At the start of the year I had an amazing experience. I went away with the State of Mind A team and Katie from Toodalookatie (you should know this by now with these #2Plus2 posts!) to Devon for a pretty epic few days. State of Mind were shooting their new range in the tranquil but oh so beautiful location of SouthSands hotel on Southsands bay and they wanted Katie and I to be their model bloggers for the shoot. They really wanted the brand to represent their customers. Different shapes, different sizes but with one thing in common. Wanting to look and feel great. Hell yes to that!
I felt super privileged to be part of the campaign and learning about the woman behind State of Mind (Kerensa!) made me realize that this brand isn’t in it just to conquer the plus size market, oh no, they genuinely want women to feel good about themselves when they are being or moving around. Not just yoga or jogging, but things like playing with the kids at the park or being comfortable at home.
All their clothing has bits of detail that plus size woman… and woman of all sizes I’m sure, appreciate. For example, high waist joggers that will NOT fall down no matter how much climbing up stairs or wonderful yoga shapes you do. State of Mind hoodies are long enough to cover your bum and hips so that you don’t have to worry about bending down and flashing your knickers. Yes, I have been there. It’s about style and comfort, wicked material to take away the sweat and feminine shapes to make you feel good.
Katie and I really got into the swing of things in Devon and gave the clothes lots of road testing. From running along the beach to getting ready to swing my hockey stick as low as I could. Katie was working her hips while hula hooping and punching up a sweat with boxing moves. We were also around some professional models that looked amazing in some of the new limited edition ranges.
I can’t tell you how beautiful the location was. Right next to the sea, the waves were splashing gently against the balcony while Katie and I relaxed in the hotel with wine and chatting. State of Mind was at it’s best that night I can tell you. It really gave the shoot a sense of freshness and realness.
I can’t lie, we were incredibly spoilt. We had hair and make up done, had the most amazing fresh food. (Crab, haddock, fish pie and pigeon… were so delicious!) And the company was just fantastic. I’m so glad my partner in crime and I did it together. Our relationship was definitely cemented over those couple of nights. You know those times when you take your bra off and just lay on a soft hotel bed chatting about life and how being plus size isn’t a bad thing. Well that’s what we did.
We were also filmed and photographed by Gavin Withey during our few days with State of Mind who took some great action shots and behinds the scenes footage. He was really lovely to hang out with and we’d recommend him for anyone looking for a great photographer who can get the profile shot and the location shot. Plus he has a world of knowledge and great conversation.
We wanted to share some of the pictures that were taken on the day. Both professional and some of our own random pictures. I’m a size 24 and Katie is a 20. I’m hoping you can see that we were super comfy in what we were wearing and it’s pretty obvious to say we had a blast. Check out Toodalookatie and her version of events (I’ve told her what happened in the hotel stays in the hotel! – although you can see a little funny video of us if you follow me on Instagram). Of course, also check out State of Mind for sportswear, active wear and lounge wear in sizes 14 -28.
