LoveYourself 2018 Spring Edition

#LOVEYOURSELF 2018 SPRING EDITION

We know what we are, but know now what we may be.

William Shakespeare

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The #LoveYourself campaign was launched in Feb 2017 to recognise women who pour so much of themselves into various activities and commitments, often forgetting about themselves in the process. It was our way of saying Thank You! for being the strong women you are, to take a moment to #LoveYourself and be reminded of the beauty that lies within YOU.

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Hiya, I’m 31 years old and my struggles started when I was a little girl. I can still remember the times when I felt like I could not fulfil my dreams like the other children in school. As a child, I had dreams to be like the other kids, to have fancy shoes, clothes and toys. I wanted to look pretty like other girls and use the tools they used to achieve these looks, but I knew deep in my heart that my family couldn’t afford such luxuries.

At times my mother’s wages were not enough to feed us all and there were nights we went to bed hungry. I started my first job when I was 17.

I worked so hard, 80 hours a week, and also drove my siblings to their places of work.

Life just got busier and busier.

I’ve always wanted to be a model, I too had dreams, I wanted people to know who I was, to know my inner beauty as my outer. There was a time, when I was going through the reasons why my then boyfriend did not love me back.

I thought it was because I wasn’t pretty enough or even, good enough for him. As much as this killed me inside, I still tried to look like his version of pretty, by acting and doing activities that pleased him and not myself.

Hearing people’s harsh words and living with my struggles made me stronger inside, but also discouraged me from being who I wanted to be.

My religion, the church of Jesus Christ of LatterDay Saints gospel gave me hope and made me strong. Something in me snapped and like a light switch, I realised that I should be just me, and be who I want to be with Gods help.

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Finally, after all these trials in my life, I’m in my second year of nursing, and I’m about to achieve my career to help others. I felt I had to let go of my dream of getting my modelling portfolio done, as I continued to move on with age.

Yet still, a small part of myself felt as though I failed in life. However, STUDIO81 gave me hope that I can get my picture done and fulfil my dream even just for a day. I can be me and who I want to be.

This opportunity is a dream come true and gave me hope that maybe I can pursue my dream after all. This has been a start of what I’m actually passionate about (other than nursing).

STUDIO81 has encouraged me to be a little selfish with myself and actually do something for myself.

The lovely lady Annalise gave me a wonderful make-over and made me look gorgeous with her hair and makeup talent. Jeff, the photographer, showed me how to pose for photos, and Dorin helped me pick the best of the best from the best shots.

The team has been great, they were so loving and welcoming. They made me feel special and at home. I was very nervous at first, but their friendliness and generosity made me feel at ease.

Joy Singh

I will forever be grateful to STUDIO81 who helped me achieve my dream and help me realise that failure is not equal to a lack of success, but failure is when you give up. Thank you STUDIO81 for not allowing me to fail.

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This year I made the biggest move I have ever made, and hit the restart button on my life.

Within a year I had lost my Dad, I distanced myself from family & friends, I lost a piece of my identity, I lost my health, and I had to step away from a career opportunity.

I had to start from scratch. But the most important thing is I woke up every single day and I reminded myself and I remembered who The Heck I am, and I put one foot in front of the other and always knew my babies & I would get through this better than when we went in.

I have now regained control of my health, my happiness, and I am a stronger and wiser mother and woman than I was to begin with.

I’ve never been a stranger to hardship, but I know how to pick myself back up and get back in the ring.

I’m in this life to win it. I am so grateful and thankful for every ounce of love and support I have received & did get from whanau, friends & encouragement from Ladies Legacy Group And especially thankful to this #LoveYourself Campaign for giving me this opportunity to make me recognise that giving time to myself is truly worthy!

I cannot sit around and wait for approval from others. I am Me, I’m not perfect but I strive in the best interest to be the best Me I can be!

Look inwards, Love who you are! Know who you are..when you step outside your comfort zone great things happen! And with all of that being said, I will never stop sharing what I’ve learned.

This journey I have been on has been transformational & opened up so many doors of opportunities. If I can extend a hand to just one woman who feels like she can’t walk away from an abusive relationship, then all of this backlash I get for sharing isn’t for nothing.

Te Anae Burkhardt

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I’m 37, a wife, mum of a 10mth old baby girl, full time IT project manager and volunteer firefighter.

To say I’m busy is an understatement but with the support of an amazing husband and great friends, I seem to be managing it all.

I’ve always been someone that’s struggled with my body image and had something about it that I’ve not liked. I’m always seeing things that could be improved and struggled to love the skin I’m in.

While I was pregnant that changed for a period and I loved getting bigger, knowing that it was because I was growing a human. After having my daughter unfortunately things went backwards again and I found myself picking on things that I needed to improve.

The good news is I’ve found support through other mums and women generally and started to love the skin I’m in. Yes, I still want to make improvements, but I’m not so negative about the way I look. I have a daughter I love and need to be an example for, so eating healthy and exercising is important, but for overall wellbeing, not just to wear a bikini on the beach.

I saw the #loveyourself campaign photoshoot as another step for me to love my skin more and show my daughter I’m proud of who I am AND what I look

like. That my changed body is amazing for all it’s done, that I’m strong, and can be confident that I look good.

I was super nervous about doing the shoot but the team made the experience an amazing one. It was so nice to get a little pampering and I came away with some incredible photos that I absolutely love!

Thank you so much for the experience and what the campaign is doing for woman.

Anna Alexander 07

I have always felt others were better than me.

Prettier than me. A reason to be a giver, not a taker.

I went into this with the hope I would see, in me, what others could already see. Not just a hard worker, or a mother with all those extra responsibilities. You know: cab driver, nurse, cook etc. a loving heart and caring nature. Well okay. I could see some, if not all of that. But to see the beauty that shone outwards from my inner self.

That was the hardest for me to believe in.

I am not, and never will be a catwalk model. Or so I thought.

My day was full of firsts for me. My first time with false nails and eyelashes. A fantastic make up artist who highlighted my actual looks. A photographer who put me at ease to get the most of me in my outfits. To the end results making me cry at the beauty shown.

I am beautiful. I am a real person after all. I am beautiful. I can now see it. I have the photo to prove it.

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Debbie Dewhurst

I have never had a photo shoot of just me - done it with 4 of my grandchildren but not a photo shoot that pampers me. I don’t pamper myself. If I have money left over at the end of the week, I spend it on my 10 grandchildren lol. They are far more important than me. My world revolves around them all.

A bit about me - we moved here to NZ from South Africa, originally Zimbabwe, for a much better life for our children - that has worked out really well - they are doing really well. I am 58 years old married for the 2nd time.

A little pampering just for me would mean like i have won the lottery. I don’t spoil myself. It would really boost my moral and confidence as i have lost that a long the way. I used to walk with my head high up but now i tend to feel I am not good enough. So participating in the shoot would lift my spirits.

After doing the photo shoot with you, it made me feel like a million dollars - no one recognised me so thank you for that.

Debbie Needham

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I was lucky enough to be chosen to be part of the #LoveYourself campaign. I had no experience with photoshoots. I entered the competition as I just wanted to feel better about myself and my skin even if it was for one day.

From the moment I walked into STUDIO81 I was treated like a princess. Annalise is such a lovely person and is so warm. She is very talented and made me feel beautiful.

I was very nervous getting the photos done but the photographer was so kind and knew what to say to make me feel at ease. My over all experience was amazing and I am so proud to be part of the #LoveYourself campaign.

Sinead O’Brien My name is Alison Daniel. I am a mother of three grown up children now. I am 54 years of age, and I have raised three children on my own. I am also a qualified teacher.

For years I have taken care of others and given out so much, and rarely get back. I had put on a lot of weight at one stage, and got put down for this, especially by men. I lost myself, and my self-esteem. I think a lot of men treat women like this and it’s not right. My self esteem was so low which is one reason why I ate more.

Being a mother of three with no support has been very hard. I did this campaign to learn to like myself again and get myself back. I never had any love. My feelings were often neglected.

Mother’s often neglect their own emotional needs as they have taken care of others; this has been my life for years.

I loved doing the photo shoot. I felt so good and positive about myself. I am very pleased with my photos and happy with them. I ENJOYED IT A LOT. Seeing myself in those photos made me see myself different, and feel better about myself. I was constantly criticised. This added to my weight problem. I know we are all different and not perfect. But when we are constantly criticised or put down, we lose a part of ourselves.

I am looking at moving forward this year, and hopefully the part I lost will return and stay. Thank you so much for including me in this.

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Alison Daniel

Some things about my self: I have 3 brothers, a half bother, and a younger sister. I’m very hard working. I’m the eldest child, and also the eldest grandchild out of 30. We just had a huge family reunion in Easter 2017. It was really an awesome time. I’m a big league fan, I like watching the V8 super cars, and most of all, hanging out with my kids and grandkids. I have always wanted to do something like this, but have never found the time. I now feel I can do something just for me as my kids are all grown up. I would like to finally feel what it’s like to be pampered and not feel guilty for doing something just for me.

My photo shoot experience was more than I expected.

It was the best! Getting my make up done and hair done was only the beginning of a fabulous day. Lastly the photographer made me feel so comfortable that I was able to take direction from him easily and with that my photos were amazing! I can’t say enough about the whole experience from STUDIO81.

Jude Leslie I would first of all like to thank you all for the amazing experience I had at your studio. I nearly decided not to come that day, self doubt crept in and I had a lot of self talking to do.

8 years ago I was diagnosed with an illness called Trigeminal Neuralgia (TN) just putting on make up or washing my face can bring on an attack. When I saw the campaign I thought give it a go ...I turn 60 on the 22nd of Nov and really needed a boost.

Lol boost I got...from walking in and talking to Annalise who immediately put me at ease. And May I say transformed this worn out lady to a spunky chick lol....

The shoot itself was very enjoyable and Jeff I believe bought out my Shine! The hardest part was choosing my photo.

Dorin has a great system set up which we managed to get what I wanted.

I encourage anyone no matter what you have been through to take this opportunity and go for it..I am so glad I did. Again thank you all for my wonderful day.

Maryanne Chambers

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Yes, being a mum changes you, but for better even science confirms you are a different person after giving birth. A person with responsibilities, emotions, love, nature and caring.

I think the #loveyourself campaign is all about a reminder to busy women to take care of yourself. It isn’t selfish to take time out for yourself. To all mums, housewives, working mothers who get so busy in their world that they turn to forget about themselves. This is absolutely not cool as for me being a mum, I need to take care of myself, only then will I be able to take care of the rest.

Busy - it is often first word that comes to my mind when I am asked how am I feeling. For me, I know it is hard work being a working mother. My life totally changed after birth.

I felt like I have lost my freedom. As a mum, you are more concerned about your baby than yourself. Overnight I changed from free person to anxious mother.

The #Loveyourself campaign is to motivate and encourage those women to be confident, take time out for themselves. It’s okay to enjoy life with full freedom. It’s okay to go out and chill. It’s okay to go out for movies. It’s okay to give some responsibilities to others. Remember no one is perfect, so why try to be?

To make any decision was a very big deal as it is of another human’s entire life. I got so engrossed in my baby’s life that I have forgotten to take care of myself. It was basically everything about my baby. I realised It is so easy to stop caring for yourself or to get overwhelmed. But when you stop caring for yourself, your ability to care for your child is impacted, and your ability to enjoy motherhood is impacted.

Going out and have fun does not make me a bad mom. It is easy to see a photograph and jump to conclusions, but people should know we are women, and we’re capable of multitasking.

BEING A MUM CHANGES OUR BODY, OUR HORMONES, OUR RELATIONSHIPS AND BASICALLY OUR LIFE.

Then browsing through my Facebook I came across the #Loveyourself campaign. What is the #Loveyourself campaign?

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So ladies take a deep breath and enjoy every moment as this moment is your life.

Rimita Ram

I’m a Community Advisor, and Clifton Strengths and Abundance Life Coach with a wealth of work and life experience. My passion is to support and serve others to help make a difference in our communities.

At the age of 17 I had a car accident and went through a windscreen where I could not recognise myself in the mirror. I have had over a dozen reconstructive surgeries on my face over the past few decades.. The very last tweak surgery being the 13th December 2018 and on top... I feel I have got myself to the place I was meant to have been.

I finally felt confident to have a professional makeover and photo experience as I feel like I’m now back to me. Get knocked down 9 times, I get up 10.

Chislane Bourke

What an amazing ME day this was with STUDIO81. This was way out of my comfort zone, but with a little help from the team, I got to see the beautiful woman that’s been idle inside for a long time. Thank you for the inspiration, the pampering and the lovely pictures I can cherish.

Jacquita Maaka

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After an insane year of broken relationships, passing of friends, ending of jobs and general craziness, I decided to take a stand and follow my heart and get out of my comfort zone even further. Sometimes you realize you just have to stand up and make a change and do something to make an impact not just on yourself, but on the world around you.

So I launched a new site /business focused on women to encourage them to learn to love their life (www.amyjoy.co). I’m planning to develop this into an international online community to encourage and empower, coach and just help us get past ourselves to be able to follow our dreams. It is gradually growing in following and connections and will move to stage 2 hopefully soon where it connects more people together.

While launching all of this I came across the #LoveYourself campaign by STUDIO81, and it just resonated with everything I was trying to do. I’m just as guilty at not spending time to love myself, especially trying to launch all this for others so I entered to live what I preach.

I have to say the experience was both incredible and frightening all at the same time. While I needed profile pictures for the new site, I also had to really face who I am and was completely blown away at how beautiful I felt when I saw the pictures. This person I had forgotten was somehow there inside, and seeing her on a screen while reviewing the shots really left me overwhelmed. After having my wedding called off earlier in the year, I had not realised how much I had looked forward to having that special moment where I felt beautiful and special just as I am. This in a way made up for that, and gave me a reminder that I am that inside no matter what happens in my life.

I can’t thank the staff at STUDIO81 enough for this experience. It really helped heal a lot of things I didn’t even realise were still hanging around, and also provided a beginning for something more. I look forward to more people finding that beautiful person inside and the freedom to be who they were always meant to be. And maybe to just go and have some fun in the process.

Amy Burton 014

I am a busy Mum of two young children, I am currently juggling working full time, starting up my photography business and the usual household duties. I don’t get a lot of down time or time to myself and when I do I am usually catching up on some sort of cleaning or thinking about which household chore needs to be done next. I am a Mum who has battled with Postnatal Depression and anxiety so some days I find it hard to get out of bed.

Earlier in the year I struggled big time with this which affected my job, my family and made me lose interest in the things I usually love doing.

I was excited to apply to be apart of the #loveyourself campaign because I really wanted to do something for myself where I could just be me.... without interruptions or thinking about my constant “to do” list. I am not very good at relaxing and get major mum guilts when I do have time to myself so I wanted an opportunity to use this time to reflect on myself, my goals and who I am.

The team at STUDIO81 were amazing. I arrived at the studio and immediately felt so welcomed. Annalise did a wonderful job with my makeup, I was excited to try something a little different with the colours and the eye lashes, oh my goodness, they were my favourite! When it came time for my photoshoot I felt so nervous but it didn’t last long at all. Usually I’m the one taking the photos so to be infront of the camera was an incredible feeling.

When Dorin came to get me for the photo viewing I was so excited and nervous for what I was going to see. When I looked up at the screen, I saw a confident, happy and beautiful lady and that lady was me! I was so surprised at my photos and so grateful that I was given the opportunity to have this experience.

I need to be an inspiration to myself so that when I do have bad days, I can get through it. I have my photos up on my wall by my mirror so that when I get ready each day and see myself in the photos I am reminded that I can be confident, I can be happy and I am beautiful.

Thank you for this incredible experience.

Nikita Weir

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there are a hundred reasons why we would gringe at the idea of putting ourselves out there, but there are also a million other reasons why we should trust in ourselves and take that leap of faith.

I was blessed to have had this opportunity and a day and time was set. The night before I prepared what I needed and with anxiety levels reaching sky high I got into my car the next morning and drove to the studio.

There are absolutely not enough words to describe my experience, four hours of magic.

From the time I walked in the team at STUDIO81 made me feel special. From the hair to the makeup and the photo shoot it was a blast! I never dreamed that I would ever in my life be doing a photo shoot yet there I was smiling, posing and changing positions comfortably because the environment allowed me to do so.

As women, we sometimes tell ourselves that we are beautiful, however having the experience of feeling beautiful is something that we as woman need to get better at. This is what I learned from this experience with STUDIO81. The feeling and emotion of being a beautiful woman is within the grasp of each woman, the joy that comes with this knowledge can lift the burdens of our daily lives.

I am 52 years old, a mother, a grandmother, a sister, a daughter and a friend to many. I am the eldest of six children and I have grown up in a polynesian family.

Both my parents are Samoan. Add to this the position of being the eldest grandchild in both my mother and father’s families, its a receipe for an upbringing full of huge silent expectations requiring eyes in the back of my head. A skill I’m very proficient in these days. At 12 years of age I was diagnosed with Lupus an autoimmune illness with a story of its own.

My 25 years of marriage ended about 13 years ago when my two younger children were toddlers, both my younger boys live with special needs and as a mother I have also experience the loss of a child. To say that life has been difficult would be a great understatement.

However my training in my Samoan family has helped me to survive and my Faith has given me Hope that all will work out. With every event in my life I have come out the other end, better and stronger for having had the experience, no matter how ugly it was at the time.

I first heard about STUDIO81 from a friend. Then I came across STUDIO81 on Facebook with their #LoveYourself Spring Edition Post. I mulled it over for a few days before I sent in my message. As a woman,

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When opportunities like this come your way I encourage you to grab it with both hands and have a ball, its fun, refreshing and so worth the effort. You are worth the effort, I am worth the effort. Thank you STUDIO81, I am so grateful to have had this experience.

I am 52 years old, Samoan, a mother, a grandmother, a daughter, a sister, a friend to many and a very beautiful woman!

Millie Tapusoa

I am heading towards 60 and feel I have could do with a boost to my self esteem! I have been through divorce (as many have), and now have a lovely partner. I have 4 grown kids, and 6 (soon to be 8) grandchildren.

For much of my life I have not had a lot of self confidence so have bluffed my way through. My kids are all doing so much better than I was at their ages! I’d like to be able to give them something they can be proud of, and to remind them of me for the future.

Kay Rodgers Thank you so much for choosing me for your #LoveYourself campaign.

You have no idea how much I needed this experience. I have never been comfortable with my looks or body shape. To see myself in a photo and not cringe was the best feeling ever.

From the moment I stepped through the doors of STUDIO81, I was treated like a princess and put at ease straight away by the lovely and beautiful Annalise, who started my journey with STUDIO81. She did my makeup and hair which lasted not only the whole day, but the entire evening. I felt beautiful.

You have inspired me to do more photoshoots. Learning to love the body I have is not easy, however, due to the great team at STUDIO81, I am able to see myself in a completely different way. I walked in as an ugly duckling and came out a blossoming swan. xxx

Uvanna Hodge

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Firstly I want to say that I had the most amazing time at STUDIO81. Especially getting pampered with having hair done in style (something that only happens to my hair once in a blue moon), and full on make up (also happens once in a blue moon) by the loveliest Annalise.

When I saw this ad on Facebook, I wanted to do it immediately, but I was being hold back by the whole “being photographed by someone else.” Anyways, I thought I’ll face my fears and just wrote to STUDIO81 as to why I wanted to enter this #LoveYourself Campaign.

For me it was the whole getting away from all the normal routine that moms (or some like me) go through daily, as in: getting kids ready in the morning, dropping to school, go to work, pick them up, feed them, shower them, put them to bed, being a wife, being a mom, and next day – repeat.

Having 6 children in total, with 5 still living at home, it does get busy, and trying to steal sometime off to yourself to do something always ends up in cleaning the house and doing all the other endless chores.

So then really there is no time to myself, where I am actually doing something nice for myself. So, I did this to just tell myself that “hey you need to slow down and just go get dolled up” hehe.

I’m so glad I did, because it was one of the best relaxing half days ever. It was a great therapy for myself. I got to feel all pretty while at it, and get to feel like a celebrity when I got photos taken.

It was one of those experiences where it not only boosted your confidence, but it also reminds myself that I need to take care of self, and that even if I am a mom of 6 and a nani, I still can be that cool, pretty young woman that I am in heart.

Maranatha Usu-Voorwinden

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I would like to extend my big thank you to STUDIO81 for giving me a chance to be a part of #Loveyourself campaign. What a beautiful chance you gave to women for uplifting women empowerment.

I must say it was a great experience in the studio. From the make up artist to the photographer to the viewing session every minute spent was just about pampering yourself with these amazing people. The photographer’s skill in capturing you is absolutely out of this world and I feel so lucky to have known such an exceptional photography studio. You guys will be doing my wedding photoshoots when I find the man of my dreams so you can imagine how much I loved you guys. Thank you! Thank you! and Thank you!

The reason behind doing this campaign was to celebrate my success as an immigrant who worked so hard to establish in a foreign land and the challenges faced to adapt to the new culture which was all possible due to the blessings of almighty and the most supportive family - my mum, dad and my younger brother.

I feel so lucky to have chosen a country like New Zealand (snake free country- the best thing in the world) to call my second home. I migrated to New Zealand in 2009 and finally achieved my citizenship in 2017. This beautiful country has fulfilled all my dreams to be part of modelling events, beauty pageants, photoshoots, visiting and working on sets of famous Short Land Street and finally to be a part of a tv show called Arranged where documentary was made on me.

I hope to continue to give my best to this country and its society just the way this country has given it to me and my brother. Kio Ora New Zealand.

Chandni Arora

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I had never done a photo shoot before. I am a 36 year old teacher who has a wonderful husband, almost 2 yr old daughter, 6 step children and 3 step grandchildren. I have been with my husband since I was 23 yrs old. We have been married for almost 5 yrs.

My mother passed away suddenly just over a year ago and since then I had been feeling a bit lost. The only thing that helped me make sense of this new world is my children.

Mine and the ones I teach. I was fortunate enough to be the recipient of this photo shoot. I was hoping for a boost in self confidence, and I must say I got way more than that.

Nervously I made my way up the stairs to the beautiful studio and remember thinking, what have I done? Should I be here?

That fear was put to rest when I met Annalise. We chatted about everything and I got some style tips, that I currently use in my day to day life. The photo shoot was awkward but awesome at the same time. I loved seeing my photos in the big screen during viewing, I couldn’t quite believe it was me!

Not only do I have any an amazing image to treasure, but I have an experience I will remember and talk about forever.

This term I have felt more confident at school and even started wearing light makeup to work. On the first day of school one of my students asked me what was different.

I was embarrassed but explained that I was wearing a bit of makeup. She said ‘that’s why you look more pretty than usual’. What a confidence boost!

I have been going out with my husband a bit more than usual too, much to his delight!

Thanks so much STUDIO81 for making this experience a reality for me!

Erin PoChing

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Wow! A personalised photo shoot would bring me back to my best self in ways I could only imagine. Life has thrown at me many storms in my lifetime, after tragically losing my 14 yr Son in 2014.

I lost all self-respect for myself as a mother. Shunned myself away from the ones I loved, just wanting to be alone. They not knowing the deep sharp pain that had almost hit me rock bottom, falling into a state of mind that only a grieving mother will ever understand. I used to feel good about myself dressing up, how I looked, what to wear, but over time I didn’t care how I looked, I’ve felt I just didn’t have the time for my self anymore. I was always a busy bee mama of now 5, I hope to gain from this my self-confidence, and just to really feel good about myself again. I’m sure it’s every other mama’s dreams too feel beautiful once in a while, and as a mother I will forever remain strong for my Son and my family.

As I entered into the #LoveYourself campaign, it was such a blessing to be picked by the team at STUDIO81; shocking really as I had no idea of what I was getting myself into.

But it was good to feel pampered, to feel beautiful again even though I’ve never put on make-up before. I was always the typical go all natural just add lip gloss, chuck on mascara happy-go-lucky kinda chick! Never mind all this make-up that was for model material lol! Straight up.

I thank the crew for my Awesome makeover. Miss Annalise for making me feel like a queen for a day, Jeff the photographer for the shoot wowee! Making me feel comfortable as a model for the day just to get those poses on point! And Dorin for the viewing of the Photos. They were exceptionally beautiful! Thanks so much again for making me feel welcomed and comfortable. This was an Awesome opportunity & an amazing experience.

Elizabeth Nau

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Often we see advertisements on Facebook and think ‘yeah that’s definitely a scam’ but this time it was genuine. I feel honored to have been picked by STUDIO81 for the #LoveYourself campaign.

Thank you.

As a kid growing up l saw my late mum go beautifully silver/grey in her early 50s. It looked absolutely stunning but l always thought to myself no ways, am never going to let my hair go grey. They say ‘never say never’. It’s been a tough decision but after more than 20 years of supporting L’Oréal and Nutrisse Garnier hair dyes l have decided to go all natural grey and follow in my late mums footsteps. She was not ashamed of hair and kept it looking beautiful all the time.

Coming to grips with the change from a full head of black hair to having grey has been somewhat more difficult than l thought. The looks and comments from friends are discouraging and often make me feel like colouring my hair. Keeping up appearances is crucial for me personally and for my own peace of mind.

I have no doubt my family will be proud of me going down this path and in fact have been my younger sister who has been very supportive of my decision.

Admittedly, it does get quite frustrating at times but l need to persevere with this choice. I am not a quitter....no pain, no gain right!!

I thought now that l going natural grey I will never take a photo until my hair has all grown out. Hhmm.... decisions! Do I cut my hair to speed up the process?

Do I keep it covered with a scarf? How do l style it with all the shades of grey? What to do???

After so much thinking how can l take photos with my hair looking so patchy. What will the photos look like? Will l actually like the photos or just put them in the drawer and never be proud of them. So l decided to take up the offer to be part of the #LoveYourself campaign with STUDIO81. Its been absolutely amazing and l shocked myself... hahaha!! Looking at the photos made me embrace the look and felt super proud of myself for coming out of my shell and removing my head scarf.

I am learning to embrace the change and know that l can actually take photos through this change process.

To help with this transition l have joined a very

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friendly and supportive group on Facebook with other women all over the world going through the same or similar issues with going naturally gray. Thanks ladies!

The photoshoot made me realise that l can take pics and still look good despite having grey hair. At the moment l am missing out on taking photos with my grandkids who l love dearly.

Acceptance is the first step and am feeling more confident with my decision to go grey naturally.

Yasmin Briden

As soon as I walked in the premises of STUDIO81, I was amazed at the brilliant decor with portraits of pretty women that had been shot over the years! Annalise then escorted me to her make up room; I would rather call it a magic room as it. Annalise worked her magic on me and I was transformed into feeling and looking like a beauty goddess.

She did a brilliant job on my Glamour look that I wished for with smoky eyes, and beautiful hair waves, she also cleared my misconceptions on makeup I had which was awesome to know.

She is indeed an amazing person with her soft demeanour and amazing make up skills, and I loved our funny but encouraging banter during the make up session.

Jeff then whizzed me away for our photo session. He is an expert and helped me feel comfortable and confident and shot beautiful shots. He also taught me various poses that look flattering on me.

Dorin was amazing at the preview of my photographs taken. I loved the whole experience and would absolutely recommend this to my friends for them to take time out of their busy schedules and try this.

It’s worth it.

Nishat Khan

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Since being selected for the #LoveYourself campaign I have become reminded & motivated to look after myself as a priority. I started to make small changes one day at a time which have stimulated a trickle down of positive benefits in my day to day routine & overall wellbeing.

Putting my name forward for this experience was something I did on a spontaneous whim, without truly anticipating that anything would come to life as a result. Imagine my surprise when I came to find out that I would be one of the women selected to take part in this campaign! Upon receiving my invitation I was both excited & quite nervous! However apprehensive, I chose to focus on the unique opportunity I had been presented, took a deep breath, and decided to go for it!

I am definitely not a person who lives without worry or anxiety…in fact it’s one of my biggest struggles. On the same note however, I have always been somebody who aspires to get the very most out of what life has to offer. I make a strong and conscious efforts to power through & overcome, not allowing my anxieties to stand in the way of my potential & life’s possibilities.

When I stumbled across the #LoveYourself campaign something about it spoke to me. Reading about the wonderful experiences women previous to me have had & seeing their beautiful images inspired me.

Most of all I appreciated the heart & soul of the campaign. As women, it can be so easy to loose ourselves

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amongst our many roles & responsibilities.

To see the impact behind women encouraging & empowering one another was very moving. A beautiful, yet simple concept we should all apply to the way we live our lives.

I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Annalise, Jeffery, and Dorin for providing me with such a memorable & special day. From the moment I walked through the doors, the STUDIO81 team went out of there way to make sure that I felt comfortable and was getting the very most out of my experience. When it was all said & done I walked away with a fresh outlook & energy, and a beautiful set of images (which will be the perfect wedding gift for my groom-to-be). It was also great practice trialing a make-over & getting comfortable in front of a camera before my upcoming nuptials.

The last few years of my life have been pretty major to say the least! My partner & I made the big decision to seize a considerable opportunity & migrate from Canada to New Zealand!

We have also become recently engaged & are moving full steam ahead into life’s next chapter.

For any of you ladies out there on the fence about taking this plunge…I highly recommend it!

The weight of shifting to the opposite side of the globe, establishing new careers, starting over from the ground up, and planning a wedding from overseas (while all great blessings) began to take a toll on my overall health & ability to cope. The work load & sometimes overwhelming pressure that came along with everything we’ve had on our plate resulted in a lack of proper balance, and neglect to focus on maintaining my personal wellbeing.

Not an ideal space to be in just before becoming a bride…. a time when you want to look & feel your absolute best.

Shawna Cousineau

With sincerest thanks for reminding me of my worth & ability to conquer my fears!

Get Your MARY KAY Look Online marykay.co.nz/studio81

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AMAZING YOU How would you like to be photograph?

9 Teed St, Newmarket, Auckland • 027 399 5225 • pr@studio81.co.nz • www.studio81.co.nz