Glamorous Countryside Fashion - New Photos!

I was so pleased to wake up to the sun shining today because it meant brilliant weather for an outdoor summery shoot.  Yes, you heard right, after all the heavy rain and Autumnal like weather here in the UK, the sun finally realised it should be shining in July.  Blink and you'll miss it though, which is why when the weather's great you seize it with both hands.  My marvellously photographically talented - and very convenient - Other Half, Sean J Connolly Photography, agreed a shoot was a great idea so that's exactly what we did today.

Living in the heart of the countryside there are ample interesting locations to strike a pose and shoot and so we headed literally a mile up the road from our house to a wheat field and got right into it.

I wanted to wear my peacock feather inspired maxi dress because it's vibrancy was a colourful splash set against the cool tones of the crops.  There was a frisky breeze in the air which created a swath of movement through my dress and played with my tousled hair.

I love shoots out in the open and the feeling of being so close with nature.  The sun was warm and dazzling while the light wind felt refreshing with every twisting blow.  It felt amazing against my skin.

We jumped in the car and headed back past our house up to the next hamlet where the sister church to the church opposite our house resides.  It's such a pretty and unspoiled beauty spot, with a little bridge over a trickling, glistening brook that winds its way through a field of grazing cows.  We spend a little time down by the river where two riders on horses came along and trotted down into the sparkling waters.  I was wishing they'd ask if I wanted a photo with one of the gorgeous horses, or better still, sit on one!  Needless to say the horses were taken back up into the field and away and Sean and I decided to move on.

Having a wander through the graveyard (I have my clothes on again, by the way!  lol) we came across some wonderful old doorways round the back of the church.  They were both aging wooden doors, painted white with cobwebs and blown leaves tucked into its corners.  I loved the larger door with it's imposing black wrought iron hinges and details and thought how pretty the shabby, humble doorways looked.

I love my peacock dress, it's such a light and airy fabric and gorgeous to wear in the warm weather.  I wish it was bigger in the bust though and I find I wish that a lot with clothing these days.  Fashionable dresses on the high street don't really cater for the larger bust.  Does anyone know of a trendy brand that sells fashionable clothing like this dress?

For those who are interested in the make up side, my brilliant, highly pigmented pearlescent green eye shadow is from the amazing MUA range at Superdrug and is a bargain price of only £1!  As much as I live for a bargain, I'm a stickler for quality too, and I adore and totally recommend MUA's eye shadows.

Becky x

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Lingerie Love and Fanciful Photos

Young of age lingerie company, Fraulein Annie, caught my eye only recently, despite being conceived two years ago.  This week the glamorous lingerie brand released some stunning images of their Spring Summer 2013 collection to give us a teasing sneak peek.  The photos are beautiful, a style I've been cooing all over for a little while now.  Floral, feminine, romantic and dreamy; if these images are anything to go by, Fraulein Annie's A-G cup lingerie is something special.

Right now I'm adoring grown up, womanly lingerie, and even more so, beautiful lingerie combined with the great outdoors; gorgeous floral blooms, hazy sunlight, soft natural colours.  I just love images with this make up and I've been collecting photos and creating a mood board for a photo shoot like this for myself for some time.  Fraulein Annie's recent pictures have hit the nail on the head for me.

This was a photo I took of all the inspiring pieces I wanted to create my floral dream shoot with.  I did this a year ago and only now starting to work with it, adding more and more to the collection as I've gone.  My recent angel photo shoot was the start of the same concept, so I'm hoping very soon to create more and complete my pretty picture.

Currently listening to - All Angels - Into Paradise album.  A beautifully fitting collection of music for today's blog theme (and my favourite group).  :-)

Becky x

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Shoot - Summer Ethereal

Over the past week we've been treated to some gloriously tropical weather.  With temperatures soaring high in the mid twenties celcius, it's been an early Summer tease and I've been enthusiastically enjoying the sun and it's heat.  After the very cold spell we'd been braving earlier, it seemed an appropriate time to seize the opportunity of a photoshoot.  With Sean J Connolly geared up and raring to go, out we drove into the beating sun.

I'd been planning this shoot for quite a while, in many respects for well over a year.  I had all these ideas, clothing and accessories set aside ready but on the day the ideas developed and we ended up creating some beautiful imagery beyond my initial imagination.  That's the exciting part when you collide creatives together!

We drove to a beauty spot which we'd found by chance only days before; a shrubby overgrown area which was bursting with freshly bloomed blossom.  It was such a pretty unadulterated area secluded away from the busy road just yards away and it smelled divine.

We went through the motions of me wearing a few different corsets with various bits and pieces and ended up with a really striking image of me amongst the floral bushes.  I'm wearing a brilliant white underbust corset with a delicate pair of nipple pasties.  They are adorable little things in pastel hues, intricately adorned with trimmings and bows.  They are designed by a very talented pasty designer at Intimate Jewellery Designs.  I've found their pasties and tassels to be amongst the best for the expert craftsmanship.

Following Sean's wizardly touch, the image just looked even better!

Another look which turned out particularly well was the angel inspired theme.  I'd brought my giant feathery angel wings and, when paired with a simple little white dress, and a blossom halo made on the spot by Sean (he's clever like that), we produced some wowser pictures that I just adore!

We ventured onto another destination, an ancient wood in the depths of Yorkshire that required us to walk down (and back up!) the most astonishing amount of steps I've ever seen!  But it was worth it.  :-)  Beneath the tree canopy wild garlic flowers carpeted the wood floor to such a vast expanse.  The sunlight snuck through the leaves, spying in at every given opportunity, and there was an immense serene ambiance.  It felt perfectly magical, as if the most natural experience was to stumble upon an angel befallen from the heavens.

I love it when ideas and inspiration just implode and result in amazing pictures you'd be hard pressed to repeat.  :-)

Becky x

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Essentials Magazine Photo Shoot

Yesterday I made the excitingly epic journey down to London for a photo shoot with Essentials magazine.

Essentials asked me if I would take part in a fashion shoot for the magazine after I'd emailed them telling them a bit about myself.  Apparently they're going to do a fashion feature for different body types and they chose me for the hour glass figure.  I was honoured to be asked and very keen to participate so delightedly I said I would.

Both Sean (fiance/photographer) and I booked our tickets to land in at Kings Cross station for noon.  Our train was slightly delayed coming into Darlington and I couldn't move quick enough when it arrived.  It was bitterly cold sitting on the platform even with all my layers and double scarves!

Me waiting for the train

Me on the train - make up free!

The journey wasn't too bad and the three hours passed by relatively quickly with the help of my Grazia mag.  We pulled into Kings Cross just about on time, jumped into a Hackney cab and quickly descended onto the studio in East London where the Essentials team were already conducting the days shoots.

There were four other girls there modelling for the day.  I first tried on a range of outfits that were set aside for me and had quick snaps taken so the fashion team could decide which to go for on me.  The day was slow moving while the assistants and photographer worked through the modelling girls and gradually through the day I had my nails painted, hair styled and make up applied.  It wasn't until around half past four that my time came and I was kitted out in my freshly steamed clothes.

My fabulous curlers!

My first outfit was a fuschia pink peplum dress which looked fantastic on the hanger but at an impossibly small size 8 sample was too small for me.  From what I saw coming off the camera I look stylishly-presentably-hot but what you won't see is my butt sticking out of the unzipped and pinned up back!  As I'm more used to lingerie shoots, I didn't give a hoot that my pants were on full display to the room which is a good attitude to adopt in the modelling industry.  You can't be too precious about modesty!

My first shooting

On the plus side my hair had been amazingly blowdried and back combed so it had oomph and sex appeal and I loved the floral shoes.  I don't remember who made them and now I wish I took a photo of them.

My second outfit I admit not falling in love with.  In all honesty, I would say the skirt, cami and jacket combo was on the frumpy side.  I'm going to be a thirty year old, not turning 50!  Hopefully the photos will look a lot better than my mind had me thinking.  My hair had been put up with a huge quiff-like bouffant and pinned to the side, so the whole look may be more modern in the finished image, but 'chav-like' was what came to me!  It was fun though.

My second look hair

The shoes were orange velveteen heels by Chockers.  They didn't really feel anything like the floral heels I wore in the first look and the tips looked indented and felt like they were poking my toes.  I won't be looking for them in the shops when they come out.

By the time my shoot was over it was almost time to leave so I grabbed a bottle of water and had a quick change into my own clothes before saying our quick goodbyes.  Essentials had called a taxi to take us back to the station where we literally ran with our tickets onto our platform 2 Darlington bound train.  Despite my worry that I wouldn't have time to shoot in the end, we'd made it in perfect time.  The train left London at seven on the dot and got back to Darlington by half nine.

It had been an eventful day, very productive but it was satisfying to return home.  A long shower and scrub up, relax in front of the tv with a bit of food then bed.  Sleep o'clock it was!

Becky

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