I had a recent photo shoot with a lady who has become one big fan of my boudoir sessions :) As it was her second time with me, I wanted to share her story and the benefits she found in doing a boudoir session for herself every year. Here is what she said:
“ Damn I love these sessions! They are my favourite event of the year :) When you become a mum, you’re so busy, all the time, you’re exhausted, taking care of everyone else, and as time passes, one day you feel like you’ve lost your identity, you don’t even remember what is your favourite ice cream flavour. This is when I realised I HAD to do something for myself. And I’m not talking about a bath with the kids screaming in the background or a 20-minute hair cut where I only think about what groceries I should buy for dinner. NO. I wanted an experience. For myself. Some quality time to realise that I was still an amazing, beautiful, strong woman. Something, I don’t know…empowering! I’ve heard about boudoir sessions before so I thought I would check that out and a few days later, I met Valerie in-person.
The minute we met, I knew she was the right photographer for me. So long story short, I booked a date. I’m not going to lie, I felt a little bit nervous. I thought I would never look like the women on her website or instagram but she said all these women told her the same thing before their session. Ok then…
Well, the experience was so amazing, that I decided to do one every year, just for myself. It’s become almost like a ritual :) It allows me to reconnect with myself, really! I forget how gorgeous I am, I forget how confident I can feel and I forget how sexy I can be. Which is important because “sexy” is not in your vocabulary anymore once you have kids. I forget to love myself and these boudoir sessions help me feel alive and empowered again. I need these to recharge my batteries.
“Well, the experience was so amazing, that I decided to do one every year, just for myself.”
At first, I’ll admit that spoiling myself with such an experience made me feel a bit guilty. But let me tell you, it’s so worth it! You always think you’ll get pretty pictures but it’s so much more than that. It’s an Experience and you are the Queen for a day. Professional makeup, hair styling, chocolates, sparkling, personal photoshoot and private viewing session, hand-retouching, elegant products… Gosh, I was not expecting this experience to be so personalised, but I loved it! Someone is actually taking care of me for 3 hours, making me feel like a Diva and I don’t have to think about anything? Well, let’s do it!
“After each photoshoot, I come back to my kids feeling incredibly happy and confident.”
After each photoshoot, I come back to my kids feeling incredibly happy and confident. Ready to be my best self for another year. And the best part, it actually makes them very happy too. I come back home without any stress, feeling grateful to be who I am and to have what I have and with so much love to share with them. I am a mum but I need to be reminded I am a woman too. And Valerie helps me remember I am a strong, powerful, beautiful woman so I can believe in myself and be a better friend, mum and wife. I am also happy to capture these portraits of me every year because each time I look at them, I remember how I felt that day, and it gets me going again. I must say my husband loves them too and he is very happy for me to do these boudoir sessions every year, for some reason :) Every mum should do a boudoir session for themselves and celebrate the woman they have become, it is truly powerful!” - Carla