“i don’t care if i win… but i’m not losing.” - James ford

UNREAL.

Anyone else watching the incredibly talented & dreamy James Ford on the new Netflix series Next in Fashion? What a story. Episode 4 of had me trying to watch through some tears on the cusp. I’m so proud of James and the amazing work he's done!

It’s been so moving to watch him dominate over the past few years. This honestly came at the perfect time…I needed this reminder of my why in life & why we share our stories. For me, it always comes down to partnering with the right people in our community to make the most impact & help others feel less alone in this world.

I’m so proud of the team we brought together & wish I could relive the memories from this shoot with Google. 🏳️‍⚧️ 🏳️‍🌈

PS: I spy some snaps from the @stephgrantstudios crew on the @nextinfashion series!! What was your favorite look? 🍕

Looking back on the blog story I posted from 2019…the quote below from James really brought everything full circle.

“HAD I BEEN EXPOSED TO SOMEONE WHO LOOKED LIKE ME, TALKED LIKE ME, AND ACTED LIKE ME, I WOULDN’T HAVE SPENT SO MANY VERY UNHAPPY YEARS TRYING TO FORCE MYSELF INTO AN IMAGE OF FEMININITY. WHAT WE DID DURING THIS SHOOT WILL SHOW KIDS WHAT THE POSSIBILITIES ARE AS THEY GROW AND DEFINE THEIR OWN IDENTITIES.”

— JAMES FORD

Safe to say James choosing to share his talent and his story with the world will save lives. I don’t doubt that for a second. Protecting transgender kids every single day is so incredibly important and one of those ways is by visibility and representation. I am so lucky to have be a small piece of James’ story and photographing him was pure joy. He is magic.

XO STEPH

“I’m not going home BECAUSE of a dress.”

Honestly though, when he reached out to us about using some of the images Steph Grant Studios took to use in his run in Next in Fashion, I was - as the kids say - shooketh.

I was indirectly connected to James since he was part of the Inclusivity shoot, but I didn't actually get to meet him. I've just really resonated with his journey and his passion for representation, and followed him on IG. While I've also never met Tan France, fashion has played a huge role in my identity journey and he's been a kind of fairy godperson indirectly guiding my gender expression and understanding. So, James using images SGS took on Next in Fashion hosted by Tan felt incredibly surreal!

Maybe it's all just coincidence, or possibly an aligning of separate realities. Who knows? Maybe it was ordained by a higher power! After all, Tan has said that "there IS a higher power... and it's fashion."