I started making content really young, and I think when you start young, you spend the first while just saying yes. Yes to the shoot, yes to the trend, yes to whatever gets attention, because attention feels like proof that you're doing it right. It took me a minute to learn that a boundary isn't a door closing on your career. It's you finally holding the pen.
So this is a gentle, honest post about where I draw my lines now — because I think a lot of girls who want to model or create are quietly wondering the same things I was.
Boundaries are allowed to change
Here's the thing nobody tells you: what you're comfortable with at eighteen is not a contract you signed forever. People grow. Tastes change. What feels like me shifts, and it's supposed to. I've made things in the past that I've since chosen to take down — not because anyone made me, but because they stopped reflecting who I am, and I'm allowed to change my mind about my own work. That's not something to be ashamed of. That's just being a person.
If you take one thing from this: you are allowed to outgrow things. You are allowed to close a chapter you opened yourself.
The lines I keep now
These days I know pretty clearly what I want my work to feel like — soft, feminine, a little whimsical, the princesscore world I actually love. I say no to shoots that don't feel like that, even flattering ones. I don't do content that I wouldn't be happy for my little cousins to stumble on. And I've learned to ask, before I ever pick up a camera, one quiet question: would future-me be glad this exists? If the answer is shaky, that's my answer.
Saying no used to feel scary, like I'd be dropped or forgotten. What actually happened is the opposite — the more specific and protective I got about my image, the more the work that did fit came to me.
Consent doesn't end when you hit post
The part I care about most is consent — and not just the version where you agree to take a photo. Real consent is ongoing. It means I get to decide where my image lives, for how long, and I get to change that decision later. When people repost or scrape content without asking, they're skipping that entire idea, and it's exactly why I've been so firm about getting unauthorized reposts of me removed. If you want the practical side of that, I wrote about reposts, DMCA and image theft here, and I've put an official statement on the record too.
I'm still figuring a lot of this out — I'm 20, not wise. But I'd rather draw my lines out loud than let anyone else draw them for me. If you're just starting out: protect your peace, keep the pen in your own hand, and never let “yes” be the only word you know how to say. 💗 #liviasloves