What Lies Beneath

Monday, September 14, 2015

إِنَّ مَعَ الْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا
"With every hardship, comes ease." This is a verse that my dad constantly reminded me of when I would go through rough times. It was what let me hold onto even just the tiniest sliver of strength that I had left to push through any time I felt unable to deal with what was piling on. What helped motivate me to gather my senses and attempt to move forward, step by step, on the wafer-thin balance beam that is life.


This past week was probably one of the darker periods I've had in some time. To match the mood of it while looking back, I decided to share a darker set with you guys which I had a lot of fun creating during the summer in SF with my friend and fellow blogger, Genevieve (of THE SECOND SHIFT).

I like to touch upon relevant subjects a lot in my writing while sharing my looks. Only once or twice have I delved even deeper below the surface to really share the goings-on and innermost workings of my life & mind. Basically, to get a tad bit more personal, one thing I'm sure I've skimmed the surface of is the depression I've struggled with in the past. It's something that seems to be moreso genetic within my family, but of course environmental factors and lifestyle can always sway these things one way or another.


Personally my worst wave was during my last year of college, most of which was just a blur I spent focused on school and not much else. I didn't cultivate my social life or my creative passions, and I somewhat lost myself. That's one of the reasons why this blog is so important to me, it helps me maintain a grasp on what I'm dealing with and provides me with a platform to both let off some steam and contemplate in a way that can help me move forward with taking firm hold of the positive takeaways of it all.

Through funneling the passion I have for fashion and the variety of elements it can bring into someone's life + lifestyle, I've been able to truly realize what it means to be happy with yourself as an individual. Self-love and a healthy confidence was something I had struggled with for a long time, but surprisingly blogging and all the amazingly kind, genuine individuals I've met along the way (for the most part) have only helped to show me as a sort of mirror what I've been looking past all these years. All the good things inside me that I do have to offer to myself. Because in the end, the relationship you have with yourself truly is the most important. It dictates the various possible effects you might have on other relationships scattered throughout your life as well as your interactions with others. It has a much bigger impact than we might rightly give it credit for.


I love how fashion and the ever-changing constant cycle of styles and trends gives us all a chance to explore different facets within ourselves. It's the sort of thing that helps you connect to all the different faces and personalities you might've never known you possessed. Through this exploration, you gain a sort of confidence you never knew possible: the comfort level of confidence. The level at which you truly possess the capability to allow yourself to really be you, without any fear of judgments or the like holding you back.


I worked in two different pieces that I was graciously gifted into this post, both tops which I styled almost identically. I also worked in a huge, fun cupcake purse with the first top because it just seemed so fitting with the 'melt' top and this ridiculous post-summer/pre-fall heatwave. As for the second 'white boy wasted' top, I cropped that one myself since the length of the men's tee was a bit longer than I wanted to style and I loved how it turned out! The stitched roll-up sleeve is definitely a favorite detail of mine.


Sometimes it may take time to delve deeper below the surface and really figure out the innermost workings of your own being, but it's always worth getting past that initial, mysterious blur of it all. Learn to appreciate yourself for who you are and let yourself be comfortable in your own skin! It really is the first step in what can only be a continuously eye-opening journey from there. 'Til next time, my loves. xx


Photographed by Genevieve Diaz (@genevieve.diaz)

SHOP MY LOOKS:
MELT Tee—c/o Bundy and Webster
White Boy Wasted Tee—c/o Dead Legacy
Cupcake Purse—Echo Clubhouse
White Amira Tennis Skirt—Echo Clubhouse
Gemstone Perry Street Necklace—c/o Rocksbox
Safety Pin Choker—Nasty Gal
Layered Metallic Necklace—Forever XXI
Eyelash Matte Sunnies—c/o ZeroUV
Striped Mesh Socks—Echo Clubhouse
Pink Suede Sk8-Hi's—Vans
100% Boys Tears iPhone Case—Valfre

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