Christmas break is over and it's time for blogging again! This chapter I will dive into the subject 'shifting identities' connected to appearance. At first you might think that's all going to be about fashion and pretty things, but appearance is more than that. It's about who you are, who you want to be and everything in between. It's not only about looking good, it's about what's underneath.

The first thing I'm going to tell you about is a perfect example. The project is called 'I am what's underneath'. Maybe you can guess what's it about? Two woman, a daughter and a mother, want to show the world that it's not about clothing, but about what's underneath.

Elisa Goodkind worked as a fashion stylist while daugther Lily was in her teenage years. Lily tried everything to be like all the 'skinny and pretty' girls from the magazines. With unhealthy eating and dieting pills she lost herself in this empty ideal of beauty. Over the course of 20 years Elisa realized that fashion was turning into a machine turning out one prescribe surface image. "I realized that those same magazine covers I was styling were destroying my daughter's self-exteem" she says. Elisa quit her job and collaborated with her daughter to start the project 'I am whats underneath'.




The kickstarter is done and they collected 135% of their goal. It's clear there is a need for attention to this subject. At the moment the project is in full swing. You can watch all the stories at their website which is still growing every day. It is so great and inspiring to see all these different stories. And it makes you realize that everyone has issues and flaws. At least once in their life everyone has had that feeling that they were lacking something that kept them from feeling beautiful and I bet you are one of them. No matter how fierce they might look at the beginning of the video, everyone has his own story.

This project is a great example of the trend 'transparency'. We all want to know what's behind that fabulous fashion girl and by exposing those vulnerable stories, it makes us feel better about ourselves. Maybe it's okay if I'm not perfect, she has flaws too? It is clear that this amazing proje ct has a lot of growth potential, since it is already growing each day. New sub projects are arising. For example: 'second skin' in which two fashion icons trade clothes with each other. They even got some celebrities involved, which probably makes it even more inspiring for people.

Oh, and what about 'shifting identities'? This project is proof that the fashion industry is changing. The need for authenticity grows and we don't want to see the perfectly photoshopped skinny girl anymore on the cover of a magazine. Elisa and Lily have a goal to create a world-wide movement for self-acceptance with this project and I think they are doing a pretty damn good job at it!