@abbeymag and @tempest.hurricane

Shot by: @annasnowsill

@tempest.hurricane

What are you looking at besides this email? Ha! Sprung… I’m looking at flights to America, lingerie sellers on eBay and instagram, a recipe, plus contemplating watching an episode of something on Stan… Typical Sunday behaviour to be honest – doing a lot without getting anything done!!

What are you obsessed with at the moment? Goats cheese, eggs and avocado (best combo!), exfoliating in the shower, red wine catchups with mates and 70s/80s lingerie. I’m on the hunt for some nostalgic pieces; sing out if you can help me out.

What creative activities & pursuits, endeavours are you embarking on? I’ve just started working on a self-portrait photography series – recreating famous lingerie looks from film – but not sure where that’s headed or if it will even see the light of day. I’m also keen to start photographing others to help them feel empowered in themselves and their bodies. Hoping to find the right angle for that. There are also whispers of a lingerie collab with a local designer, but I’m still sorting through the logistics of that and if we would get enough time to do it how we want.

What challenges have you faced and what lessons have you learnt on your journey to accept and like yourself? I’ve learnt that it’s ok if someone doesn’t like you, that’s their prerogative and at the end of the day, I’m me and if they don’t like it, they can suck it! It’s sometimes hard to always be accepting of my body and like who I am and the flaws in my character, especially when I have my period. But I also know I just have to take it easy on myself. I think I’ve also learned not to give too much of myself away and that having boundaries is absolutely necessary when it comes to respecting myself and also my relationships with others.

As someone who’s been called “big” and a number of other names growing up, I now use those negative words to try and normalise it so it’s no longer a trigger. I also have a pretty body-posi mumma so that’s helped me embrace my body as it is. The biggest challenge I have is with speaking my mind, and it’s only now in my thirties that I feel like I have the guts to do it and articulate myself clearly. That’s the sucky thing about being such a polite child… I was so shy and contained. Now I feel way more confident in my skin and will get salty when I see fit!

Who are the most important babes in your life and how have they contributed to you being the person that you are? Well for starters my mum and grandmothers.. they really are powerhouses in their own right. On the flip side, the women I surround myself with in life have really helped define me – my bestie Lollie is such a fierce force who’s always been her own person and has a little babe to boot. My housemate, Tasha, and my core babes – Penny, Lozz, Gemma – they really are my support crew given I was from small, sunny Brisbane, and came to the big smoke on a whim to try something new. They’re fiercely creative and kind and to be honest, they’ve always got my back when I need them.

 What does sexy mean to you? Sexy is personified by a feeling for sure – confidence, sauce, sass – and the ability to laugh at yourself, always! In terms of an aesthetic, I’ve grown up defining it by 80s lingerie (think ruffles, lace, suspender straps and wild hair), 90s lycra and people like Anna Nicole Smith and Pamela Anderson… They’re still my idols to this day. It’s sometimes lace, sometimes cotton basics, sometimes wearing lipstick, but also embracing my shape and wearing whatever makes me feel good. When you feel good, you feel sexy. And what’s not to love about that?

And lastly how do you define a babe? A babe is a universal term of endearment – someone, anyone, who just is a beautiful soul and it shows. Long hair, short hair, don’t care. Just someone who embodies themselves, their essence and is quintessentially themselves through and through.

@abbeymag

What are you looking at besides this email? I’m currently catching up on Atlanta the tv series, season 2!

What are you obsessed with at the moment? Oversized coats with some bright ankle boots

What creative activities & pursuits, endeavours are you embarking on? I am currently in the process of organising another Sudo Girls Talk! event. It is a night of music and poetry that features a line up of South Sudanese female spoken word and musical artists.

What challengers have you faced and what lessons have you learnt on your journey to accept and like yourself? I’ve always been a little bit insecure about my body, and its like, we only live once ‘Are we really going to spent all this time given to us to make someone else comfortable when they have the option of looking away?”

Who are the most important babes in your life and how have they contributed to you being the person that you are? My friends, they encourage me to live my best life and not be afraid to be who I am.

What does sexy mean to you? Sexy to me is more of a feeling then a look itself. It’s been comfortable but also knowing that you are IT and that’s enough

And lastly how do you define a babe? A babe to me is someone who is loving and encouraging but is always wanting you to push yourself because they know that can be greater.