One of the biggest obstacles growing up as a young woman in this day and age is the acceptance of our body and how not only do others view it but how we ourselves do also. Being relocated from a very young age into a new western world opened my eyes up really quick. I never did understood the concept of beauty, make up or even knew what a magazine was at age 7 - when I was moved over. Everything fascinated me and scared me at the same time.
One of the biggest obstacles growing up as a young woman in this day and age is the acceptance of our body and how not only do others view it but how we ourselves do also. Being relocated from a very young age into a new western world opened my eyes up really quick. I never did understood the concept of beauty, make up or even knew what a magazine was at age 7 - when I was moved over. Everything fascinated me and scared me at the same time. Growing up in a society where a magazine or a beauty product campaign was a standard structure of how we as woman are meant to look or be like really frustrated me. You shouldn't be told how to look, dress or think. One of the founding ethics of my blogging platform was to show everyone that you have the power to wear what you want. Show your creativity and express however you feel in any form of way. The name 'IDRESSMYSELFF' was a powerful step out of a shell I was in where I didn't accept myself - how I look and felt. Before my blogging start I was in such a dark state of mind where nothing could help how I felt about my appearance. No oversized sweater could cover the annoying voice inside my head telling me 'you need to go to the gym'. Of course I look back at the images of teenage self now and think 'I'm I mental?' I was perfectly fine and healthy. So why did I think of those things? How could I of changed that?
I learned the act of self love from Tumblr in my early days on the web. I was searching for a way of expressing my creativity and found the site that opened so many doors for me. I was so amazed at so many people from different backgrounds and ethnicity connecting and admiring each others uniqueness. It opened me to a world where everyone was accepted for experimenting with their appearance that I started experimenting with mine straight away! I started dying my hair, my clothes, reworking the items in my wardrobe and it made me so happy that I found a way of expressing myself. Through this process I found out who I was becoming and I fell in love with that girl. The girl who didn't give a shit about what people though. The girl who could hear others speaking negatively about her behind her back but was too busy getting lost of this new journey of becoming someone to look up to. I finally accepted myself and my own uniqueness that I documented everything and is now very grateful that I turned my self discovery into a full time job and to be able to inspire and help others along their own journey too.
I quickly learned that to be loved you have to love yourself too. I had finally fully understood that quote and at the age of 17, I had found someone who accepted me for and my flaws. But they were not flaws to him, they were the little things that made me 'me'.
When I get messages from girls who are trying to figure out their style or asking me if they should get something that isn't 'in style' or 'on trend' anymore - I simply reply 'fuck it! If you love it then get it!'. You should just follow your heart at the end of the day and really not give a shit about what others think. Self love also involves being a little selfish so don't feel guilty about saying 'no' to things to have some me time. You need time to relax, shut down, unwind and re-connect with your mind. Self love is all about accepting your physical and mental self and knowing what you are worth. Owning your confidence and and unique personality and stop comparing yourself to others. They are too celebrating their own uniqueness and we should all be accepting and applauding but competing for negative attention.
LOVE YOURSELF LIKE NO ONE ELSE
“ACCEPTANCE PLAYS A BIG PART IN SELF LOVE. ONCE YOU ACCEPT THAT YOU ARE UNIQUE, POWERFUL AND DESIRABLE - YOU ARE READY TO LOVE & BE LOVED”
I am not a writer (accepted this a long time ago! LOL) and trust me it took me about 2 hours for this post but I hope that it all makes sense and could help anyone struggling with their journey to self acceptance. Feel free to leave a comment below and exchange stories on your journey to self acceptance too! I would love to hear them!
IMAGES BY FONG MIN LIAO
Wearing a vintage green slip dress from Elia Vintage , personalised name plate necklace from M jewellers & Bagatiba necklace