In Bloom
A Blog By Phase And Flow
Hi lovely,
This is In Bloom, a space I want women to feel they can come to as they are.
Not just for the days you feel put together and certain of yourself, but for the days that feel slower, messier, or harder to explain. The days where getting dressed feels like too much, where your energy shifts without warning, or where everything feels slightly heavier than it should.
Because for something so natural, the experience of being a woman can feel surprisingly difficult to make sense of. There’s so much we’re expected to manage quietly, so much we learn without ever being told directly, and so many ways we end up measuring ourselves without questioning where those standards came from.
In Bloom is where I try to make sense of that.
Each month, I explore one idea more deeply. Sometimes it’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while, sometimes it’s something I’ve only just started to notice. But it’s always rooted in the same intention, to understand the female experience a little more clearly, without overcomplicating it or turning it into something it’s not.
Think of it as sitting down with someone who will tell you the truth, but gently. Someone who doesn’t expect you to have it all figured out, and doesn’t need you to be anything other than where you are.
You don’t have to be impressive here.
You don’t have to be perfect.
And you definitely don’t have to be thriving.
You just have to be here.
With love,
Ava
The Shame of Girlhood
I can’t remember the first time I felt ashamed of being a girl, but I do remember the first time I realised I was supposed to be.
It started as a small moment when I was fourteen, something I didn’t think twice about at the time, but one that quietly stayed with me. From there, it became something bigger.
This month’s In Bloom explores the cultural side of girlhood, the things we learn to soften, the things we don’t say, and the subtle ways shame is carried over time.
Because for something so biologically ordinary, the experience of being a woman has never just been personal. It’s been shaped by what we’ve been taught is acceptable to say, and what is easier to keep to ourselves.
