During a boudoir photography session, I donned lingerie and had my picture taken. I'll share why I did this and how I felt about the experience. Why do a boudoir session? What do you get from it?
Am I sexy enough? Can I feel the self-confidence boost I desire from a few pictures with barely anything on and false eyelashes?
Well, yes, I did it.
Two times, I had two different sessions with different photographers.
There is a difference in their styles but one thing stays the same; Showing off our full potential for self-confidence.
Is it the make-up? The hair? The clothing or lack of? It could be jewelry or heels.
The key to being self-confident is to brave the fear of exposing a side of yourself that is usually connected to so much self-doubt.
Exposure in ways that go deeper than skin, makeup, and all the rest to prepare you for a shoot. This type of exposure shows you authenticity you cannot deny.
In many ways, self-image can become distorted. You start to see something totally different from how other people view you. Your body, image, and beauty fade into a melting pot of self-doubt, gathered negative experiences to form a mental model that contradicts confidence.
The history of women fascinates me; I love to learn how women were portrayed through the ages. Some of the histories give me ‘ah ha’ moments and other info just irks me.
Here is a bit of a history lesson….
Random tidbits
I read in “The History of God” about how women were worshiped and then some Rabbi decided (all on his own, when there are only a few people in the world, so I guess you can make stuff up and nobody knows different) that only men could be Rabbi’s and that women had a place beside men and obeying them. Bending over whenever he was jonesin’ for some.
Prostitutes were valued and paid well, then the church decided (and most likely some disgruntled wives) that whores were dirty and they were put to death. We now know how they are viewed these days…
The Roman Goddesses looked after fertility, trees, love, health, and entire seas. People asked for their protection and guidance.
Nowadays some people think a supermodel is a goddess.
Something wrong here.
All a model happens to do is show the rest of us the clothes we won’t wear, the size we will never be and if you don’t eat, you can make mega bucks.
The pin-up girl brought back the appreciation of the female body (and might have snowballed into porn acceptance) Fully covered-up women in the early 1900’s1900s (have you seen the bathing suits from that time?) started to see the pin-up girls of the wars.
“Women are no longer to be considered little tootsey wootseystootsies who have nothing to do but look pretty. They are determined to take an active part in the community and look pretty too”. ~Lydia Commander, 1909
The pin-up girl was painted on the warplanes and pinned up in soldier quarters. Women worked while the men were away at war and the soldiers had the beauty of a woman to remind them...of a powerful thing…a woman!
Soldiers of WW11 knew who the real pin-up girls” were, the women at home.
The housewife, as portrayed on TV, June Cleaver, seems unreal to us now, always in a dress/skirt, make-up and hair done up. The housewife of the 50″s became outdated and women went to work. Just as in the current time when the woman is doing what a man does. Unforeseen at one time in history.
Women have been looked upon as different creatures, Women have been put in their place, and have evolved into other roles.
Female history is unlike male history. Our roles, portrayals, views, and status have come from one spectrum to another. It is amazing to think of the diverse roles women have played throughout time.
It almost puts claim to the saying “Boys will be boys” The role of a man stayed consistent through time.
A woman has endless bounds of evolution.
A lady is always a lady!
Always holds a door for her, always pulls out her chair, and always ignores the fact that she let one squeak out!
Have you ever tried to explain to your Doctor that you may be at a point of Menopause? They stare blankly at you as if they do not understand the question. "You will stop having your period, this is the best way to know you are in Menopause" My turn to stare blankly at him. Read the chart dude. I have not had a period for 18 years. So I guess the fact I could feel the inner bitch starting to claw her way out could be a sign I am in Menopause or it is my lack of tolerance for dumb.
Signs of Menopause;
1. Irregular Periods
2. Hot Flashes
3. Mood Swings
4. Vaginal Dryness
5. Urinary Infections
6. Loss of Libido
7. Weight Changes
8. Body Odor
9. Muscle and Joint Pain
10. Chest Pain
And a sure sign that The MenoPause has entered your life is that you stop giving a F*ck about things that caused you anxiety and concern before.
You determine kindness's meaning. Kindness is how you choose to show it. Kindness can be empathy, acceptance, kind gestures, and thoughtfulness; the possibilities are entirely up to you.
We usually consider being kind towards others. Have we forgotten the one person who needs kindness to show kindness?
Imagine if self-care were a natural thing, the self-help section would disappear. There would be a large area in the book store to put more sofas.
Being kind to yourself no matter how miserable you feel should be easy. Give yourself a break once in a while, learn from your misery and be gentle when you feel down.
Give yourself a break once in a while, learn from your misery and be gentle when you feel down.
I think I have always had a stock of lotions in the cabinet but I now have an obscene amount of lotion in my home. It takes forever to use up a single container of lotion. There is a great possibility I will also pass on too much lotion for one person to use. Listen now
Since I inherited body, face and every part lotions, I have been throwing some out because it may have been purchased in the 80's. I have also challenged myself to use it until empty which in turn has me celebrating when I actually get to throw out an empty container.
What do you own right now that might not be appreciated if it passed on to someone else?
Yes we own this book, not easy to fill out but will the most important piece to your extensive collection of stuff
Women, through time, have posed for pictures. The still portrait of their beauty is captured for the world to view. As all women have the pin-up girl within themselves, most do not share it with the world. Feeling that way, the way that gives them the confidence to show off to the public the beauty that they possess and can offer. That feeling is usually tainted and, most times, never nurtured. To express and appreciate what you own as a woman comes from within. As we compare ourselves to other people, guidelines, and judgments, we no longer possess that confidence and realization that we are sexy; hell, we are women!!
As our society and media guide our lives, we also judge others and expect them to judge us. What would they say if the many magazines that have told you how to apply your makeup, how to eat, how to exercise if they just told you how to be you? We live through the lives and advice of others, passing along the news. Keeping it real and controversial, our lives forget how to take care of ourselves as individuals without prejudice.
Becoming your pin-up girl: understand yourself, take away the outside world and realize what you offer to be sexy, beautiful, and a great person. You are the pin-up girl that gives inspiration to yourself so that you may share it with the rest of us.
Claim your radiance, concentrate on your attributes, silence your critical voices, and whisper this: My body is strong, vibrant, and healthy; I am a masterpiece in progress. Love flows through every cell; I love and honor my body unconditionally.
The tips of all the articles, and all the advice, are a reference to changing looks, but you are already beautiful and a pin-up girl; how you share it with the world is your choice and your power.
Not that there is anything wrong with being a Sasquatch if you are one, but if you are woman trying her best to look her best everyday, all the information and products can be overwhelming.
Imagine this, it is a typical day, and you sit down to eat lunch and watch some TV, which means commercials.
Then you realize most of the ads are about women-
The Yeast Infection - seen on TV- here is the cure, one step, no mess, clear that yuk up.
The period - menstruation, the curse, that time of month - as seen on TV - many types of pads, tampons, light, heavy, day, night, long, thin, small, maximum, for little women, for large women.
Are you feeling great about it?
Dry Vagina - heat it with lube, girls. Make it a night where everything slides right in.
Itchy and irritated - there is an ointment for that, some cream that will remove the smell and that itch so you can stop picking at your ass.
Acne - There are endless medicated cleansers, creams, cover-ups, and more—no more zits for you.
Wrinkles- so much research, and there are so many creams- day, nighttime, any time. Use it every day. No need to worry, no need to have a wrinkle on your face or your ass with the amount of wonder creams available.
Are you feeling beautiful yet? Just let me know when....but wait...
Fat, chunky, and hoarding belly fat - a billion and two, fast, quick, and easy methods to be as fit as a skinny ass model in no time. All at your figure tips, pick a pill or book, shove it and use it...you will be thin in no time.
Feel gorgeous yet?....but wait...
Don't forget that fur lining you have - wax, razors, razors with built-in moisturizers, creams, gels, no heat wax, sugar wax, professional laser, or waxing. There is no reason to be that hairy; none; get smooth.
If you don't feel beautiful during the last 30 minutes of commercials
Sex'n'Fries - the Podcast. this episode was amazing. It was my first with guests. It went pretty well considering no one had clue what they were doing.
How many times have you heard "Life got in the way" ?
How about "That is way out of my comfort zone!"?
When I was heading towards my fifties, I was stuck in a 'it is what it is and it is how it is'. Let me explain...
I had somehow learned that my age defined me and what I was to do. It was not obvious to me, but looking back, I realize how I was stuck in a predefined path.
The very day I left my mom's house after her funeral, the world seemed closed, claustrophobic and heavy. My world was changing whether I wanted it to or not.
Holy hell, now what?
As I learned to be an orphan, I realized that I was still learning. I realized I also had years and years of experience.
POW right on the side of a head spinning moment.... I already had the tools, smarts and now I needed to step from the comfort zone of 'letting things happen' and expand to another step.
If I knew then what I know now, most likely nothing would be different and I am sure I would not want it to be. All the crap I have lived through is my portfolio, it valuable life lessons that I continuous learned from. I might have failed a few exams here and there but you also learn from that.
Tracy: Hello, my name is Tracy Hicks. I am an imperfect Wife, Mother, Daughter, Aunt, and Nana. I have a beautiful daughter, and two equally beautiful granddaughters. I turned 50 years young this past January, and haven't looked back. I am an Entrepreneur, and an Associate Market Builder with MONAT Global. I've lived in Ontario my whole life, but love to travel. I am living my best life.
Tracy talked to us about the changes life takes us through but how we start to fit into our own skin.
Barb
Hello, my name is Barb O'Dell. I am a Transformational Life Coach. A personal growth junkie from a young age. I have a passion for helping people to overcome obstacles and challenges. I have been married 36 years and have 2 grown children. Currently living in Ontario I am loving life and myself with the help of all I have learned in life so far.
Barb talked to us about how sometimes life lessons can take you on a transforming personal journey and it is not always easy to see your own value in those lessons. Barb also shows us that your greatness arrives at any age and you are the one that gets there.
Thank you to both my guests. I hope you enjoy this episode!
