Mother & Model: The Mother's Day Issue

Francis Wilmann, Brandyn & Ella
Photographed by William H. Caple III
Written by William H. Caple III

Francis' Blouse & Pants - FiRE LA
Francis' Sandals - Steve Madden
Brandyn's Shirt - Peek
Brandyn's Shorts - H & M
Brandyn's Shoes - Sperry
Ella's Dress - Jenna & Jessie Purchase at Nordstrom
Ella's Sandals - Stevies Purchase at JC Penny

Sometimes mothers are models. I absolutely have no idea what it is to be a mother, but I do have personal experiences of observing them. Francis, better known as Frankie, is an absolutely stunning mother in ever since of the word. She is beautiful, and has such a genuine smile you'd do almost anything she asked, but she is also a determined hard worker. She is a hair stylist at a Spa in Scottsdale, while attending school, and as if it's a side job, which it is not, she has two wonderful children to raise. She is, what we say in the vernacular, "real" from the moment she arrived. And as fun, and easy going as she was, her children were so pleasant to be around I thought they were adults. Except for the fact that they were short, they could carry a conversation with the best of lightrail riding patrons. This mother's hard work was obviously paying off in all areas of her life. She looks amazing, she's reaching for new heights in her career and has lovely children. You could say she's a model mother.

I know that this is an unusual sidebar for most fashion blogs, but I believe life is fashion, and what more to honor life and fashion by honoring the people that bring life into the world. If life isn't fashion, I don't know what is! This issue features Francis and her lovely children, but it's dedicated to all the mothers of Phoenix and Arizona that have the awesome responsibility of being a mother, the gravity of which I can only imagine. Thank you mothers for caring for us, for believing in us, for birthing us, and giving us life. Motherhood is sexy, motherhood is in vogue, and motherhood will never go out of fashion. Mothers might seem tough at times, but we all know that Mothers & Models are like M & M's, they have a hard candy shell, and a soft chocolate center. As the saying goes, "M & M's melt in your mouth, not in your hand." Happy Mother's Day!

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