Frida Kahlo-inspired Photoshoot

Last month, my friend and I decided to do a collaboration project for our respective assignments (Photography for her, styling for me). Before the shoot, I was required to submit a moodboard. I don't know what triggered a Frida Kahlo idea but she was the first idea that popped in my head as an inspiration.

Click HERE for the actual Pinterest moodboard.

For the shoot, I wanted a modern take of Frida Kahlo. I tweaked her outfits and her look but tried to remain true to her style. I made sure there were mix and match of prints and colours, embroidery details, layers of accessories and of course, her headpiece.

I decided to omit the unibrow and the braided hair because I was not aiming to exactly copy her. Since this was a small project, I asked our friend if she can be our model and she was happy to render us her service. Haha!

As for the outfits, we looked for clothes in the easiest place we can go to - our closet. Luckily, my friend and I have heaps of options to choose from in our own closets and we actually have items that fits my modern Frida Kahlo idea. Also, my friend did her own make-up since we have no budget for a make-up artist nor do we know a make-up artist who can collaborate with us on this project. Being self-sufficient really comes handy. Location, you ask? I wanted a leafy or slightly rustic background. When we looked around, and we didn't get too far really, our backyard fits the bill. Easy peasy.

Aaannddd here it is! Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you my (long overdue) collaboration project with my favourite photographer (aka the person behind most of my ootd photos), Vernadette Carullo! :)

True to Frida Kahlo fashion, mix and match of prints and bold colors are essential. The key to mix and matching colours is to make sure that the colours complement each other and there is at least one similar colour that must be present on all items. For her first outfit, the blues, reds and whites worked together. Her headwrap is actually a kimono cover-up that we folded and played around with.

The second look was a splash of colours. Since the skirt was very colourful, it was easy to style it around because any colour will look good with it. Of course, this wouldn't be Frida Kahlo-inspired without the headpiece so I decided to use it for this look.

The third look has a touch of grunge. I tried to amp it up a bit. We changed the skirt and shoes and added the army green jacket with colourful embroidery and neon coloured accessories as contrast. See how tweaking here and there can change the whole vibe of an outfit? The vibrant colours, the embroidery details, the accessories are still there but a little tweaking can make the whole look totally different.

Unfortunately, I couldn't submit these photos now because they changed the requirement. Not to worry though, these can be used for our portfolio. Or our respective instagram accounts. Hehe.

Big thanks to my friends, Clare and Vernadette, for waking up early, for braving the heat that day and for working (Yessss! Haha!) with me.