Tag Archives: self image

Jun23

Going Gingham OOTD Bloopers

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Going Gingham OOTD Bloopers

Hello everyone and welcome to the blooper reel from my Going Gingham OOTD! As you all know, this wasn’t the outfit that I had originally planned on creating. And, the pictures you are about to see were ones that I definitely hadn’t planned on being captured lol. Instead of deleting these yikes shots, it’s way more fun to share them with all of you so let’s get to it:

This freaking stank face haha

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Looking like I just got electrocuted

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I swear to high I’m not god

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Lol, idk why this picture is so funny to me! Taking a brief pause to think about my life.

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I LOOK GREAT!!!!!!!!!!

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I have NO idea what I was trying to convey in this pic, but it’s clearly working 😉

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I feel like I look half asleep in all of these!

image_50435841(4)As always, lumbering around an apartment complex near you!

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As you all also already know from yesterday’s post, I TMI mentioned that I was on the rag during this shoot and feeling bloated. During this time of the month, I tend to get cramps, feel fatigued, and bloat. The cramps and tiredness, I can deal with. The bloating, however, really irks my nerves. I don’t struggle too much anymore with self image issues, but they sometimes rear their ugly head in when Aunt Flo comes to visit!

Because my original outfit didn’t happen, I was feeling irritated. Because I felt bloated, I was even more irritated! I knew that I looked good, but I wasn’t completely thrilled with it because of the wrench in my plans. It wasn’t until Johnny picked his jaw off the floor that I felt fully confident in myself and the desire to have my pictures taken came back.

Honestly, if Johnny didn’t have the reaction he did, I probably would have scrapped the outfit above altogether. But, that isn’t a good thing and I realize that now after reflecting on it. I created this outfit because I knew it would be cute and flattering. The only reason I was hesitant is because I felt bloated and that’s just ridiculous. It is my goal to do lots of OOTD posts this year and, in this case, the only thing standing in my way was me.

The lesson learned? If you feel bloated or not your best: Take the picture. If your hair isn’t behaving: Take the picture. If you have any doubt about your outfit: Take the picture. If people refused to take their pictures when they feel self conscious – pictures wouldn’t exist! Bloopers and all, I felt better as soon as my shots were taken and forgot what I was even pressed about to begin with!

What is something that makes you feel self conscious? Do you ever feel camera shy? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb25

4 Tips To Improve Your Personal Presentation

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4 Tips To Improve Your Personal Presentation

People work hard to attain the skills and knowledge to stay progressive in life. They will invest heavily in those areas, often creating specialties that can help them create a stable career and lifestyle for themselves. However, those elements are not the only things contributing to your progress. It might not feel like an important matter, but how you present yourself is critical.

Body language, posture, and self care will be a few indicators of how well you present yourself. Its effects might feel like an effort to please others, but it is actually an opportunity to take care of yourself more. The confidence you can achieve from improving your image can help you interact with others better, even leading to the point where they compliment your efforts. As a result, people have more reasons to listen and believe you.

However, it can be challenging to identify where to start. If you want to enhance how you present yourself, these tasks will be ideal for your daily routine:

Personal Hygiene:

Your self image relies heavily on physical appearance. The first thing people will see is your face and body, and they might already have plenty of stuff to say about them. Flaws will stand out. Walking into a room full of talented professionals means you must also present yourself that way. Unfortunately, you might pop out in the wrong way when you have messy hair, unorganized clothing, and look disheveled. Odors and bad breath could also have more significant consequences for your self image.

Fortunately, you can eliminate those minor physical flaws through your daily hygiene routine. Showering, brushing your teeth at least twice a day, and applying deodorant might be enough to help you stay clean and neat. Your efforts will ensure that you are presentable, making it the first step towards an improved self image.

Skin Care:

Proper hygiene routines can help you stay clean. However, it does not mean you are automatically presentable. They aim to maintain neatness, but you might have to do something more to improve your physical appearance. A good skin care routine can be incorporated to help minimize wrinkles, acne, or age spots. Even sunscreen can do wonders for your appearance. A consultation with a dermatologist can be a good start and will help increase your knowledge of self-skin care routines.

As you explore different options for skin care, it’s important to be able to identify what your skin type is. Then, you can buy products to help improve and enhance it. Looking up skin health information, advice, and tips can help make you more knowledgeable when it comes to perfecting your skin care regimen.

Active Lifestyle:

Going to the gym, playing sports, and performing at home exercises can help you improve your shape. However, the results might be challenging to achieve without a healthy diet. Cutting down on carbs and removing fast food from your life can help reduce weight and prevent illnesses like diabetes and obesity. An active and healthy lifestyle can help you present your physical appearance better, even improving your posture, balance, and self esteem.

Fashion Trend Updates:

The steps mentioned above allow you to make a routine that improves how you present yourself. They might be fixed guidelines that every person must pursue, but another element can make you stand out even more. Your fashion sense will play a huge role in helping you present yourself better.

Experimenting with a few accessories and pieces of clothing will allow you to improve your fashion sense. However, fashion trends pop up unexpectedly. You must find ways to keep up, which means going shopping every once in a while. You can shop for Kate Spade items online to make the experience more convenient or have a treat day at your favorite store.

Keeping yourself presentable is necessary in life, even though it feels like less of a priority than knowledge and skills. Incorporating these routines means that you will always be in peak shape whenever you are in public, because you never know who you’re going to meet!

May29

Altar’d State Haul Finale

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Altar’d State Haul Finale

Hello everyone and welcome to the finale of my Altar’d State Haul! Today, we are going to wrap things up by talking about a lovely black and white floral print summer dress. This is a purchase I am particularly proud of because, normally, I wouldn’t have even bothered trying this dress on. Take a look at some pics and read on to find out more:

The first thing that I noticed when I saw this dress on display after how much I liked it, of course, was that a bra would be incredibly visible. As a bustier gal, a bra is absolutely necessary for me to feel comfortable but it would ruin the silhouette of the crossback straps and the plunging V of the back of the dress. As mentioned above, I would usually acknowledge how cute a dress like this is on previous shopping trips and then move on to something I could wear a bra in. So imagine my surprise when I took this dress from the rack to try it on in Altar’d State.

Chalk it up to my quickly upcoming wedding (!!!!!!) but my self confidence has been sky high lately and it feels awesome because of how much I have struggled with it in the past. So, instead of feeling disappointed when I saw this dress because I used to think I “couldn’t” wear it, I tried it on anyways. I thought to myself that I could make it work, especially with the adhesive strapless bras that I got for my wedding and almost jumped for joy in the fitting room once I had it on and loved it so much.

It could be the novelty of trying something so new to me but I think that this dress is just the most. The uneven hem is so charming and flowy and it reminds me of fairies. The pattern is also so beautiful to me and it feels like there’s a surprise on the dress everywhere you look from the peekaboo keyhole on the back to the crossback straps. I hate to toot my own horn but I was feeling my DAMN self in it.

I felt amazing in my new dress and even better about the fact that I took a risk and tried something different. This is the first time I have ever considered an option other than my standard, supportive bra when buying something and I know it has to do with my very improved self image. I can’t wait to go shopping again so I can try more new shapes and styles that I didn’t think were possible for me to wear before! ❤

How do you take fashion risks? What makes you feel confident? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

 

Aug25

How To Take Better Care Of Yourself

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How To Take Better Care Of Yourself

It’s not always easy to take the best care of yourself. Even though you know deep down that you need to look after your health and wellness, that doesn’t always happen. Sometimes, life gets in the way. And when that’s the case, you may find that you put yourself and your care to the bottom of the pile. But this is never a good idea. Because, before long, you will find that it catches up with you and you will find yourself feeling sick or run down. So, it’s important for you to make sure that you know how to take care of yourself. This can be especially important if you are feeling stressed or burned out. Here’s what you can do:

Get More Sleep:

To start with, you’re going to want to make sure that you’re getting enough sleep. It’s easy to think that you are, but it’s more likely the case that you are not. Especially if you are feeling off! However, you may find that when you sleep better, you’re going to feel great too. You will feel healthy and much better in yourself. So do what you can to make high-quality sleep your priority.

Look After Your Body:

From here, you’re then going to want to make sure that you are looking after your body as much as you possibly can. It’s important for you to keep your nutrition in check and to keep on top of your exercise. This is something that will always make you feel better in yourself. So make this a big part of your routine. If you need additional help with these steps, it can be a great idea to work with a nutritionist and visit the gym or walk regularly. Going to the gym for the first time might be a little intimidating and perhaps you could benefit from a personal trainer to show you the ropes and motivate you. If you’d like to go that route, simply enter a search for “personal trainer new jersey” (or your local area) to research the best fit for you. Focusing on your diet and exercise can make a huge difference in your mood!

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Get Your Check-Ups:

You’re going to want to make sure that you are getting yourself medically checked out too. You know that you need to see a doctor when you’re sick or for a general check up, and you have to do the same with your dentist too. So why not access their website and make an appointment. It’s something so small but it can really make a difference to your health.

Be Kind To Yourself:

It’s also important for you to make sure that you are as kind to yourself as possible. If you feel stressed or you are beating yourself up about something, it’s going to have an affect on your health. So, you need to make sure that you are working on your mental health so you can keep viewing yourself in a positive light.

Finally, you are also going to want to make sure that you’re making self care a priority. You can’t just rush through life stressed out and feeling overwhelmed – it’s not going to do anything for your health. However, if you can slow down a bit and make sure that you’re having some me time, it will really help your health. Things like taking a bath, pampering, drinking more water, having cozy evenings, and just relaxing can really help you to take better care of yourself. Enjoy!

Featured Image By: Unsplash

Aug17

Looking Your Best Out Of Lock Down

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Looking Your Best Out Of Lock Down

The world is slowly returning a little more to normal after the global Coronavirus pandemic, we’re all looking forward to getting a more social again, safely. Whether it’s catching up with friends and family, going on socially distanced dates, or being able to meet colleagues in person again, we all have to readjust to doing things face to face. So it’s little wonder the question of how to look and feel good is at the top of our minds. How about starting with these tips?

Sort Out Your Smile:

Non-verbal communication and facial expressions are hugely important in how others feel about us. Just simple things like smiling more can change the way people perceive you. If you don’t feel confident about your smile, it’s easy to fix these days. Home teeth whitening kits are easier and safer than ever or you could try adding a charcoal toothpaste to your routine for a more natural boost. If you need a bigger change, cosmetic dentistry has some answers, such as invisalign braces to straighten out crooked or gapped teeth. Being able to smile with confidence can make a huge difference to the success of that job interview or date.

Add A Pop Of Blush:

We’re all a tad pasty from staying inside so much, so one easy trick to define your face more is adding a little extra touch of blush to your makeup. Cream or gel blush formulas tend to be the best – they blend out easier, give a fresh look, and it’s harder to be too heavy-handed with them. The vibrant color can be easily applied just by using your fingertips or a dense, fluffy synthetic brush. Hello rosy and defined cheeks! You’ll be glowing.

Fill In Those Brows:

Another important step for the ‘architecture’ of your face is well-groomed, neatly defined eyebrows. These frame your eyes, which are so important for expressing yourself, especially if you are wearing a face mask. Done correctly, a brow makeover can even make the rest of your face appear lifted and refreshed. Quickly brush them upwards with a spoolie or an old, cleaned up mascara wand, and then gently stroke through a brow pencil or a powder eyeshadow which matches the shade of your brows. If you’re blonde, consider a light taupe a shade or two darker, and if you have really dark hair, a shade or two lighter with a chocolate brown often looks softer.

Get The Lighting Right:

Hollywood actresses and Instagram influencers alike know that lighting is everything! So when getting back to socializing in person, you can feel confident by flattering yourself with the right illumination. Position yourself to be facing a window and you won’t get any harsh shadows that show up under eye bags and fine lines. Position a lamp or other light source to the other side for truly flawless results!

Everyone has their own quick fixes for looking their best and hopefully these will have you feeling it as you step back into this great big world. 🙂

Featured Image By: Pexels

Jul1

Redefining How You Perceive Yourself In Daily Life

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Redefining How You Perceive Yourself In Daily Life

Self-image can seem like a tertiary consideration to reflect upon, but it actually defines much of how we view the world, and how we relate to other people. For instance, if you hold very little self-confidence, everyone can seem impressive and, sometimes, others can take advantage of you more easily. If you are thoroughly narcissistic and egocentric, odds are you’ll have trouble really connecting with anyone or forming trusting relationships.

Of course, it’s rare that we are either one or the other. Personalities are complex, to the point where even the best behavioral scientists, psychologists, and neurologists haven’t and likely will never fully map out how our ‘souls’ can express themselves. But that doesn’t mean you can’t commit to personal changes that make the most sense.

Redefining how your perceive yourself in everyday life can seem like an intense challenge and reflective habit, something that we might not be very comfortable with. Yet taking small changes for the better and doing so with a sense of grace and consideration can lead to big, positive changes. For instance, what if instead of telling yourself that you’re not skilled enough, you simply thought ‘I can give this a go?’ Odds are, you’d benefit dramatically over the years.

Now, try the following to help keep the positivity flowing in your life:

Daily Affirmations:

Daily affirmations needn’t share voodoo, spiritual, or otherwise ethereal beliefs. Simply looking in the mirror and telling yourself you are powerful and are about to enjoy a great day can be enough. Telling yourself you look great in the mirror and pointing your finger-guns to confirm it can be enough. How we speak to ourselves matters, because ultimately you will begin to believe the narratives you tell yourself. If you wouldn’t allow a friend to speak to you that way, why allow yourself?

Working Towards Improvement:

Confidence can also come from working to improve yourself. For instance, if you’re obese, does that really matter if you’re now eating right and working out as you can? Obesity is just a present state, sooner rather than later you’ll be amazed at the progress you’re making. This can help you avoid feeling completely stuck in the situation you are in now. No matter what the improvement is, from taking care of your skin to losing weight or simply feeling more body-confident with well-fitting clothes, you have a sense of progression and something to be really proud of. For some, this might be emphasized with a new tattoo or a visit to SOMA surgery center for further work. This can help you feel positive about your self-image to an untold degree.

Comparing Yourself To Yesterday:

Comparing yourself to yesterday is much better than comparing yourself to someone else’s stature today. If you’re stronger and more pensive than you were last week, that’s good news. If you feel happier in that you’ve managed to achieve a life milestone, be that a promotion or starting a new relationship, it doesn’t matter that someone ten years younger than you is advising the United Nations. What matters is your own progress. Remember, you’re lapping everyone stuck on the couch!

With this advice, we hope you can incrementally redefine how you perceive yourself in daily life – all for the better.

Featured Image By: Pexels

May26

Is It Time To Get Your Confidence Back?

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Is It Time To Get Your Confidence Back?

One of the most frustrating things about living in the modern world is the fact that, for many of us, it seems dedicated to making us feel as bad about ourselves as possible. The world sets such incredibly high standards for many of us that it’s unlikely any of us could live up to them. Because of that, developing any kind of self-confidence can be a real challenge. Of course, just because something is a challenge doesn’t mean that it’s impossible. With that in mind, here are some things that you can do to bring up your confidence levels, even just a little:

Take care of yourself:

If you want to start feeling better about yourself, then one of the first things that you’re going to want to do is to start taking better care of yourself. After all, if you don’t feel good physically, then your perception of yourself is going to end up pretty skewed. This could involve anything from eating better and sleeping more to treating yourself to some pampering with a spa day or a treatment to remove body hair with lasers. Whatever you do to look after yourself, not only are you going to feel better physically, but it’s a good reminder that you deserve a treat from time to time.

Self care can come in many different forms and what makes you feel good could be the polar opposite from your best friend. That’s okay and is why it’s called self care – it’s completely up to you! Perhaps this means scheduling an appointment with a therapist. Or maybe it’s scheduling a consultation for cosmetic surgery with beautybybuford.com (or a similar practice in your local area). If cosmetic surgery has been on your mind, make smart decisions and wait for surgery until you find a surgeon you are fully confident in.

Get off social media for a while:

Social media can be a really amazing thing. After all, it gives us the chance to connect with one another no matter where we are and keeps us up to date on the current goings-on of the world. However, it can also be a pretty negative influence on many of our lives. Seeing the carefully curated images that people put of themselves on social media, it’s easy to start feeling somewhat inferior. But the truth is that these images simply aren’t a reflection of the real world. Getting away from social media from time to time is one of the best things that you can do to start feeling better about yourself.

Get used to your body:

One of the things that far too few of us actually take the time to do is to look at ourselves in the mirror. Many of us have some kind of perception about our bodies that so heavily colors what we think that we don’t pay attention to the reality of how we look. Taking the time to actually look at yourself and get used to your body can help to remind you that you likely look totally normal and that there’s nothing wrong with how you look.

The reality is, that a lot of aspects of the modern world are built around making you think that there’s something wrong with feeling confident about yourself. This is often because it’s a whole lot easier to sell you stuff when you feel miserable about yourself. Remember that you’re not doing anyone any harm by feeling good about yourself and, in a world that is designed to profit from making you feel as bad about yourself as possible, there’s something pretty radical about loving yourself.

Featured Image By: Pexels

Aug15

More Pretty In Punk OOTD Pics

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More Pretty In Punk OOTD Pics

Hello, hello! Yesterday, you bore witness to a punk inspired OOTD that I am very proud of and I wanted to be able to share more pictures with you. This has definitely been my favorite shoot and OOTD to date and just one post dedicated to it is not enough. So, take a look at some more of my photography and style adventure and be sure to consult yesterday’s post if you want to know more about the outfit and the shoot:

 

 

 

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Believe it or not, there used to be a time when I would shy away from getting my picture taken. Shocking, I know. I just wasn’t happy with myself or my appearance and the last thing that I wanted was to be in front of a camera. But, now, there is nothing that I love more. Being able to showcase my form of art, which is all things fashion as well as my makeup, tattoos, and piercings is something that makes me proud. And, I’ve got to say, it feels amazing to finally be happy with the way I look, as it has been something that I struggled with for longer than I care to admit.

Each photo shoot that I do makes me feel more confident and I am so happy to have created a platform through lifewithlilred to share my journey of fashion, personal growth, Taco Bell, and everything in between with all of you! ❤

What makes you feel confident? How has your hobby helped build your self esteem? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug5

Beach Babe OOTD

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Beach Babe OOTD

Hi everyone! This past weekend, my parents had the pleasure of watching my sweet niece, Valerie, while her mom and dad were attending a friend’s wedding in Chicago. After running some errands on Saturday, it was a must to break out the kiddie pool to splish splash with Val and have some fun in the sun. And, of course, her TT is extra enough that taking pics was a must. Take a look:

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Who? What? Wear?

To be honest, I wasn’t quite sure if I wanted to post the pictures above because of the visible rolls on my stomach. But, then, I remembered this picture that I saw on Facebook and had the confidence to post my bikini clad pics – and they were a hit!

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^^^ Amazing image from Handful

This picture gave me the friendly reminder that EVERYONE’S stomach rolls when they sit down, no matter what your body type is. So, why was I expecting my sit down pictures to look any different? And, you know what? I love how I look in my kiddie pool pics. I love how happy I look, I love the sunlight on my tattoos, and I love how good my bikini made me feel, because it can be an intimidating thing to wear. And, of course, I love seeing pictures of my niece with her TT!

It’s amazing what a piece of clothing you really like can do for your self esteem. Whether that be a bikini, a dress, or a pair of jeans that fit you like a glove – it just gives you that extra boost to make you feel like the queen of the world. And, my Little Mermaid bikini does that for me.

The first time I wore it this summer, I thought that I would shy away and just stay in my towel instead of enjoying the lake. But, as soon as I took a breath and dropped the towel, I felt a-okay. I remembered how awesome my bikini made me feel just trying it on in the dressing room and let myself feel that way again, even if other people were seeing me in it. This gave me the confidence I needed to strut about the Metro Park lake or even just my open backyard at home without the fear of what other people are going to think.

I feel like an absolute Beach Babe in my two piece and I hope that all of you feel the same way in your swimwear. Remember, a “bikini body” is just a body in a bikini so don’t let whatever makes you feel insecure prevent you from enjoying your swim time. I promise you, the water is fine. ❤

What kind of clothes do you feel the most confident in? How does wearing swimwear make you feel? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jul17

Lil Red For The Little Mermaid!

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Lil Red For The Little Mermaid!

Helloooo! I swear, my newsfeed on THE BOOK has been filled with bullshit on the casting for the Little Mermaid and it is the most annoying thing on planet Earth. So, when I busted out my new Little Mermaid themed bikini for the first time this summer, I knew that I had to create a joke post about me being cast as Ariel. I mean, come on, I have the red hair which should compensate for my singing voice that sounds like a dying cat! 🤣

And Ariel did have a buttload of tattoos and piercings right… or am I thinking of a different movie?

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^^^ The resemblance is uncanny! 😀

But, in all seriousness, this post isn’t about my cheeky sense of humor or a casting decision that I am 150% for. This is about bikini body positivity because, let me tell you, I have not felt confident in a bikini in a very long time. I took a client to one of our local Metro Park lakes this past Monday and saying that I was nervous to be in public in my Little Mermaid number is the understatement of the century.

I have a very love/hate relationship with my body, especially considering that I struggled with an eating disorder for a long time. And, I still have a hard time grasping that my body at twenty-five is going to be different than what my body was at sixteen. Do I love that I have bigger breasts than what I would like? No. How about the fact that I can’t seem to get rid of my little tummy no matter how healthy I eat or how often I figure skate? Absolutely not.

But, then, I remember that I love my legs and badonk that are super toned and muscular from over a decade of dedication to a sport. I love my piercings and tattoos that make me happy whenever I look at them. And, it could always be worse lol!

Even with those friendly reminders, though, I was still anxious for the grand reveal of my towel coming off. But, my client wanted to swim and that’s what was going to happen that day. So, I took a deep breath, dropped the towel, and began to walk towards the water. That’s when something amazing happened…

The first person who saw me told me that I looked awesome and little did she know, that changed my attitude for the entire lake outing. What felt like a literal blanket of insecurities for my first time in a bikini in years was lifted instantly by a stranger’s kind words and I felt good… better yet, I felt confident.

And, because I felt so happy and okay with myself in my own skin, I wanted to share the gift that the guardian angel stranger shared with me. If I saw a bikini that I thought was darling or if one of my fellow ladies was working it, trust and believe I let them know. And, watching their faces light up instantly was the best thing.

No matter what their body type is, I don’t know many girls who are thrilled about being in bathing suits. That’s why it was important to me to offer the same kindness to others that my stranger did for me. Part of being a Disney princess is having confidence and, in my Ariel inspired suit, I finally felt that way. The least I could do was help other people feel that, too.

What makes you feel confident? How do you help others to feel that way? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah