My feelings towards Valentine’s Day vary from year to year and depending on what mood I’m in. When I was younger it definitely felt like more of a thing but as i've gotten older (and maybe just cynical and miserable haha) it doesnt really mean much to me. I’ve been in a relationship for over two years now and love him dearly (most of the time *emoji eyes*), but do I really need a special day to confess this? Why is Today any different from yesterday? That is one side of my opinion however I’m also like wellll it’s cute, yes it’s gimmicky but it is what it is, and yes I will still get him a card. Anyway, relationships aside, the most important love is the love you have for yourself. You have to make yourself happy before anyone else can and if there's going to be a special day for all things love related then self-love needs to be in there too.

Last Valentine’s Day I went to a self-love workshop with Paperchase (writing this now I can’t actually believe that was a year ago as it feel like last week...) and we were asked to write love letters to our younger self with all of the advice our older, wiser selves had soaked up over the years. I can’t remember the exact words of wisdom I scribbled down 365 days ago, but I thought I’d give it another stab this year and share it with you, because surely we could all do with a bit of self-love no matter what the date. To Rachael (and everyone else reading this), First of all, stop worrying about what other people think. In fact, you should probably just stop worrying all together. Worrying about things isn’t going to change the series of events or the outcome, and as much as a good cry does sometimes help, worrying is just so tiring, draining and basically an absolute waste of your time. Try doing things to stop you from worrying in the first place and enjoy the here and now rather than worrying about what hasn’t or may never even happen. Don’t give yourself such a hard time, all of the time. You are your biggest critic and as long as you’re doing your best then that’s enough. Honestly no one cares as much as you do. And whilst we’re on about caring - it’s ok to be a softy and care a lot about things. Caring too much is not a fault so stop seeing it as a bad trait, it’s good to give a shit and be empathetic with people. You also need to remember that you’re not going to please everyone all of the time, not a fault just a fact. Sometimes you can’t make a lunch or attend every event under the sun but it’s ok to say no, people aren’t going to hate you for not being able to attend every single thing happening ever. By not saying no you actually get yourself into a worse situation of double booking and then having to let someone down. Stop being such a scaredy cat about things, you have to take risks sometimes and believe in yourself. It’s ok to wear your heart on your sleeve and be an open book, that’s the kind of person you are and life would be boring if we were all the same. Finally, it’s ok to be ridiculously tall, to have a head the size of a pea, to have wonky teeth, a northern accent, thin hair and all the other things you hate about yourself because that’s what makes you you, and you’re the only one. Ok, enough Stilton for one post, I hope you are giving yourself all of the love today, tomorrow and everyday to be honest. Happy Valentine’s Day! Rachael X

P.s. These are some of my first ever shots from my 35mm Yashica Minister camera and whilst I've definitely got a lot to earn, I LOVE them and can't wait to shoot more on film. Hope you like them too!