• Recap & Thoughts | #BeachBodyNotSorry •

• Recap & Thoughts | #BeachBodyNotSorry •

beachbodynotsorry1

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Summer’s over and so is my → #BeachBodyNotSorry special that I have been doing this season. It’s been a lot of fun to share my beach looks with you and it definitely was a matter close to my heart to encourage you all to just don’t give a s*** and head over to the next beach or pool and wear whatever you want, whether it’s a bikini or a swimsuit or you still prefer to cover up a little more with a beach dress or towel. Everything’s okay as long as you feel great. And you should never – I repeat: NEVER – make this dependent on others. Because YOU decide how you feel, how you look, who you want to be – not strangers. Not even your friends or your family. Your body – your rules. And I want to add: your life – your rules.

Coming back to the topic of today’s blog post: in this little recap, I want to show all of my beach looks again and add a few pictures I took on “real” beaches in Brazil during my vacation (a post about it is already in the making, so stay tuned!). And to let you know: it was great. Nobody looked at me in a bad way (at least I didn’t catch anybody watching) and even if – I didn’t care. Because I went to the beach to have fun and I definitely did. I had a great time at several beaches, crowded ones, remote ones, with my family or with complete strangers. Nobody treated me badly because of my body, nobody even mentioned it. All I got was compliments on my beautiful beach wear, on the new bikini I bought in Rio, on what I brought to show off at the famous and not-so-famous beaches. Nobody called me fat or ugly, I never felt like a stranded whale and nobody gave me the feeling that this is not where I’m supposed to be. Because in the heat, that’s where everybody is allowed to be – refreshing oneself in the sea, sunbathing on the beach and maybe even sharing an ice-cold beer with friends.

I really hope that I could at least change one person’s mind and help her to be able to go to the beach without being afraid of being insulted, be it by looks, laughter or words. You’re better than someone else’s small-minded brain that’s not capable of accepting diversity. And you should never listen to these people.

Never forget: everyBODY is beautiful, even if it’s not your own personal taste how someone looks – it’s not up to you to define beauty for the world and it’s not up to you to judge others. And you should never ever feel sorry about your (beach) body.

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• Jungle •

• Jungle •

04 - Lu zieht an.®

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Photos: Falko Blümlein
Kimono: Sonia Rykiel x H&M (2009)
Bikini Top: Agent Provocateur “Lexxi”
Bikini Bottoms: H&M+
Hat: Comma
Earrings: Vintage
Bracelets: Hermès, SIX
Alternatives: ASOS kimono,
ASOS Curve bikini bottoms,
ASOS Curve bikini bottoms,
ASOS earrings

Hello Diva! :) Just making fun, this hat kind of brings out the diva in me, but the whole look is somehow cruise-chic, right? ;) Unfortunately, this spot has nothing to do with a glamorous cruise through the Caribbean but some ice-cold water in a park. With bad lighting so you can see my crater-cellulite thighs. But even though I’m mentioning them and some might think that I do so because I feel bad about them, it’s more because I want to say: it’s okay. My skin down there is not perfect. My thighs are huge, and so are my hips and my butt – it’s kind of a family problem and not that easy to just get rid of through exercise. I’ve got some bad lipedema and to be honest: I don’t like it. Yes, there’s something about my body that I don’t like – this doesn’t mean that I’m not “body positive” anymore. Of course I love myself, I even love my legs even though they’re not the most beautiful part about me (plus, again: the lighting is so not flattering!). I’m allowed to find some imperfections and not feel good about them.
But: is this a reason to hide them? I won’t jump into the water wearing long pants. Definitely not. For some, my thighs may be disgusting, others may think that I’m brave because I’m even posting pictures of me showing them, others may not even notice my cellulite – maybe because I’m still confident about my body. It’s okay to have some flaws. I’ve accepted my legs and I’m fine with them.
And that’s why I’ll now stop talking about them and change the topic to this gorgeous bikini: it’s a freestyle thing as the top is from Agent Provocateur and the bottoms from H&M+. I knew I’d never fit into the actual bottoms from Agent Provocateur, so I came up with the idea to do some black and white combo and this is it. Black high-waist pants plus a very special white top (I love it so much!). Add the cruise chic with a huge striped hat and a sheer kimono for even more glam and you’re good to go – for a real cruise or just some splish-splash fun at the park. Feel free to wear whatever you want, whenever you want. :*

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• The Good Life •

• The Good Life •

02 - Lu zieht an.®

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Photos: Falko Blümlein
Kimono: Sonia Rykiel x H&M
Top: Sonia Rykiel x H&M
Bikini Top: H&M
Pants: H&M+
Sandals: Esprit
Bag: Dior “Lady Dior”
Sunglasses: Dolce & Gabbana
“Spain in Sicily”
Earrings: Dior “Mise en Dior” Tribal Earrings
Bracelet: Hermès
Alternatives: ASOS kimono,
South Beach bikini, Topshop jumpsuit,
ASOS sandals, ASOS sandals,
Love Moschino bag

Palm tree print, sheer clothes, favorite bag, new sunnies and (the best thing about this post) sunshine in Hamburg. That’s what I call “the good life”. Sitting on a bridge, watching the sun go down, eating a sandwich, sharing it all with my family (which includes my parents who I called via Skype) and just feeling great. Is there anything better? I don’t think so. ;)

By the way: these pants have become my summer favorite. Fortunately, my mother managed to get another pair for me, so I won’t have to live without them in case I wear them too often and ruin them. ;) My tip for you (once again) if you’re looking for a particular piece at H&M: have a look at their online shop at around 5 am – almost everything is available again and maybe also these pants (if not, there are similar ones → here, also from H&M).

Another favorite: my sunglasses. Definitely not everyone’s cup of tea, but you know me – the fancier the sunnies, the more I love them. These sunglasses were the highlight of Dolce & Gabbana’s “Spain in Sicily” collection and when I visited the store here in Hamburg, they were the first thing I saw. It’s unbelievable how one can walk into the store and not see all those gorgeous bags and shoes (and dresses, but we already talked about this – I’m pretty sure I’ll never own one because of the sizing, but that’s okay as long as I can buy sunglasses like these!), but that’s me – my obsession is all about sunglasses. ;) I’m so in love with this pair that I’m really trying to combine them with everything, even though that’s not that easy – let’s see when I’m going to post the next outfit with them. ;)

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• Wet Look •

• Wet Look •

05 - Lu zieht an.®

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Photos: Falko Blümlein
Top: H&M
Bikini Top: Triangl
Bikini Bottom: H&M
Alternatives: Vero Moda top,
Bikini Bar bikini top, ASOS Curve
bikini bottom

In my → #BeachBodyNotSorry series, I wanted to do something more experimental and sensual. Experimental especially in terms of make-up – I really miss doing creative stuff, so I took the chance and did something different for this rather simple “outfit”. Of course, the focus is on my beach body too – this time, I’m wearing an absolutely normal bikini. Actually, we could have shot a few pictures without the top, but as this was my styling idea for the shooting, I totally forgot to do it. Anyways, you can see what’s underneath, and this time I’m showing even more than in my → Kimono post.

I’ve been thinking about why I’m doing this series and came to the conclusion that the main reason is to share pictures of a normal body. I don’t even know since when image processing exists. But it’s been far too long that we’ve only gotten to see photoshopped pictures. Pictures of beautiful women that shouldn’t be retouched. Women who have “flaws” like us. The media want us to forget what actual bodies look like and to feel ugly when we first look at their pictures and then have a look in the mirror. They want us to believe that we’re not good enough, that we have to change to be a better version of ourselves – to be beautiful. Thinking about this makes me angry and I’m even more upset when I remember that so many women really believe in what our society says. Truth is: the models may be thinner, fitter and their skin firmer, but they’re not “perfect” at all. First: perfection is relative, it’s defined by us all individually. Second: half of it (and “it” being what we see in magazines and so on) is a lie. I remember seeing a video online where someone used Photoshop to change the picture of a pizza slice into a sexy and skinny woman – even though it might be a joke and not real, the power of such programs is infinite. Third: not everyone’s a model.

What we need is more unretouched pictures. We need to see bodies as they are. With stretch marks, cellulite, scars, asymmetrical boobs, pale skin and any so-called “imperfection”. It’s not wrong to have flaws – it’s wrong to believe that we’re supposed to be flawless and call ourselves ugly!

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