As many of you know I study to be a photographer. I started my studies last August and will graduate next summer.
As part of an assignment from the school I did a studio photo shooting in my home with Dixie feathers last Sunday. I chose to do a boudoir photo shooting as it is part of the plan I have for my future career in photography. I want to help women find their beauty and get in touch with their femininity with my pictures.
We started with the hair-do and make-up. I was looking after an early 1960's style, so I chose to do thick wing eyeliners and a Marilyn Monroe -style hair-do for Dixie. I also chose a soft lipstick from Besame's 1960's collection to suit the repro 60's style and soft style I was after. This was not only my first studio photo shooting but also the first time I did an eye make-up for a model. So far I've only practised doing it for myself. And I must say I think it turned out very good!
I wanted to bring soft atmosphere to the pictures, so I chose soft shades to the clothing and styling as well. Also my bedroom is decorated with soft pastel colors which suited the idea I had for a soft boudoir set.
So anyway here is the set that I took:
I've started to use the heading Power Pin-Ups for my pictures. I'm not sure about that yet. To me it means that women will find their inner power being in these pictures and looking at them, and they can also have an impact on how they want to be seen and looked at. Do you think it's a good heading or do you have even a better idea?
Credits:
Copyright, Hair, Make-Up and Styling: Coco de Noir
Model: Dixie Feathers
Make-Up:
Besame Cosmetics and Kryolan
Foundation: Besame Honey & Medium Beige
Lipstick: Besame Debutante Pink
Eyeliner and eyebrows: Besame Cake mascara
Eyeshadow, blush, bronzer and powder: Kryolan
Wednesday, 28 October 2015
Tuesday, 6 October 2015
Dreams Do Come True
I've had a rather long break between my posts. I've had quite tough time, but for a nice reason. I've moved from downtown Helsinki to my dream house. I've dreamed for over 10 years now to live in an old wooden house. Some 6 or 7 years ago I was very close buying a house in Loviisa, but back then it was not yet the right time and it did not come true. The dream never died inside of me. I will make a post about my new home which I'm so happy for, but somehow I feel that writing about manifesting your dreams is something I want to share with you now first.
To be honest, for the last 1 or 2 years I've been quite lost with myself. I was a people-pleaser and gathered all the wrong kind of people around me. I did not respect or love myself, and I was a magnet for people who did not respect or love me either. I did not even realize it back then, but now I do. You see, what happens when you don't love yourself, is that you''re asking for trouble. And the Universe will deliver them for as long as you learn to do better. That's exactly what happened to me. Things started to go wrong in almost every aspect in life. I felt like I was spinning in a washing machine and some people were hitting me with baseball bats. And I needed to figure out how to get away from the turbulence.
Founding Pin-Up Garage was my dream. It was exactly the work I wanted to do for living. I did not go to work only to make a living I went to work because I loved what I did. But we did a bad misjudgement when we chose the place for the shop. The street where my shop was was expensive, but there was not enough traffic on the street to bring new customers. The expenses were too high compared to the sales. So we had to make the decision to close the shop and move to a cheaper location. I opened two shops, in the hope of getting a new start and to do better. No. Both shops turned out to be bad decisions. We needed to close the first shop 4 months after the opening and the other 7 months after. I'm not going to details why, but I can tell it was rough to figure out how to survive in the middle of packing, moving and unpacking all the time. I was tired, I lost my faith in myself and all my time was spent on how to survive. I had not enough time for my customers and needless to say I was financially in trouble as this affected our sales very badly. In the middle of all the bad things happening to me, I lost even the joy I got from my work. I did not know who I was and what I wanted from my life.
The final straw was when my home was resigned. The owner told me that she'll sell my apartment because she's retiring and moving aboard. Until that my home was the reason I even tried to survive. And now I had lost that, too. I was very angry to the world. I decided to just let go and let God, as they say. I told God "fine, if you don't want me to live here, do show me what I should do and where to go. Show me the way and I will follow." I surrendered and decided to go with the flow.That was the wisest decision I ever made.
A dear friend of mine helped me get forward. She has been my friend from childhood, and she knows me better than many others. What she taught me was, that everything that comes in this Universe is a direct match to your vibrations. It's called the Law of Attraction. If you're unhappy, you gather unhappy things. If you're happy, good things will happen to you. I started working on that, and as the time went forward, small miracles started to happen. I learned how everything you throw to the Universe will come back to you. If you send love, you get love. If you send hate you get hate. So I started to pay attention to my thoughts and keeping my energies positive no matter what. I forgave myself for everything i had done wrong in the past. If someone was mean to me, I responded with kindness. And I made a decision to stop talking bad things about other people. It was very purifying. The laundry machine treatment got me cleaned from the inside. I started to feel joy, thankfulness and hope again, I found love for myself and for life and I found my mission at work and started loving my work again. And people around me noticed it.
Today I'm most grateful to the Universe for all the obstacles and misfortunes it has brought to my path during this time. This time has been most educational time for me as a human being. The things I have learned and discovered has changed the way I think so much. I've opened my eyes, I've learned that I am important, I am worth loving and I have a reason to be here on this planet. I learned that I had gathered all the obsticles to my path because I was afraid and out of balance. And when I took responsibility of all things that had happened to me, when I started fixing myself and my thoughts, all the bad things and unhealthy relationships started to vanish from my life. When you start to vibrate in higher frequency, in a frequency of love, and when get your power back it will most surely get the wrong people to react, attack even and to finally leave your life. But I found who I am again, and I found my dreams again. It was a tough lesson but it was something I needed to take in order to learn and to be where I am today.
I've always been a dreamer, and I still am. To me life has never been about doing what the others expect me to do. It's always been clear to me that I will live my life like I please, not the way the society expects me to live it. I've always been that nice girl but with a rebellious woman inside of me who will not be told what to do. Not the easiest choice, though. But it's who I am.
When you are out of balance with yourself, you loose your dreams. Or at least that's what happened to me. I did not know what my dream was anymore. When I got back to balance, I started finding pieces of my dreams again. And one day at work I was inspired to do a dream board that visualized what was it that I wanted in my life and what kind of life I wanted to live. One of the things I put there, actually the first thing, was a beautiful home in an old wooden house in Loviisa. I visualized myself living in a house like that and I told the Universe this is what I want. I also started to do old Hawaiian huna prayers to manifest it even more strongly.
Then a dear friend of mine started to pressure me on getting an apartment. I realized that yes I can ask the universe for a house but I will have to start looking for on, too. One evening I was reading a newspaper and they had this article about a woman who lives in an old ironworks factory area in Loviisa. I've visited this place many times a year in the past, and I thought well that's where I want to live! Next day I went to the Internet to search for apartments and there it was - my dream house in the exact price I was thinking of. And now I live here. And I could not be more happy and thankful. Even though I find myself quite lonely sometimes here, I now know it's something taht happens to me every time I move alone to a new place. It happened in Kruununhaka, too, but it passed away as I learned to be in my own company and enjoy it. And I know my lonelyness will pass here, too, as I settle more.
I've always been shy to share my thoughts about life. So publishing this text is a big step for me. I share very personal matters in this post, and I have to put aside what negative people may think and say about my thoughts. On this journey I learned that I don't have to please everyone. I can say how I feel and as long as it doesn't insult or hurt anyone, I can say it. That's why I share this with you. Because I found that my work here on earth is to help other people. I will tell more about that in another post. I will tell what I've learned about my mission here and how I discovered it. It's a whole other story to tell. But with my story here I can bring hope to people struggling with the same kind of problems. So here I am, sharing my story, and what I want to say to you all is that God never gives you obsticles you can't handle. Sometimes you can't control what happens in life, but you can control yourself and how you think about life and how you handle things. Also having learned everything I did so far, it does not make me ready. I've found my inner power, but i have to keep good care of it. Everything I've learned, I can unlearn if I don't work on them every day.
So far my blog has been about my work. But after these experiences I cannot leave this side of me aside from this blog. This blog is about me and I no longer have to be afraid of who I am and how I think. So in addition to pin-up and burlesque, i will start sharing with you my thoughts of life and about my mission here. Here's a little tip about it:
So finally what I want o say to you Dear is: Have trust in life. It will carry you.
To be honest, for the last 1 or 2 years I've been quite lost with myself. I was a people-pleaser and gathered all the wrong kind of people around me. I did not respect or love myself, and I was a magnet for people who did not respect or love me either. I did not even realize it back then, but now I do. You see, what happens when you don't love yourself, is that you''re asking for trouble. And the Universe will deliver them for as long as you learn to do better. That's exactly what happened to me. Things started to go wrong in almost every aspect in life. I felt like I was spinning in a washing machine and some people were hitting me with baseball bats. And I needed to figure out how to get away from the turbulence.
Founding Pin-Up Garage was my dream. It was exactly the work I wanted to do for living. I did not go to work only to make a living I went to work because I loved what I did. But we did a bad misjudgement when we chose the place for the shop. The street where my shop was was expensive, but there was not enough traffic on the street to bring new customers. The expenses were too high compared to the sales. So we had to make the decision to close the shop and move to a cheaper location. I opened two shops, in the hope of getting a new start and to do better. No. Both shops turned out to be bad decisions. We needed to close the first shop 4 months after the opening and the other 7 months after. I'm not going to details why, but I can tell it was rough to figure out how to survive in the middle of packing, moving and unpacking all the time. I was tired, I lost my faith in myself and all my time was spent on how to survive. I had not enough time for my customers and needless to say I was financially in trouble as this affected our sales very badly. In the middle of all the bad things happening to me, I lost even the joy I got from my work. I did not know who I was and what I wanted from my life.
The final straw was when my home was resigned. The owner told me that she'll sell my apartment because she's retiring and moving aboard. Until that my home was the reason I even tried to survive. And now I had lost that, too. I was very angry to the world. I decided to just let go and let God, as they say. I told God "fine, if you don't want me to live here, do show me what I should do and where to go. Show me the way and I will follow." I surrendered and decided to go with the flow.That was the wisest decision I ever made.
A dear friend of mine helped me get forward. She has been my friend from childhood, and she knows me better than many others. What she taught me was, that everything that comes in this Universe is a direct match to your vibrations. It's called the Law of Attraction. If you're unhappy, you gather unhappy things. If you're happy, good things will happen to you. I started working on that, and as the time went forward, small miracles started to happen. I learned how everything you throw to the Universe will come back to you. If you send love, you get love. If you send hate you get hate. So I started to pay attention to my thoughts and keeping my energies positive no matter what. I forgave myself for everything i had done wrong in the past. If someone was mean to me, I responded with kindness. And I made a decision to stop talking bad things about other people. It was very purifying. The laundry machine treatment got me cleaned from the inside. I started to feel joy, thankfulness and hope again, I found love for myself and for life and I found my mission at work and started loving my work again. And people around me noticed it.
Today I'm most grateful to the Universe for all the obstacles and misfortunes it has brought to my path during this time. This time has been most educational time for me as a human being. The things I have learned and discovered has changed the way I think so much. I've opened my eyes, I've learned that I am important, I am worth loving and I have a reason to be here on this planet. I learned that I had gathered all the obsticles to my path because I was afraid and out of balance. And when I took responsibility of all things that had happened to me, when I started fixing myself and my thoughts, all the bad things and unhealthy relationships started to vanish from my life. When you start to vibrate in higher frequency, in a frequency of love, and when get your power back it will most surely get the wrong people to react, attack even and to finally leave your life. But I found who I am again, and I found my dreams again. It was a tough lesson but it was something I needed to take in order to learn and to be where I am today.
I've always been a dreamer, and I still am. To me life has never been about doing what the others expect me to do. It's always been clear to me that I will live my life like I please, not the way the society expects me to live it. I've always been that nice girl but with a rebellious woman inside of me who will not be told what to do. Not the easiest choice, though. But it's who I am.
When you are out of balance with yourself, you loose your dreams. Or at least that's what happened to me. I did not know what my dream was anymore. When I got back to balance, I started finding pieces of my dreams again. And one day at work I was inspired to do a dream board that visualized what was it that I wanted in my life and what kind of life I wanted to live. One of the things I put there, actually the first thing, was a beautiful home in an old wooden house in Loviisa. I visualized myself living in a house like that and I told the Universe this is what I want. I also started to do old Hawaiian huna prayers to manifest it even more strongly.
Then a dear friend of mine started to pressure me on getting an apartment. I realized that yes I can ask the universe for a house but I will have to start looking for on, too. One evening I was reading a newspaper and they had this article about a woman who lives in an old ironworks factory area in Loviisa. I've visited this place many times a year in the past, and I thought well that's where I want to live! Next day I went to the Internet to search for apartments and there it was - my dream house in the exact price I was thinking of. And now I live here. And I could not be more happy and thankful. Even though I find myself quite lonely sometimes here, I now know it's something taht happens to me every time I move alone to a new place. It happened in Kruununhaka, too, but it passed away as I learned to be in my own company and enjoy it. And I know my lonelyness will pass here, too, as I settle more.
I've always been shy to share my thoughts about life. So publishing this text is a big step for me. I share very personal matters in this post, and I have to put aside what negative people may think and say about my thoughts. On this journey I learned that I don't have to please everyone. I can say how I feel and as long as it doesn't insult or hurt anyone, I can say it. That's why I share this with you. Because I found that my work here on earth is to help other people. I will tell more about that in another post. I will tell what I've learned about my mission here and how I discovered it. It's a whole other story to tell. But with my story here I can bring hope to people struggling with the same kind of problems. So here I am, sharing my story, and what I want to say to you all is that God never gives you obsticles you can't handle. Sometimes you can't control what happens in life, but you can control yourself and how you think about life and how you handle things. Also having learned everything I did so far, it does not make me ready. I've found my inner power, but i have to keep good care of it. Everything I've learned, I can unlearn if I don't work on them every day.
So far my blog has been about my work. But after these experiences I cannot leave this side of me aside from this blog. This blog is about me and I no longer have to be afraid of who I am and how I think. So in addition to pin-up and burlesque, i will start sharing with you my thoughts of life and about my mission here. Here's a little tip about it:
Image source: Twitter @XeniaVatiliotou |
So finally what I want o say to you Dear is: Have trust in life. It will carry you.
Friday, 28 August 2015
PinMeUp Photo Shooting With Ani
About a year back we did a photo shooting with our photographer Ani Koivisto. We wanted to shoot some of the more classic side of my style and me as a fashion designer. Here's the photo series
Wednesday, 26 August 2015
My Birthday in Söderskär Lighthouse
Last Saturday was my birthday and I have to say it was possibly the best birthday I ever had. I got to spend it with two very special people, my dear friend Taru and her son Niila.
I've been dreaming about visiting Söderskär lighthouse for years, and now it was perfect time to make it happen. As you might already know I love the sea and I have kind of a "thing" for seilors, so yes I enjoyed the whole 6,5 hour adventure.
Monday, 24 August 2015
Coco's Styling Workshop
Oh, I have some wonderful news! I will be hosting Coco's Styling Workshop in Ladybug Rock'n'Roll Weekender next February!
Ladybug Rock'n'Roll Weekender is a well-known and respected event that takes place in a spa hotel in Leppävirta, Savonia. There will be so many good bands playing great music, and I will be helping you ladies to get ready for the Saturday night's party and to look at your best when it's time to rock'n'roll!
I will teach you to do a quick hair-do and make-up in pin-up style, help you to style and accessorize your outfit and then as a cherry on the top you will have your picture taken as a memory from your gorgeous style!
I'm so excited about this, and I hope to see you there! Thank you Ladybug Roc'n'Roll weekender for this! <3
So mark your calendars and book your place now! :)
Tuesday, 7 July 2015
Posing for the Camera Workshop by LouLou D'vil
A few weeks back we had a wonderful pin-up posing workshop in our Pin Me Up studio instructed by LouLou D'vil. She is the best-known and respected burlesque performer and pin-up model in Finland, and she is moving to Las Vegas in August, so these are beginning to be the last chances for us Finnish pin-up girls to learn from her.
We also helped the models with their hair-dos and make-ups. Our partner arranging this course was VIP Make-Up Lounge.
When the posing practice was done, the models got to try their new skills in front of a professional photographer Ani Koivisto from our Pin Me Up Photography studio. Here are a few ready pictures:
Sandra De Ville
In the workshop LouLou taught stage walking, posing for the camera in pin-up style and gave lots of valuable tips on how to become a successful pin-up model.
And the whole group:
The next and final course will be held this Sunday at 1 pm in our studio in Helsinki. This is the last chance to enter as LouLou is moving very soon. Please send us an e-mail asap if you wish to enter and to learn from the best! A couple of places are still available...
More info on this course: https://www.facebook.com/events/1048414891848864/
xxx Coco
All pictures are by Ani Koivisto / Pin Me Up Photography
Wednesday, 3 June 2015
Bad Angel by Qumma
Here's a new shot from our last photo shoot with Qumma. This is my entering pose in our Angels Forever performance of The Black Feather Cabaret, and I think Qumma captured it brilliantly! Thank you!
Monday, 25 May 2015
Testing Air Yoga in Esport Bristol
Like you know, Mondays are my days off from work, and I like to keep them that way as much as I can (I usually work on Sundays, too) to get some time for myself. To be honest, Mondays are very hard to keep as days off from work, because everybody usually activates to call and email on all kinds of possible work-related thing on Mondays when they get back to work after weekend. For me, Monday is your Sunday, so I try not to read emails etc. This is a day for myself.
This Monday I had an appointment booked with a personal trainer in my gym. Unfortunately my PT was ill, so I had to change my practice for a group exercise. An air yoga class was just about to start, so I decided to attend. I had thought of trying it for some time already and this opportunity was perfect so I took it.
Recently I have been paying much more attention to my own well being. My inspiration to this has been LouLou D'vil , and she has shared many tips with me over the last winter and spring. We have gone to Hot Pilates classes together, and I have added loads of superfoods to my eating habits. I've also paid attention for minimizing harmful inflammatory foods in my diet such as white grain, sugar (except cocoa sugar) and alcohol. I'm not an absolutist on anything, but now I tend to separate special occasions and everyday habits. And I do all of this to support not only my own well being but also to help me performing on the stage doing burlesque. I need to be in shape for that. This is a small background to my new way life and now I also search for new sports that I like to support my goals.
Today I found one! I practise in Esport Bristol gym in downtown Helsinki, which is just a short walking distance from my home. My body has suffered a lot from my back pains that have even kept me from moving at all sometimes. I know moving helps with back pains, and now I want to take care of myself to ease the pain and feel good. Air Yoga is a relatively new form of yoga, but there are already several studios in Helsinki that offer it. The fact that Esport Bristol has this yoga, as well as hot yoga and pilates classes, was one main reason why I chose it to me my studio.
Air Yoga is from New York and the first classes were held 2006. It is told to open the body from different kinds of tightnesses in the body and to help line yoga asanas with the help of hammock, a fabric that hangs from the roof. It is said to help body move better, to give it strength, power and flexibility. The hammock gives pressure to the body but it also helps to stretch it. Youtube is full of videos that will give you the idea of the practice, here's one video I liked by Lulu Lemon (it was one of the prettiest with beautiful music in it,too):
The pain in my back has made my body really tight, so I'm now looking for sports that will help me get my flexibility back without injuring my back more. I also have some bad memories from ground school gym classes where our teacher made us do all kinds of artistic gymnastic tricks. I had no background to do it and instead of helping me she just made me understand how awfully bad I was in gymnastics. I took 20 years to find the joy of succeeding in gymnastics and today I finally got to experience it!
In the class we did some very easy stretching movements and yoga asanas with the help of the hammock. The hammock really did help to get the stretch deeper and gave support to the body. But my favourite part was when we also did asanas with inversions, meaning we were hanging head down with the help of the hammock! When the instructor showed the movements I was so sure that I would not be able to get myself into that position. Ho way, Jose. Not me, ever. I was that little girl in ground school's gymnastic lesson. But the instructor saw me having trouble and she came to help me just a bit, only by saying you can do it. And I could! I was worried about my back, but she told me where to place the hammock and there I was, hanging in the hammock head down thinking I did it! I don't remember when was the last time I felt THIS kind of joy of succeeding in something sport-related. And boy did it do good for my back!
The class I attended was just an beginner's class, so if you're a more experienced yogist, there are more advanced classes to attend to and you'll most defenetely find challenges in this sport. But also if you're a beginner, this is a great and fun class to try, just do as I did and begin with the beginners level! I feel that air yoga is exactly what my body needs now and I'm going to make this an every Monday event for myself.
(Sorry I did not post any pictures from the class, I think it is totally unstylish to take selfies in the gym unless you're posting a tutorial or something...)
This Monday I had an appointment booked with a personal trainer in my gym. Unfortunately my PT was ill, so I had to change my practice for a group exercise. An air yoga class was just about to start, so I decided to attend. I had thought of trying it for some time already and this opportunity was perfect so I took it.
Recently I have been paying much more attention to my own well being. My inspiration to this has been LouLou D'vil , and she has shared many tips with me over the last winter and spring. We have gone to Hot Pilates classes together, and I have added loads of superfoods to my eating habits. I've also paid attention for minimizing harmful inflammatory foods in my diet such as white grain, sugar (except cocoa sugar) and alcohol. I'm not an absolutist on anything, but now I tend to separate special occasions and everyday habits. And I do all of this to support not only my own well being but also to help me performing on the stage doing burlesque. I need to be in shape for that. This is a small background to my new way life and now I also search for new sports that I like to support my goals.
My lunch today with chicken-avocado-mozzarella-pesto salad was so good! |
Air Yoga is from New York and the first classes were held 2006. It is told to open the body from different kinds of tightnesses in the body and to help line yoga asanas with the help of hammock, a fabric that hangs from the roof. It is said to help body move better, to give it strength, power and flexibility. The hammock gives pressure to the body but it also helps to stretch it. Youtube is full of videos that will give you the idea of the practice, here's one video I liked by Lulu Lemon (it was one of the prettiest with beautiful music in it,too):
The pain in my back has made my body really tight, so I'm now looking for sports that will help me get my flexibility back without injuring my back more. I also have some bad memories from ground school gym classes where our teacher made us do all kinds of artistic gymnastic tricks. I had no background to do it and instead of helping me she just made me understand how awfully bad I was in gymnastics. I took 20 years to find the joy of succeeding in gymnastics and today I finally got to experience it!
In the class we did some very easy stretching movements and yoga asanas with the help of the hammock. The hammock really did help to get the stretch deeper and gave support to the body. But my favourite part was when we also did asanas with inversions, meaning we were hanging head down with the help of the hammock! When the instructor showed the movements I was so sure that I would not be able to get myself into that position. Ho way, Jose. Not me, ever. I was that little girl in ground school's gymnastic lesson. But the instructor saw me having trouble and she came to help me just a bit, only by saying you can do it. And I could! I was worried about my back, but she told me where to place the hammock and there I was, hanging in the hammock head down thinking I did it! I don't remember when was the last time I felt THIS kind of joy of succeeding in something sport-related. And boy did it do good for my back!
The class I attended was just an beginner's class, so if you're a more experienced yogist, there are more advanced classes to attend to and you'll most defenetely find challenges in this sport. But also if you're a beginner, this is a great and fun class to try, just do as I did and begin with the beginners level! I feel that air yoga is exactly what my body needs now and I'm going to make this an every Monday event for myself.
(Sorry I did not post any pictures from the class, I think it is totally unstylish to take selfies in the gym unless you're posting a tutorial or something...)
Sunday, 24 May 2015
Posing for the Camera Workshop with LouLou D'vil
Today was a real funday Sunday! We had a Posing for the Camera workshop in our PinMeUp Photography studio with a class full of aspiring pin-up models wanting to learn from the best, LouLou D'vil herself! Many attendants had actually come hundreds of kilometers just for this workshop, the furthest I think came all the way from Oulu. And no wonder, this was a rare opportunity to learn from the best before she moves to Las Vegas...
LouLou taught the models about the important things to know when modelling, and some important techniques starting with walking and how to show our body in the best possible way in pictures.
Arabellum and I did the hair and make-up for all the models that wanted it and then our photographer Ani took pictures of them with LouLou helping with the poses.
I always love how women start blossoming when we style them in pin-up style. What made me feel especially happy today was to see how a woman who told us she had lost 50 kg saw the hair-do I made her and she had to tell herself not to cry happy tears to see herself so pretty. Those are honestly the best moments of my work that kerp me going. As well as all the pretty happy smiles I saw on the faces of the models today.
I loved the athmosphere and I can't wait to see the results! Thanks so much everybody who attended and of course thanks to our special star LouLou and our staff Arabellum and Ani. I love working with you! <3
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