Bonjour! Today I wanted to take a little break from telling you about my summer in Italy because there is something special I want to talk about. It involves make-up, fantasy, and falling leaves. All the things that Fall and Halloween are known for. I know a lot of people partied all weekend to celebrate Halloween, and I recently was involved in a photo project myself which happened to be very much in the spirit of that holiday. So it seems like the perfect time to bring it up!

A few weeks ago, I was training in Pilates with my friend Yla (oh yes, I will never stress enough how important it is to cross train when you are a dancer, and just for everyone to sustain your body). Just like me, Ylaria Bolzoni is a dancer. Originally from Milan (Italy), she moved to Paris 7 years ago to pursue her performing career. And this year, she decided to add up new skills to her resume : Pilates and make-up.

So as we're in the middle of a private mat class, and I'm just finishing my hundreds, she suggested to try some make-up on me. Why me? Basically cause I'm crazy, and she assumed I'd let her go crazy too! Needless to say, my imagination had already gone to run wild.

This summer I had been enjoying Paris' beautiful weather and hanging out at a park on the Puteaux Island. Ever since I had been daydreaming about doing an original photoshoot there.

I had already scouted the place and taken pictures, so in just a few minutes (after we finished our work-out!) I showed Yla and she was sold.

Now the fun part. Being a performing artist, Yla has a different idea of make-up. She's more interested in the creation of a whole concept than just in painting a face, if you see what I mean. That same night she sent me a few sketches on face charts. I suggested we used feathers, she suggested to mix them with living elements such as flowers and leaves. We had something.

The choice of a photographer was easy. My awesome bestie Candice Gz who helped me with another photo shoot project for Motionated this summer (stay tuned, it's coming soon!) had already made it clear we needed to shoot more often, and that she was excited about collaborating with different artists (one of the main purposes for which Motionated was created!). We only had to coordinate our schedule. And that was it!

This was only the first of a series of upcoming projects as my partners in crime and I have decided to keep up with the inspiration. But for now, I want to show you what happens when you take three dancers with big dreams, creativity, passion, and expectations that go beyond "just dancing", and let them go wild!