let’s be friends : @nicole_fichera 

 
Portrait of a 31-year-old who’s out of fucks and into pics and ready to make some gd noise💋 // 📷 @allyschmaling, 👗 @an_erin
Me drinking in all the beauty and positivity and light from my friends’ Instagram feeds to get my soul ready for another week on this wild planet 💋⠀ 📷: @__s____o via @kellywearstler
I never would have taken a picture like this a few years ago—let alone shared it on the internet. I was scared to be seen as unprofessional, frivolous, self-indulgent, silly, vain, extra, girly, whatever. I was scared of not being taken seriously by powerful men, so I wore blazers and hid my feelings and ignored my body to work long hours and try to win the game. And then...my body rebelled. I had panic attacks, insomnia, injuries. My bosses didn’t take my doctors appointments and boundaries seriously, belittled my feelings and concerns. They asked for more, while telling me I still wasn’t good enough. So I stopped playing the game. I left. And then I realized that I hated the game, that I don’t even really like games at all. I realized that all those words I was afraid of like vain and weak and silly and frivolous were misogyny in action, words designed to tear me down and never allow me to feel confident in my curious spirit and my physical being. So here’s me, feeling myself, exploring the angles of my face and reveling in pink. Take that, misogyny. I still like myself despite your best efforts to dampen my joy.
MAXIMALISM FOREVER 😘😘😘 this lewk: leopard print metallic silk jacquard poofy skirt + vintage men’s belt + burnout zebra print sweater + bright yellow purse + green eyeshadow = one very happy lil nugget doing the absolute most 😉
Hi today I’m in the mood for green and magenta velvet!! That’s all!! Happy Friday!!!⠀ // design by @em_henderson for @ohjoy
I’m feeling really meditative tonight, and I just really want to thank all of you for being here with me. For hearing me, and encouraging me, for your wisdom and your strength, for showing me your ways of being and dealing with things. You’ve given me so much. I feel more like myself than I ever have, like I’m able to stand here and be seen. It’s a real gift, and this community has given that to me. It’s been fundamental and transformative and deep. Every comment, every like, every DM with a story that feels comforting and similar and validating—it all means so much. Thanks for being there. Love to you. ❤️ // by the queen of seeing, @allyschmaling
I triple dog dare you to say no to something today. Saying no is hard, but it makes space to say yes to other stuff that you like doing more. Here are some scripts to help you get it done! “I’m sorry, but that won’t be possible.” / “That’s unfortunately not something I can currently take on.” / “I appreciate you thinking of me, but at this moment I have other priorities to consider.”⠀ Also, plain old “no, thank you!” can work too 😊 (ps I don’t look like this today at all but I thought it was a good “I dare you” face hehe—check my stories for the troll realness)
I see you. You’re doing enough. You’re trying enough. You’re making enough. The world is hard, and brains are hard, and relationships are hard, and money is hard, and being a human is hard. We’re all in it together, sweet ones. Be kind to yourselves. You are totally, completely, absolutely, ridiculously enough. #repost from @hourglassboston for #worldmentalhealthday 😘
Things I have: depression and sequined mesh dresses. Things I make: major earrings, music, and weird spaces for creatives. Things I am: a human with both talents and challenges. Things I like: sparkles and patterns and talking about my feelings on the internet 😬⠀ // 📷 @beckydonner
Shout out to the dudes who called me “too aggressive” on my performance reviews 😘😘😘 miss you, hope nothing spills on your khakis today // 📷 @allyschmaling
When I was studying architecture, I had a female teacher who pulled me aside and said that if I wanted to be taken seriously, I should stay away from silly colors and that I couldn’t smile and make jokes all the time—that male architects could be fun and ironic in their work and their presentation but I couldn’t. So this image is a big 🖕🏻to all of that useless misogynistic noise. You can’t win if you play by the rules of the patriarchy, because it’s not designed for you anyways. So fuck it. Be yourself, loud. 😘 (📷 by @allyschmaling at @hourglassboston)
Fall obsessions: plaid + neon pink.