I have mentioned how much imagination plays a part in our creative choices.  You never know just where it will lead you if you are willing to just “go” with it.  However, when connecting with other imaginations (as in, women helping women),  your wildest dreams can really come ALIVE!

This year, imagination took me unexpectedly on a delightful, playful ride into the world of fantasy dress up….and along with me for the ride, came my dear friend Leah

and my wonderful daughter, Kim.

It all started out innocently enough one day last winter, when Leah and I were visiting thrift stores, looking for some flashy material that I could use on one of my figurative sculptures.  We wandered into our favorite little shop, “Vintage and Vogue”, where Carrie, the generous owner, upon hearing what we were looking for, started bequeathing us, vintage prom dresses she couldn’t use in her shop because of damage, and a big bag of vintage hats!  Carrie, is a whirlwind of creative energy, who has the most incredible vintage store, stuffed with exquisite clothing and jewellery.    (Her website is on my links page.)

The dresses she gave us were so beautiful, we couldn’t imagine cutting them up for a sculpture!  The question was….What could we do with all this bounty!!??

Well, two imaginations are better than one.  We thought how fun it might be to combine the wedding and prom dresses we were given, with other clothes we had in our own closets.  I revamped part of my studio into a “dressing room”…. Leah, our fashionista, started dreaming up outfits, and I started embellishing hats and crowns!

After designing and modeling various outfits, we courageously decided to take a few pictures of ourselves.  And since three imaginations are better than two, we asked Kim to join us to become our photographer and another model.  Then the fun really began to happen!

Here are a few pictures of us!

The photos below are of my niece and her 12 year old sweetie pie daughter.  This was such a memorable summer’s afternoon, of mother and daughter playing dressup together.

What I have taken away from this experience of “big girl dress up” is, that it feels good to be playful no matter what age you are.  There is a wonderful sense of joy and freedom when using your imagination to tap into another side of one’s feminine nature.   But most of all, it is about the bonding relationships that  happen when vulnerability and trust come together, in front of one another and in front of a camera.   What beautiful memories we created!

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