Name: Bonnie Bakhtiari
Age: 25
Occupation: Brand Designer & Strategist at B is for Bonnie Designs, Illume Retreat Founder
Location: Waco, TX
My favorite thing about my body is: My eyes
I get complimented on my hair color the most.
I used to think my freckles were a flaw, now I am learning to love them.
The first thing I think about when I wake up is: Where is the coffee?!?!
Being photographed without makeup felt: Raw, honestly! It felt intimidating to strip away the foundation and concealer at first, but the longer I stood in front of the camera, the more I realized how freeing it was! My skin could breathe, I felt lighter, and all my laugh lines, freckles and imperfections that are a permanent part of who I am were able to shine through.
I wish I could tell my 15 year old self: That your worth is not tied to your dress size. Being unkind to your body in order to stay thin won’t make you any happier, more loved or healthy, in the end. Instead of honing in on all your perceived flaws, please take the time to celebrate all the incredible things your body can do!
If the media shared more unretouched photos, it would: take the unnecessary pressure off of women to feel like they’re perfect, flawless and unrealistically beautiful. It would give us the freedom to embrace our imperfections, recognize what beauty truly looks like, and that our bodies are absolutely worth celebrating!
I feel most beautiful when: I’m laughing with my sweet husband side-by-side, nose crinkled and sides aching from belly laughs. Because doesn’t happiness allow our inner beauty to truly shine?
I am more than: my dress size, my laugh lines and all the little things I perceive to be flawed, because who I am, exactly how I am in this moment, is extraordinary and deserves all of my love!
Immeasurably More is a personal project centered on the “real, not retouched” to empower women and document a time in our lives, just as it is. These were unplanned 10 minute sessions straight out of bed in the morning: no make up, no retouching, all real. This movement is to help us embrace our perceived imperfections, celebrate our bodies, and empower us to feel “enough” right when we wake up everyday.
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