of yourself anyway! That’s the message I want to convey today. I am far from a size 2 and yet I dare to be photographed wearing my various outfits for your benefit, my dear readers. To explain better why I do it, let’s also get the insights from 5 talented sewing/fashion bloggers I admire: Rachel (House of Pinheiro), Fialta (Spring in Fialta), Carine (Paris Guinguette) Anna of (Along avec Anna) and Mary Alice (Well Sewn Style). How does it feel? Should you do it? Let’s cover all that and more…

This is obviously a personal reflection on the matter. I do not pretend to have THE TRUTH on the subject. You don’t want to be photographed on your blog? That’s also fine by me.

But in the age of Instagram and exacerbated “self”, let’s see how a modern, normal woman can reflect on its own… reflection.

50 shades of beauty

Lately when I look at a woman’s magazine (I work in PR, remember, I kind of HAVE TO look at them) I am very rarely satisfied. The person I see on the picture might be beautiful but she couldn’t be further from what I look like. Hence I no longer feel the appeal to buy or make clothes through that method. And it’s supposed to be the ad’s job. 

Meanwhile I have slowly succumbed to following more and more talented bloggers (sewing for the most part). Now THEY are the ones I feel I can connect with. They create the irresistible need to create a dress or buy a pattern.

I went on a little experiment, I gathered 5 of my favorites bloggers who, like me, are the models of their own blogs and asked them what made them beautiful.

Oh Surprise, none of them told me about their thigh gap, the length of their nose or any other b******t media often suppose we should care about.

Instead, this is what they told me…

Anna of Along avec Anna (ex Fils à coudre d’Anna)

Rachel of House of Pinheiro

“What makes me beautiful? The ability to laugh at myself. Life shouldn’t be so serious.”

Fialta of Spring in Fialta 

Mary Alice of Well Sewn Style 

“Feeling confident makes me feel beautiful. Being confident in my skills, my relationships, my ability to navigate the world makes me feel beautiful inside and out. “

Carine of Paris Guinguette

” To feel beautiful when you reach 30 is an odd feeling. Our (my) body is changing et we (I) have to get use to it whether we like it or not. I know I glow when my husband tells me I am beautiful when I wake up. At least one loves me without any artifice on (love is blind they say). Ok and also I just lost 6 kg and got back to exercising hence I feel better at myself and ready for the next shopping craziness . I feel beautiful when people think I am 10 years younger, best anti-age cream in the world !”

So do you find them beautiful too? Yet I bet they all find imperfections in their figure. It’s all a question of perspective. But if you’re only looking at her (below) as the only option to judge whether you are “beauty material” or not well…

 

… There is little chance you’ll like what you see in the mirror.

Congrats girls, you are the Wonder Women of today.

Continue snapping pics yourself

I sew principally for me. The clothes I make fits mainly me so It makes sense to take pictures of me in them. But that’s actually more than that.

I often see headless bodies on sewing blogs . You only see the clothes and that’s it. I almost did that in the beginning, fearing I would not fully endorse the image I showed on the blog.

But if I dig deeper, I’ll find blogging has actually become a good image therapy.

What do I think of my image? Well like a lot of people: it depends. With make up and a good lighting, anyone can look Vogue compatible (kind of).

Me in a professional photoshoot 5 years ago.

Same girl, no make up 

I quite like my face, the rest of the body, a little less. I am not saying that waiting to be comforted, I am just explaining how I analyse it.

I am rather average, neither a bombshell nor the ugly duckling. I dream of a tiny flower bud noise and thin thighs. And yet since I started taking pictures of myself, that’s pretty much in the background. I kind of like those faults now, they make me unique, I don’t want to get rid of those. 

 

 

 

 

I think having more images of not-so-perfect person such as myself out on the net is actually a good thing. It helps you think ” I might not look like Gisèle but I kind of like what I see in the mirror anyways“. And that is so great for self confidence. Not OVER confidence. Just enough to get you going and enjoy life without fears.

Is beauty that important?

In the end, I’ll always prefer making you laugh rather than marvel at my so-called beauty. First because I think I am funnier than beautiful. Then because just being pretty is so 19th century.  

But it’s hard. Because we are constantly asked, compelled even, to look our best.

So in conclusion, if you keep following this blog, you will continue seeing me. smiling. making a face. looking good, looking silly. It doesn’t matter.

But at least it will be fun!

Until next time…

View this post on Instagram

Remettre ses chaussures de mariage… Putting back my wedding shoes ! #petitkiffdujour #weddinglovers #wedding #weddingshoes #sparkle #springiscoming #mariage #sf #style @jonak #jonak #jonakparis

A post shared by Alicia (@alicia.voyage) on Mar 14, 2017 at 5:21pm PDT

La bise

Alicia