Creative Directing this Cushnie Dresses Photoshoot

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Hey yall! I am throwing humility out the door today and going to boast a bit. Creative directing this Cushnie Dresses photoshoot with Shauniece had me completely feeling myself and my talent. It is rare that I speak on my skills and it is even rarer that I take a compliment well or even pat my own self on the back but this Cushnie Dress photoshoot had me beaming with pride.

One day over text, Shauniece and I contemplated shooting together but did not know what. We knew we wanted to focus on Black businesses and brands and I took it a step further by adding editorial style photos celebrating these businesses. Shauniece is the Black business plug. I’ve learned of so many local businesses and brands through her. She also found these Cushnie dresses for us and they are just AMAZING.

For those who may not have known, Carly Cushnie, a phenomenal Black clothing designer collaborated with Target on a line of perfect summer dresses. I learned of Cushnie a few years back and never dreamed I would be draped in one of her designs but here I am rocking this beautiful red number. These Target collabs are just everything!

But I’m getting a bit off topic. Back to the photoshoot. The minute Shauniece and I decided we were shooting together, I was creating an entire document with inspiration, outfit ideas, and pose ideas for it. Yes-pose ideas. I believe that the right pose can make anything look more editorial and since we are not professional models, it would speed up our shoot. While I took the “creative” tasks, Shauniece handled logistics like locations. Like I previously wrote, she knows all the good businesses.

For this, our first shoot together, we stayed near our homes in Upper Marlboro. Houeys Shaved Ice was our first location. Although we had specific outfits for this location, once Shauniece found these Cushnie dresses we, deviated from the plan a bit.

They were TOO good not to shoot! So while you cannot see Houeys (wait for the next post from us cause you can), all of these photos were taken on that property.

It’s funny because as children we are often asked “what do you want to be when you grow up”. I always answered with “Doctor”. Because that was my apiration. I have a passion for medicine as strong as my passion for fashion but alas my discipline was not what it needed to be for the grueling curriculum to become a physician. So I dropped out of that. I wanted to major in fashion also but I am Haitian. If you don’t know what that means then ask me in the comments and I will respond lol.

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The reason I bring this up is simple. This photoshoot let me get a taste of what I really “want to be when I grow up”. Creative directing makes me happy. Developing concepts for a shoot or for a social media campaign makes me happy. It never feels like work to me because I enjoy it so much. So although it is not my 9-5, this blog allows me to work my dreams. You all reading, supporting, following me on social media, purchasing things I recommend, allows me to live my dream. And for that, I will forever be grateful.

So I guess the humility did pop up. Lol.

But I am VERY proud of this shoot. To see my “vision” come alive fills me up with so much joy. To be able to do this without a team outside of the 3 of us fills me up with pride.

So oftentimes, these are not JUST random shoots. This is me living my dream. Because as you know especially in the fashion industry, it is RARE that a Black woman has executive leadership or even a leadership title. So adding creative director, even for my own company, means the world to me and will open up doors for me.

To all the young girls out there who are reading right now, I leave you with this– the world is yours. No dream of yours is too big or too small. If you are passionate about something, follow your heart. Never let anyone tell you anything can’t be a real job. Be responsible but be bold also. Never minimize or shrink yourself. Find what you love and give it all you have and you will forever be happy.

Thank you all so much for reading this and THANK YOU for being a part of this online community with me. Enjoy your weekend and don’t forget to subscribe to the newsletter for the next round of where to Buy Black.

The Team Behind this Cushnie Dress Photoshoot

Models: myself and Shauniece

Photographer: Jermaine Maull for 10th Letter Visuals

Location: Houey’s Shaved Ice area

Dresses: Cushnie Dresses

Camera used: Canon 80D with 50mm 1.4 and 24mm 2.8

Time of Day: 7:30am ET

Team fan: Teagan in her stroller. I sincerely am obsessed with this Britax stroller!