Today we’d like to introduce you to Elmira Bairbil.
Hi Elmira, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My journey to creating MUSE started long before the brand itself. I began my career as a photographer and content creator, working with women, fashion, and visual storytelling. Photography taught me how much I value beauty, details, mood, and the way a visual story can make someone feel.
Four years ago, I moved to the United States with my young child and had to start over completely. I arrived with essentially nothing — no money in my pocket and no established career here. I had to rebuild my life and my professional path from the ground up.
It was challenging, but it also gave me the opportunity to rethink what I wanted to create and how I wanted to express myself. I knew that I wanted to continue doing what I had always loved — photography — but I also wanted to bring my own vision and creative perspective to a new place. So I started building my photography career again, this time in California.
Over time, California itself became a huge source of inspiration for me — the ocean, nature, soft sunlight, warm colors, relaxed lifestyle, and effortless sense of beauty. I wanted to create something of my own, something deeply connected to California and inspired by the place I had chosen to call home. I wanted to share that feeling with the women I photographed, with my clients, and eventually with women across California and the United States.
At the same time, I felt that something was missing from my photography. I had developed a very specific aesthetic in my work — soft, feminine, natural, and a little nostalgic — and I wanted to create something that could become part of that visual world. I wanted to bring fashion and femininity into my photography in a more tangible way.
That is how the idea of MUSE was born. In the beginning, I never imagined it as a full-scale fashion brand. I created the first pieces mainly for my own photography projects, with the idea of giving them as gifts to the women and models I photographed. I wanted the pieces to become part of my visual storytelling and to add another layer of beauty and emotion to my work.
But something unexpected happened. My clients, models, and people around me started asking about the pieces. They loved the idea, the feeling, and the aesthetic of the brand. That was the moment I realized that MUSE could be something much bigger than a creative project for my photography.
I decided to take the next step and turn MUSE into a real brand, creating an online platform where women could actually discover and purchase the pieces. I started developing the designs, working on the fabrics and details, creating the visual identity, photographing the collections, and learning every part of the business along the way. There was no big team behind me — I was involved in almost every part of the process.
For me, MUSE is more than lingerie and sleepwear. It is about feeling comfortable, feminine, and beautiful in your own skin. I wanted to create pieces that feel soft, effortless, and intimate — something that becomes part of your everyday life rather than something you only wear for a special occasion.
Today, MUSE is my way of combining everything I love — photography, fashion, femininity, California, and storytelling. I want every piece to carry a little feeling of this place: the softness of the ocean, warm sunlight, slow mornings, and effortless beauty.
What started as a small idea for my photography has grown into something much more personal. MUSE is not only a brand I created; it is a reflection of the life I built here from the ground up. Creating MUSE in America has been a journey of starting over, learning, experimenting, and believing in an idea before it even had a name.
And my hope is to continue sharing that feeling with the women I photograph, with my clients, and with women not only in California, but across the United States.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My journey to creating MUSE started long before the brand itself. I began my career as a photographer and content creator, working with women, fashion, and visual storytelling. Photography taught me how much I value beauty, details, mood, and the way a visual story can make someone feel.
Four years ago, I moved to the United States with my young child and had to start over completely. I arrived with essentially nothing — no money in my pocket and no established career here. I had to rebuild my life and my professional path from the ground up.
It was challenging, but it also gave me the opportunity to rethink what I wanted to create and how I wanted to express myself. I knew that I wanted to continue doing what I had always loved — photography — but I also wanted to bring my own vision and creative perspective to a new place. So I started building my photography career again, this time in California.
Over time, California itself became a huge source of inspiration for me — the ocean, nature, soft sunlight, warm colors, relaxed lifestyle, and effortless sense of beauty. I wanted to create something of my own, something deeply connected to California and inspired by the place I had chosen to call home. I wanted to share that feeling with the women I photographed, with my clients, and eventually with women across California and the United States.
At the same time, I felt that something was missing from my photography. I had developed a very specific aesthetic in my work — soft, feminine, natural, and a little nostalgic — and I wanted to create something that could become part of that visual world. I wanted to bring fashion and femininity into my photography in a more tangible way.
That is how the idea of MUSE was born. In the beginning, I never imagined it as a full-scale fashion brand. I created the first pieces mainly for my own photography projects, with the idea of giving them as gifts to the women and models I photographed. I wanted the pieces to become part of my visual storytelling and to add another layer of beauty and emotion to my work.
But something unexpected happened. My clients, models, and people around me started asking about the pieces. They loved the idea, the feeling, and the aesthetic of the brand. That was the moment I realized that MUSE could be something much bigger than a creative project for my photography.
I decided to take the next step and turn MUSE into a real brand, creating an online platform where women could actually discover and purchase the pieces. I started developing the designs, working on the fabrics and details, creating the visual identity, photographing the collections, and learning every part of the business along the way. There was no big team behind me — I was involved in almost every part of the process.
For me, MUSE is more than lingerie and sleepwear. It is about feeling comfortable, feminine, and beautiful in your own skin. I wanted to create pieces that feel soft, effortless, and intimate — something that becomes part of your everyday life rather than something you only wear for a special occasion.
Today, MUSE is my way of combining everything I love — photography, fashion, femininity, California, and storytelling. I want every piece to carry a little feeling of this place: the softness of the ocean, warm sunlight, slow mornings, and effortless beauty.
What started as a small idea for my photography has grown into something much more personal. MUSE is not only a brand I created; it is a reflection of the life I built here from the ground up. Creating MUSE in America has been a journey of starting over, learning, experimenting, and believing in an idea before it even had a name.
And my hope is to continue sharing that feeling with the women I photograph, with my clients, and with women not only in California, but across the United States.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a photographer and creative specializing in women’s portraits, fashion, lifestyle, and brand storytelling. My style is soft, feminine, natural, and inspired by California’s light, nature, and effortless beauty.
I’m most proud of building my photography career from the ground up after moving to the U.S., and eventually creating MUSE as an extension of my creative vision. What sets me apart is the way I combine photography, fashion, and storytelling to create imagery that feels personal and timeless.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
I am a photographer and creative specializing in women’s portraits, fashion, lifestyle, and brand storytelling. My style is soft, feminine, natural, and inspired by California’s light, nature, and effortless beauty.
I’m most proud of building my photography career from the ground up after moving to the U.S., and eventually creating MUSE as an extension of my creative vision. What sets me apart is the way I combine photography, fashion, and storytelling to create imagery that feels personal and timeless.
Pricing:
- Lingerie sets — starting at $60
- Sleepwear — starting at $60
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/muse.softwear?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==
- Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/MUSESOFT?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAdGRleATog7FwZG9mAmZkaWQWUMTEDahjFWNBXwa4R2Gw6WEmmD6Q1WV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDzEyNDAyNDU3NDI4NzQxNAABp-7gAkrqvpkD_ft9kcLPNN0CmgPz5epGirWoOsnO4yTRaXsK-_wvJKiFXaXa_aem_cSRZBDWTAPnqd9MZ5GZUqQ&dd_referrer=https://l.instagram.com/
Image Credits
Elmira Bairbil
