As I approach thirty (though I still feel not a day over twenty), I am able to reflect back on my twenties as a time of great expectations, and great explorations. For me, and for many of my friends, these have been years of uncertainty, in which we have all strived to find ourselves, to figure out self-love, to hit our strides, to become adults - all while grappling with fluctuating, but nonetheless deep-seated, feelings of insecurity, inadequacy and fear. I wish that I could have discovered Alexandra's work earlier, as a twenty-something at the beginning of an uncertain journey and in search of exactly the kind of guiding light that her words provide. Hers is the sort of writing that lifts you up as you read it, the literary equivalent of a deep and nourishing breath. She reminds the reader, with unmatched candor and eloquence, that we are all human, that the present is all we have, and that it will all be okay. Though we have never met, all that she writes - from poems, to essays, to daily Instagram posts - resonates deeply for me, as if coming from a longtime friend who always gives the perfect advice.

I feel incredibly fortunate to now count her as a friend of the brand, and am elated to have captured her warm and cozy at home in the midst of east coast fall. Nearing the end of pregnancy with her second child and radiant as ever, she is truly as beautiful as her words are. See below for one of my favorites from her recent book Neon Soul.

– pd