Towner Studios — Local services in Joplin

Average. We have all heard that word before in reference to ourselves, whether we have said it or someone else, not a 10 but not a 2 … somewhere in that 4-6 range, aka average. Average is how I felt when the model calls for “curvy” girls went up on Makayla’s boudoir page. Average is how I felt as I sat there staring at my blinking cursor, trying to summon up the words that would inspire Makayla to pick me to take photos of. Average is how I felt standing in front of the mirror brushing my teeth the morning of my photoshoot. That would be the last time I felt average though. Upon arriving to Makayla’s studio, I was immediately transported into another world. The studio is feminine and delicate while at the same time being very strong and empowering. I had barely set my things down before Alex had a mimosa in my hand to help calm the nerves. From across the room the hype girls, as I like to call them, started. “Your hair is gorgeous”, “look at those eyes”, “that smile”, and the list goes on. The hair and makeup … good lord I didn’t know I could look that good, were fantastic. The girls had me laughing and just enjoying sitting there letting it be all about me. The time came for clothes to come off and yes, while the butterflies took flight … the hype continued, and the butterflies disappeared. The suggestions for hand placement, leg placement, the poses, the different ideas that kept taking shape in Makayla and Alex’s heads while they were looking through a lens finder towards me took my breath away … perhaps also made me wish I did significantly more yoga but were so much fun and imaginative. I never felt like I was trying to force something, and it transported me back in time to being a little girl and thinking I too could be a model. It honestly ended much faster than I had anticipated, I felt like we had just started. The prep, the experience, everything … could never have prepared me for the reveal. I was afraid that the strong, I can do anything feeling that came over me with the click of each photo was going to disappear the moment I put my clothes back on and got back to “real life”. The reveal of those photos though … I can not even put into words how amazed and awestruck I was looking at MYSELF. The fierce, sensual, but overly playful person staring back at me is exactly who I am, and Makayla and Alex captured it so poetically. I am so far from average, hell each one of us are so far from average, but sometimes you have to strip drown, get uncomfortable, and let someone else lead you back to the path to really see yourself. I cannot thank these two women enough for how amazing my shoot was, or how un-average I feel on the other side of it. If you for a second are thinking about boudoir, do it, do it now, and do it with them. You are going to be hard pressed to find this kind of experience...

I’m just like you, and we’re like many women who have read, viewed, and thought about doing a Boudoir shoot but never thought they could look as good as the photos we’ve already seen. You are not receiving just amazing images when working with the Makala Towner Photography team; you’re encountering a world-class experience from before the first shot.

I saw a post on their main page that piqued my interest. To say it was the furthest thing from my mind and even further to think of setting up something like that would be putting it mildly. So, I went back and joined the private Boudoir group I was invited to, and then shortly after that, I scheduled my Boudoir photoshoot as a gift for my husband. What I never would’ve imagined is that I just gave myself the best gift too.

I was incredibly nervous walking into this appt. I was anxious, thinking, “would my photos turn out as good as the ones I’ve seen Makayla do of others?” and “I hope I don’t look as awkward as I feel.” Let’s not forget my final thought thinking, “I think I’m going to vomit!” Well, let me put your mind at ease if you’re feeling the same way. From the moment you walk in the door, you are pampered, complemented, and supported. The “glam-squad” consisted of talented, kind, encouraging women to help enrich the overall experience. I had so much fun getting ready! It was like I was with my group of girlfriends. Being around them helped put me at ease.

Then it came time for me to “get dressed” or undressed, as I like to think of it, and boy did the butterflies kick back up with quantum force. The lingerie pieces they chose for me were stunning! I hoped and prayed to God that I would look as sexy as the pieces were lying there.

Once I was in my first outfit and stepped out, they made me feel like I wasn’t in the skimpiest thing. It was like they knew what to say and when to say it because, within moments, I began to relax a bit. Makayla’s professionalism, yet down-to-earth personality, made me feel relaxed.

Every woman needs to experience something like this at least once in her life. Yes, I initially did it for my husband, but I walked away with newfound inner strength and confidence that I did not walk in with.

Oh, I can’t forget to mention the shockingly beautiful, sexy, yet sophisticated photos I ended up with, and abso-freakin-lutely LOVED. My audible gasps when I saw these photos, plus seeing Makayla excited about them, made me feel like I could conquer the world. I know my husband will FREAK OUT when he sees them, and in a good way. I can’t wait to see the shocked look on his face when I reveal his gift to him for Valentine's Day. #bestwifeever

What are you waiting for? Go ahead and gift yourself and your significant other this wonderful gift!

With Love and...

I got to experience a day with Towner Studios. I will start off by saying, It was a MUST DO kind of experience. It was a little different than what I had originally thought, but not in a bad way whatsoever. You start off by going in, talking with the girls, picking out what your plans are for the day and what your goals are to how you want the pictures to look, and it is magical from there. There are a lot of options for as simple or as glam as you are wanting. I have taken pictures in the past and they usually have an idea of what they want your pictures to look like, but with Towner, they ask for what your goals are, so it makes for the best possible outcome. If you want the dramatic eye look, you've got it, if you want a simply sweet look, you've got it. They do your hair and makeup how you want. Then you go to difference "scenes," depending on what your wishes are. There are so many different choices, that it literally fills everyone's dreams with what they are hoping to see in the results. I originally had watched a close eye on all of the photography for a few months, because I had specific wants with my pictures. After seeing what they had done within the few months I had kept the close eye on, I KNEW this was where I wanted to have some Boudoir pictures done. The angles and the shots were mind blowing, and the way they capture each spot of beauty is unbelievable. I will absolutely book with them again, and do a completely different scene and look, because it was literally that fun. I wish that everyone could experience this day in Towners at a least once in...