“I honestly don’t know what made me spontaneously fill out a Blush Boudoir booking request. However, being open and honest, I was desperate. I was starving to feel confident, to feel sexy, and to not feel like ‘just a mom’. Being a young mother and wife are the biggest joys I have been blessed with. Even still, over the years I noticed I was losing sight of who I was. My closet of trendy clothes had dwindled down to leggings and my husband’s t-shirts. A messy bun and tinted moisturizer was the extent of my getting ready routine. I would shrink away from my husband’s loving advances, and roll my eyes in disbelief, from the showers of compliments he would give. Any ounce of confidence, was quickly shattered by glancing at the stretch marks and rolls that my daughter has gifted me with. I found myself beginning to dissect every part of how I looked, comparing my body to social media ‘goals’, wishing I looked like someone else, hating how I was naturally intended to be. By fate, or maybe just circumstance, I was told about a family friend who had a session at Blush. In the past, I had heard about boudoir shoots, and the thought of it made me shake my head and think, ‘I could never’, however this time, I felt differently. I clicked the submit button, and waited.
“Months turned into days before my session, and the nausea began to set in. At the time I had scheduled, we were local to Dayton, but since then, we have moved to Alabama. I booked my flight and hotel, kissed my husband and little one, and flew to Ohio. Not only was I trying to mentally prepare to be photographed naked, I also was trying to process spending 3 days away from my husband and daughter for the first time. I had multiple vodka and cranberries on my flight.
“The morning of my session, I was beyond skeptical of the instructions to, ‘show up with skin clean and makeup free, and hair clean and not done’. My security blanket of tinted moisturizer and mascara stayed at the hotel, and anxiety started to set in. As soon as I parked my car and walked inside, I was greeted by the nicest people I have ever met. Digressing here, I am a very private and awkward person, and within 15 minutes, I felt like I could tell Payton, Ashley and Tracy my darkest secrets, knowing they would take them to the grave. I was offered a drink, and uplifted the whole time. We shared meaningful conversations, and I felt the anxiety I had brought in, began to see herself out. After an hour, my makeup was stunning, my hair was better than I ever imagined it could be, and I was shown a closet that was filled to the brim with gorgeous outfits. The rest after that, was pure magic.
“I genuinely did not stop smiling the whole day. Everywhere I walked, I held my head higher than normal. I didn’t grimace when I saw myself walk past a mirror in the store, I turned around and walked back to check myself out. As soon as I got back to my hotel room, I sent my husband pictures, because I was floored at how amazing my hair and makeup looked. Admittingly, I was about to sleep in my makeup because I loved it so much.
“I can confidently state that Blush changed my life, and may be safe to say, Blush saved it too. My sense of self has begun to become stronger. The confidence from my photoshoot has decided that she wants to stay, along with a little sexiness as well. If you would have told me before my shoot, that I could heal past wounds and trauma from strangers photographing me naked, I would have burst out laughing. However, I’m here to tell you, it can. I have encouraged everyone I can to have a shoot done at Blush, because they are absolutely the best there is. You will feel loved, confident, heard, and valued as soon as you walk in the door. You will look at your photos and finally see how stunning you are. You will find yourself being more gentle with your body, and loving it again. You will start to hear from those close to you that you’re glowing again, or for the first time. You also may start buying more lingerie.
“This experience is more than just ‘nudes’, it is the most luxurious form of self love you can do. So please, book the session. Take off work. Call the sitter. Invest in yourself. Ignore all the reasons why you shouldn’t or can’t, because your head is lying to you. You are worthy of being celebrated, and Blush Studio does exactly that.” – Ms. B
Photographer: Tracy Pote
Makeup Artist: Payton Abston
Hairstylist: Ashley Coen
