When Kathi walked into our studio for a mixed boudoir and portrait session we were greeted with a beautiful beaming smile and a burst of excitable energy, her bright blonde hair shone with the sunshine she seemed to have brought along with her from her seaside home town of Brighton, despite the late March British weather. The glow in her eyes instantly told us this would be a wonderful day of shooting. Kathi just turned 53 and is absolutely #livingherbestlife. Not only is she a mother of three and a cat she describes as a pervert (lol), she is a blogger & advocate for healthy happy living whilst being a woman in one’s prime, proving that life over 50 IS fabulous despite the mainstream media often telling us otherwise, and for many this is the age where life actually gets BETTER- the older you get the more you learn to accept and embrace the skin you’re in and where getting out there and just enjoying life should be at the forefront of ones priorities, the kind of advice the younger virtually-engaged women (and men) in our lives should be taking careful note of. We fell in love with Kathi’s creative passion- her inspiring blog page on instagram shows her stunningly vibrant nude paintings (which some are up for sale), her honest thoughts on important subject matter relating to woman and confidence, alongside humorous observations of normal everyday life (we laughed a lot at #catinmycleavage ;’)).
In Kathi’s own words, “I think that having a professional portrait session should be on every grown up woman's To Do list. It's a chance to just breathe in and then present yourself to the world in all your glory. By the time you get to your 50s, you will probably have had some significant challenges to face, and this should be a time to celebrate all that you've become. The experience is nothing short of life affirming.”
Kathi also takes photographs of extreme sports and works for herself, models and is a lover of beards (game of thrones!), the feminine joys of shoes, makeup and clothing (her wardrobe was electric and colourful to match her personality), mountains and long distance walking.
Although Kathi has modelled and would consider herself a creative muse, this was her first time in a professional photographic studio and she absolutely loved the experience. As a strong promotor of self-love and self-care she shamelessly stated, “it’s really lovely to have someone make a fuss of me.” We absolutely love the honestly of this, in a world where we’re encouraged to self-hate and self-deprecate we should never feel ashamed to give ourselves a little TLC now and again, we should feel inspired to do more of what makes us feel good, and why not have others help us in the process! We all need a little love & attention and who doesn’t want to feel like the most important person in the room like royalty even just for a day?
“You'll feel fabulous and your self confidence will be off the scale when you see AJ's portrait of you . You will truly be a force of nature to be reckoned with.”
A photoshoot is no different from a day out to the spa, but not only are you left feeling a little happier and a little more confident, you’re also left with the most stunning photographs of yourself, ones that you can look back on in years to come and remember that YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL. When you love a photograph of yourself and remember the fun that was involved in creating it, the positive effect is everlasting.
You can keep up to date with Kathi’s blog who women of ALL ages will be inspired by on Instagram - @primemusings.
“Girlfriend, trust me - you deserve this. Every time I am having a less than glamorous day, I can look at my portraits and think 'Just remember, that's me on a good day (In theory!)' and it really does give me a boost.”
