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If You Go Down to the Woods Today...
- Rebecca Reece
- Jun 10
- 9 min read
(Watch out for the naked ladies...There are a few of us!)
So, when I announced a couple of weeks ago that I was joining an amazing group of wild women for a naked photo shoot in the middle of nowhere, I got a mixture of responses.
Obviously leading with the naked element maybe wasn't the best idea, and my poor mum bless her - well - she even asked if it was porn. Definitely wasn't. I think she finally believed me.
I have to be honest though, I am still not sure she really understands. If she wasn't already grey, I genuinely think this announcement may have done it.
Once again of course, I have led with the nudity, but quite honestly, that was only a tiny and completely insignificant element of something that has already been lifechanging, and my experience is only just beginning!
So musers, make a cuppa, get a choccy biscuit and let me take you back to where it all began...
I have mentioned the gorgeous Katie in previous blogs, and what you are reading about today is all down to her. (Yes mum, it was all Katie's fault. Nowt to do with me!)
Anyhoo, Katie had come across an announcement for a series of photo shoots around some of the most beautiful spots in and around the North East within a group she is a part of.
The group are known as Wild Women Adventures, and believe me when I tell you - they are the true definition of women embracing everything that makes us the beautiful, complicated, wild, proud and majestic creatures that we are. I hadn't come across them prior to this so when Katie told me all about it, it was a no brainer. After all, you only live once!
The project itself has been called Legendary Creatures, and has been put together by three incredible women with the most amazing vision.
It spans 12 shoots showing some of the most beautiful and dramatic backdrops throughout the North East, whilst also embracing everything that we as women are through the medium of some of the most terrifying and exciting female legends.
Northumberland, where I hail from is the epitome of wild, rugged, untouched beaches and dense, dark, enchanting forests. Absolutely perfect for this kind of project.
Throughout the entire area lie ruins that tell stories of the people who went before. You just have to be quiet enough to hear them.
We also have the spectacular North Sea which can go from calm, tranquil waters to crashing, violent waves in a matter of minutes. She truly can be an unpredictable and dangerous mistress, but as you all know from previous blogs, the water is my second home so I take her as she is.
Forgive the cheese, but she truly does heal everything.
Gushing done. Promise ;)
Anyway, I very excitedly got myself into the group and started keeping an eye on the announcements. What I also noticed was there are all sorts of activities going on with them which look amazing. Moving forward, I will definitely be taking part in some of those, so watch this space...
Anyway, the reason Katie had messaged me was to ask if I fancied doing the second shoot which was focusing on the deadly beauties of the sea - the Sirens. We had missed the first one - the Crones, although having seen some of the pictures, it looked amazing.
If you don't know the legend of the Sirens, they were beautiful creatures from Greek mythology who would lure sailors to their death with their intoxicating voices.
The sailors would become so overwhelmed with desire that they would ignore the danger of sailing too close to the rocks, and their desperation would become their downfall as their ships sank below the waves, taking the sailors with them.
Although we wanted to get to that one, alas - it was not meant to be so I made absolutely certain that there was no way I was going to miss shoot number three - The Vampyres.
(I know, it should be an i but it's so much more fitting with the y!).
After a change to the original date, I found myself getting into a car on Friday 30th May with a bunch of ladies I had never met to take off my clothes, cover myself in blood and embrace my inner vampyre at Mitford castle. Having never even been aware of the existence of Mitford Castle, I was excited to see it, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't beginning to doubt my sanity as the car pulled away.
We couldn't have hit luckier with the weather, and I very quickly began to feel comfortable with the ladies I was heading up there with. Not only were they exceptionally friendly and chatty, but a couple of them had already been involved in shoots and knew just what it was like.
Thank you for making it such an incredible experience ladies!
We got there and headed up to the castle to meet our intrepid photographers, and the creators of this stunning project. Feeling a little sick at this point, I knew I was just going to have to bite the bullet when it came to dropping everything. You gotta be all in or there's no point, and this was an experience I did not want to miss!
Anyway, long story short, we were given the option of a 1,2,3 for undressing or just taking everything off. So, off it all came!
Now, as you all know musers, I go through phases of loving my body and then hating it, but since I hit my 40's, my shape has become less important than it was before, and how I am feeling has taken priority.
I was starkly aware though, before the clothing became obselete that night that I have put on about 10kg over the last 12 months, and I wasn't as confident about being naked in public as I would have been this time last year.
(I blame the Mr. Its nothing to do with my love of a good chocolate biscuit!)
The weird thing was, the very thing that I thought was going to make this almost impossible was the very thing that changed everything for me. I dropped the dress quickly. I didn't want to pause because that would have been a problem for me, and all of a sudden, there I was in all my naked glory on the top of a hill, inside a castle ruins in Northumberland.
For only a second I felt panic, and then as I looked at all the nakedness that I was surrounded with, it dawned on me why this was so important for all of us.
There, on that hilltop was life - wild and free.
There was power and strength and quiet vulnerability all wrapped up within the eternal beauty of the divine feminine.
Everyone was completely unique, their bodies carrying their story in every line, every curve, every scar and every mark on their skin.
Some of us were proudly carrying the scars of childbirth, and the gentle curve around our stomachs that bears the story of the incredible gift of giving life.
Some had lines and greying hair, symbols of the wisdom and experience that comes with a life well lived.
Some were still young, firm, supple and ready to embrace everything with the energy that comes from youth.
More importantly, every single one of them was beautiful and completely unique.
There is an inherent beauty within the female form, and standing there at that moment with the evening sun warm on my skin, I felt more connected to the universe, mother nature and every one of those incredible women than I ever have before. It was a brief moment of clarity and an instinctive spiritual connection with generations of women who have come before me, and those who are still yet to come.
Who would have thought standing naked in a castle ruin would create such a powerful moment?!
Anyway, back to what you are really here for... the shoot.
After my 'moment', we all started to head down into some small areas within the castle itself. They turned out to be really good for some of the shots that Rachel, Dani and Angela wanted to take. At one point, there was even an unexpected visitor appeared although I would imagine he was more taken aback then we were. After all, suddenly being faced with 14 naked women, all of whom have fake blood on them must have been slightly terrifying to come across in the middle of nowhere on a Friday night.
The tractor guy in the field below wasn't phased at all though. He stopped and had a good look for a few minutes. After all - naked ladies!
I could be wrong, but I do believe he took his phone out for pictures so goodness knows where those bad boys have ended up!
We spent a short while at the castle, and then putting our glad rags back on, we headed down towards the woods and the river and that is where the fun really began!
The beauty of a forest heading into the night lies not just in the way the light filters through the trees, but the quiet that surrounds you.
Other than the wind gently blowing through the leaves and the trickle of the water slowly meandering its way through the wood, (lets not forget the cackling from the naked vampiric women clambering around the bridge and peering through the branches as well though), it was very serene.
As the light was starting to fade, the mood became tangible to the point you could almost reach out and embrace it. Everyone was finding different areas of the clearing to pose in and you could visibly sense the change as people began to relax into the experience properly and really let themselves go.
This became the area where some of the bloodiest shots took place, and where I bit down hard on a still warm and beating heart! (Not really - I promise!)
It was a fake, but so much fun to relax into the narrative and pretend to be that mythical creature feeding on her kill.
As you can see from a handful of the pictures below, everyone got into it and we turned that quiet forest glen into something that looked like a murder spree!
It was almost perfect, until a father and son came along with their dog to disrupt the peace of the slaughter!
The poor lad can't have been more than 8 or 9 years old, and yet there he was - stood in the middle of the woods with a bunch of women covered in blood. Gotta be honest, I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when they got back home because that is one conversation that I cannot even begin to imagine having. Poor guy!
So, from tearing up hearts in the trees, we moved into the water.
I love a bit of cold water swimming but there is something distinctly primal about doing it naked. There were no barriers between my skin and the water. Feeling the chill and the gentle movement of the weeds dancing around my legs was one of the most sublimely beautiful things I have ever experienced.
It also helped being surrounded by ladies who like to cold water swim, so in we all went and away the girls began to snap again!
Although a handful of the photos taken in the water have been shared, there are a lot still a lot more to come. I have to be honest, I am mega excited to see those.
There was a real otherwordly feel that came from being in there and seeing everyone relax in a way that they hadn't prior to that was just amazing.
It was a truly raw, wild and transformative experience.
As well all know, though - all good things must come to an end and this was no different. It left me feeling a confusing mix of sadness and happiness.
After all, I had just spent the last couple of hours running around the woods naked, sitting in the river and pretending to be a Queen of the Undead. I reckon that has to be one of the best shoots I have ever been involved with and one of my favourite nights ever!
On the other hand, as much as I never wanted to wear clothes again, I was so excited to go home and tell the Mr all about the experience. Good job he is learning how to tune me out when I waffle!
So, for those of you dying to ask - yes. There is another one on the way.
(Inserting super excited face here!)
The next one is focussing on The Fae - the wee fairy folk that hide at the bottom of your garden.
Make no mistake though musers. The real Fae were cruel, cunning and ambitious. They would think nothing of stealing a baby and replacing it with their own weak, deformed children or turning a human into something that would amuse them. Their morality was ambiguous with some believed to be protectors, whilst others were weak, mischievous and dangerous.
My warning to you all - keep your eyes peeled if you're out and about, and if you come across a fairy circle over the next couple of weeks - stay away.
If you don't - you might just not make it home.
If you want to check out our absolutely amazing photographers, all their details are below. Watch this space for more on this incredible project!
Until next time...
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